LOCAL Houston | The City Guide MAY 2015 | Page 20

Local May_Final.qxp_002houston 4/23/15 12:19 PM Page 20 PERFECT PAIRS Guess what?? This tequila is the real deal!! As in, yeah, it tastes awesome, but also as in it exists outside of Entourage. And another thing you may have guessed (if you like aged spirits like we do), that 44 is the amount of months this smooth beauty spends in American oak barrels before being bottled. So now that we know it exists, it’s also true that the AVION RESERVA 44 (clearly an añejo, as proudly displayed in our photo here) is a product made for the most discerning of palates, and for the person who just wants to enjoy a damn fine tequila. Like any good tequila should, you get a nice nose of roasted agave, but that other accompanying scent...vanilla...courtesy of the oak aging. After a sip you get some great spice, a little heat, but an exceptionally smooth mouthfeel. You could, and should if you get the chance, sip on this all night long. Sticking with the guess theme, did you guess that the shell of the EL COCO is house-made chocolate, and it’s purposely shaped like a coconut? Good for you, if so. Fitting because everything inside is coconut family. And, yes, if you order the El Coco, you get to hammer it open! Inside that shell you get a quad shot of coconut delights, texturally different, but mingling so well. Coconut butter cream, coconut ganache, coconut streusel and whipped coconut, yep. Safe to say you should like coconut before ordering the El Coco, but remember real coconut tastes way different from fake – and we mean way better in this case. Other than the fact that these two are visually stunning, this pair just works. Coconut and tequila have a wonderful history (coconut margarita, anyone?). A sipper to savor and a dessert you have to use a hammer to open...how could you not enjoy these two together. There may be no better way to savor that top-notch meal you just enjoyed at CARACOL. No doubt, you will want to hug it out. By Mike Cook | Photography by Kennon Evett AVION RESERVA 44 + EL COCO Caracol | 2200 Post Oak Blvd., Houston, TX 77056 | 713.622.9996 | www.caracol.net | [email protected] Mon-Thur:11am–10pm, Fri–Sat: 11am–11pm, Sun: 11am–9pm 20 L O C A L | may 15