Everyone loves a Margarita. But it’s not necessarily a low-waste cocktail in its most common form. Between the sour component (typically lime juice, with the rest of the fruit being discarded), the agave spirit (which comes with significant sustainability concerns), and the sweetener (with a few of its own), creating the most sustainable Margarita isn’t a straightforward equation, but rather the result of an array of choices.
Each element comes with its own set of considerations, and to create a less-wasteful cocktail, there are many factors to address. But before getting into the details of how to make a low-waste Margarita, it’s important to clarify what that term actually means.
“Low waste” is defined by one bartender through the lens of his Native American heritage. “It’s not using something that I don't need and using every part of the things that I do,” he says. “Low waste is much more about the carbon footprint of glass [packaging], stillage, and citrus than it is about cute new recipes for the sake of being ‘low waste.’”
In an industry that’s inherently wasteful in many ways, an increasing number of bartenders over the past several years have been refining their techniques and doing their homework to ensure that their environmental impact—which includes their carbon footprint as well as the amount of trash they send to the landfill—is as light as possible.
Some of the drink world’s most mindful professionals have offered their suggestions on making sure no sustainability detail slips through the cracks, from holding spirit brands accountable to making the most of your citrus and beyond.
Choose Your Base Spirit Mindfully
Whether you opt for the standard tequila or prefer its earthier cousin, mezcal, there are a few ways to think about sustainability when it comes to the spirit selection for your Margarita.
Agave spirits, in particular, face long-term sustainability challenges: The massive volume of agave consumed creates the potential for overharvesting the plants, which usually require at least seven years to mature. But in order to select a brand or bottle that strives to be more sustainable, it’s important to know which questions to ask and where to look for answers.
Tequila has similar concerns as any other spirit category. When thinking about which tequila or mezcal to buy, it is important to ask questions such as, who made the spirit, how were they treated, and how did the maker treat the land it occupies? In addition to social and cultural considerations, it is important to also think of the importance of restoring and protecting the land on which the agave is cultivated, which is crucial for local biodiversity and its ecosystem.
When agave farmers are able to produce crops in perpetuity while protecting natural resources, their agricultural practices can be considered sustainable—a goal many distilleries are striving to achieve. Some are more ahead of the curve than others, employing practices such as minimizing the use of chemicals in their agave fields and turning the fiber remnants from milling agave piñas, or hearts, into compost.
Aside from the agricultural considerations, it’s important to think about how brands manage their stillage, or the solid remnants left in the still post-distillation. the stillage is caustic, usually toxic, and most distilleries just dump it. Some brands are doing a great job of treating theirstillage. One mezcal producer has even been making strides by using stillage to break down human waste in outhouses in rural areas of Mexico.
These are many considerations to keep in mind, to be sure, but by taking the time to do some research, you can make increasingly ethical purchasing decisions.
