I’m just back from a wild holiday in Mexico and have discovered tequila. Forget about your college days and cheap tequila brands. These days the upscale bar scene is all about sipping tequila cocktails from in-demand boutique distilleries. So I’ve pulled together some tips on the best tequila bars to go to, what tequila cocktails to ask for and everything you need to know about tequila.

Top Tips:

1. Only buy tequila made exclusively from 100% blue agave plants – they just taste better.
2. Small producers are best. Try Patron, Casa Herradura and Don Julio or better yet, one you’ve not heard of and which come recommended by a good bartender.
3. No worms. No mescal.
4. Try sipping good tequilas straight-up in a whisky glass – don’t add ice or water though.
5. Order a tamarind margarita – made with tamarind juice, tequila, lime juice and a rim of chilli and lime salt, it’s my drink of choice right now.

What’s on the label?

1. ‘Blanco’ or ‘plata’ (‘silver’) tequilas. The unaged white spirit.
2. ‘Gold’. Blanco tequila with caramel or colouring added. Don’t touch these.
3. ‘Reposado’. Aged between two months and a year in oak barrels.
4. ‘Anejo’. Aged between one and three years in oak barrels.
5. ‘Extra aged’. Rare, aged over three years in oak barrels. Can rival a good Scotch whisky.

Great Tequila Bars:

Mayahuel – New York
There’s only one place any self-respecting New Yorker would go for a tequila cocktail – Mayahuel in the East Village. It’s like being in Mexico proper – window grilles, tiled walls and a lively crowd. The cocktail menu is brilliant. Try a Spicy Paloma – a spiced-up version of the classic paloma with grapefruit, lime and soda.

The Connaught Bar – London
Sometimes if you want the good stuff, you have to go to the best hotels in town for it. They mix a mean Cargarita at this super-slick five-star hotel bar – margarita with cardamom pods. They have 40 different tequilas and the best place to enjoy them is immediately around the bar.

The Upper House – Hong Kong
For boutique tequilas, head to Hong Kong’s first boutique hotel. Up on the 49th floor, I could spend hours taking in the skyline. Grab a seat by the window and try the Espresso Martini made with coffee-infused Patron tequila, Kahlua, Galliano and ristretto espresso.

Vertigo at The Banyan Tree, Bangkok
61 floors up, this open-air rooftop bar never fails to impress. Yes, it’s going to empty your wallet faster than you can fill it, but if you don’t tell your date, she’ll never know.

La Tequila – Guadalajara, Mexico
For a real taste of Latin American spirit, head to Guadalajara. La Tequila’s lively open-air balcony bar is mere kilometres from where the tequila was made. Where better to match tequila with authentic Mexican bar snacks like the pork taquitos. Steer clear of the fried worms though – not something I’d try again!