Stepping Up Your Seltzer Garnish Game with Chamoy and Tajin

While garnishes are common with cocktails and beer, their usage with hard seltzers is just getting started. Apart from the usual slice of lime or salted rim, one of the best garnish combos, perhaps more versatile with hard seltzers than any other drink, is that of chamoy and Tajin. If you have no idea what those words mean, we’ve got you covered.

Let’s start with chamoy. To put it simply, chamoy is a Mexican condiment, popular south of the border and throughout the American southwest. While it can be made in myriad ways, there is a general recipe blueprint that is a safe place to start: sweet fruit, chilies, and lime juice. The final product is a thick and sticky explosion of Latin flavor that works so well with hard seltzer because it has been used as condiment on fruit for ages. A nice beginner’s recipe for making chamoy at home in a saucepan can be found via The Black Peppercorn.

Not feeling up to cooking? There are a variety of bottled store-bought options that, while usually not as good as a homemade batch, will still hit the spot. Chamoy Mega Original, Amor Chamoy, Bokados Chamoy, and Tajin Chamoy Mild Sauce are all popular brands found in the Mexican/Latin American aisle of your grocery store, or at the Mexican market or grocer in your area. While you’re there, be sure to pick up a bottle of Tajin, because that’s next on our list.

Tajin is a name brand Mexican condiment that first came out in 1985 and has reached international fame over the years. A simple-yet-delicious mixture of chili peppers, lime, and salt, the classic mixture is commonly used with Mexican snacks and in Latin American kitchens. You can find Tajin pretty much anywhere these days, and for good reason: the stuff is unbelievably tasty given its simplicity. If you want to keep things really simple, rimming your glass or can of hard seltzer with a lime and rolling it across a plate of Tajin will add a spicy kick suitable for just about any flavor.

The real magic lies in combining the two. This well-made video, uploaded on YouTube by Jose Sahagun, beautifully shows one method of setting up a chamoy and Tajin garnish for your hard seltzer.  Jose uses a cherry-flavored Corona Hard Seltzer, but the lime and agave flavors of Lone River’s Ranch Water hard seltzer would come alive with this combination.

Another option, if you want to avoid making such a mess of the can itself, is to roll the lip of a chilled pint glass in the chamoy, then sprinkle the Tajin over the chamoy before pouring in your favorite hard seltzer. Instantly your favorite drink will be transformed into a sweet-yet-spicy flavor overload, with just enough alcohol — perhaps conjuring up the feeling of basking on a beach in Baja.

But don’t just read about it: give it a try! And share with your favorite bartender. We guarantee you won’t be disappointed.