Every year our block in the South Bay has a wild (but very well-organized ) July 4th Block party. We do it up right - get a permit to close down the street, rent a double slip n' slide, run pop-ups and tables down the middle of the street, set up cooking in "BBQ alley" (Brad's driveway), referee a volleyball and basketball tourney, and string up pinatas. In the evening, the neighborhood band plays and we all dance - munchkins and seniors alike. And all the while I'm serving up my "famous" margaritas.

What's so fabulous about them? It's not the homemade mix, fresh limes, or margarita salt. It's the Herradura tequila, a secret among tequila aficionados. Located and produced in the heart of Mexico’s tequila region, in the tiny town of Amatitan, Jalisco, Tequila Herradura is 100% blue agave tequila carefully crafted using traditional methods, such as cooking the agave in clay ovens and fermenting naturally with wild yeast. They are one of the few producers to grow their own blue agave, which takes up to 10 years to mature. Like a fine wine, they are aged in oak for different lengths of time. For example, the Herradura Añejo Herradura Gold (Reposado) ferments for 2 years, and my favorite, the Herradura Silver, for only 40 months, and none of their tequilas contain carmel (for coloring), sugar or additives.