Margarita
The Margarita is one of the best-known cocktails in the world—a simple blend of tequila, triple sec, and lime juice served in a glass with a salted rim. It has been wowing crowds and getting people into party mode for over eighty years.
The combination of a spirit, a liqueur, and citrus juice places the Margarita in the Daisy family of cocktails—alongside other well-known Daisies such as the Sidecar and the Cosmopolitan.
Exactly who first mixed a Margarita is lost to history. While there are many claimants, and some cases are compelling, it is impossible to say for certain who created the recipe. Interestingly, The Café Royal Cocktail Book, published in 1936, includes a recipe for a Picador, which uses the same ingredients in the same ratios as a Margarita—suggesting the drink existed before it adopted its now-famous name.
Tequila mogul Jose Cuervo claimed the Margarita was invented in 1938, but didn’t specify where or by whom. Despite some people still claiming credit as late as 1961, it’s known that Cuervo was already advertising the Margarita as early as 1942.
As versatile as any other cocktail, the Margarita can be served in three main ways:
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On the rocks (over ice)
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Straight up (shaken and strained, served without ice)
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Frozen (blended with crushed ice)
Note: When making a frozen Margarita, the ice can dilute the drink and reduce its sweetness. To counter this, you may need to enhance the key flavours slightly.
Margarita Ingredients
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50 ml silver tequila
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25 ml Cointreau or triple sec
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25 ml fresh lime juice
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10 ml sugar syrup
Optional: If using homemade lime syrup, replace the lime juice and sugar syrup with 35 ml of lime syrup.
Instructions:
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Shake all ingredients with ice.
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Strain into a chilled Margarita glass with a lightly salted rim.
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Garnish with a lime wedge.
