Classic Margarita Recipe: Making the Perfect Cocktail

Classic Margarita Recipe

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This is a classic Margarita recipe. Margarita are one of the most popular cocktails around. In their best form they are made with three ingredients: tequila, Cointreau and fresh squeezed lime juice. Simple, elegant, delicious.

Sadly, they are not made this way nearly often enough. Too often people resort to poor quality mixes and syrups. These concoctions may be easy to whip together

What Makes a Great Margarita?

High quality ingredients

Really, this should go without saying. But, we’re going to say it anyway. High quality ingredients make high quality drinks. And, yes you can taste the tequila in this classic margarita recipe, so you want to pick one you like.

Great Balance

A classic margarita recipe is a sour cocktail, specifically it is a member of the daisy cocktail family. That means it is all about the balance between sugar and acidity. In this case the acidity comes comes courtesy of lime juice and the sugar comes from Cointreau.

Depending on the acidity of your limes and the tequila you choose and your personal preference you may not need to add sugar.

Let’s do the math: Cointreau has 10.5 grams of sugar per ounce. Or, 10.5 grams for every 30ml. In comparison a 50:50 simple syrup has 15 grams of sugar for every 30ml of liquid.

So, following the sour cocktail formula of 2 part strong, 1 part sweet, 1 part sour we want to get to 15 ml of sugar for an ounce of lime juice. We know we’re getting 10.5 ounces from an ounce of Cointreau. That leaves us just the tiniest amount short on sugar.

There are two ways to rectify this. We can try to measure out the tiniest amount of simple syrup and hope not to overdo it. Or, we can reduce the amount of lime juice we are using.

Scaling back the lime juice is not only a little easier than measuring out 10 ml of simple syrup. It also brings the spirit balance a little more forward in the mix. Suddenly, you can taste that good quality tequila you bought.

Ingredients for the Classic Margarita Recipe

Tequila

Tequila is a distilled spirit made from the agave plant. It is typically made from the blue agave, but can also be made from other types of agave.

There are two main categories of tequila: mixto and 100% agave. Mixto tequilas are made with at least 51% agave and other sugar sources, while 100% agave tequils are made with only blue agave.

What is the Best Tequila for a Margarita?

We’re going to start with what is not. And, that would be those heinous tequila orange liqueur mixtures that are sold as Margarita mix or whatever. Do yourself a favor and look a little higher up on the tequila shelf.

Start by looking for good quality tequila made with 100% blue agave. This alone will make a huge difference in the quality of tequila you are getting. Often you can find a 100% blue agave tequila that is only a dollar or two more than the cheaper mixto version sitting next to it on the shelf.

What Type Tequila Do I Use in a Margarita?

So, do you use a blanco or silver tequila, or something with some color? Unfortunately, this is another area where there is no right answer.

We already know you are getting a good tequila made with 100% blue agave, which means you are not getting cheap gold tequila. That stuff is colored with caramel color to look like it has been aged. It hasn’t, and it is to be avoided.

Everything else that has some color to it comes by its color honestly. It has spent some time aging in a wood barrel. For tequila there are four age categories, blanco, reposado, añejo, and extra añejo.

Blanco Tequila

Blanco tequila is tequila that has been aged less than two months. It is un-aged and typically has a lighter, fresher flavor.

Reposado Tequila

Reposado tequila is any color of tequila that has spent anywhere from two to eleven months in oak barrels before it hits the shelves. The time spent aging adds smoothness and depth to the character of the tequila. Reposado is a good choice for those who don’t like their margaritas too sweet, as it has very subtle flavors and aromas that can be easily overpowered by other ingredients in the cocktail.

Añejo Tequila

If you want your Classic Margarita to have just a little more depth and character, look for an añejo tequila. This is aged at least one year in oak barrels before it hits the shelf. It typically has more intensity of flavor than reposado or blanco tequilas.

Extra Anejo Tequila

The extra-añejo designation is only used when a tequila has been aged for more than three years. At that point, the flavors and aromas of the oak barrel have become very prominent in the spirit.

We’re going to go with a reposado tequila in our Classic Margarita Recipe today. It will add a nice smoothness and depth of flavor to the cocktail.

Orange Liqueur

Cointreau

Fresh Lime Juice

Freshly squeezed juice makes such a difference in a drink like this. Store bought or frozen lime juice, or really just any juice that didn’t recently get squeezed out of a lime just doesn’t taste the same. Trust me on this. I’ve tasted them all. Don’t try to shortcut the lime juice getting process.

Here’s a pro-tip I picked up from juicing tens of thousands of limes. One lime will give you about 1 ounce of juice. So, if you (and your friends, obviously) plan to drink 10 Margaritas buy 10 limes, plus a few more for garnish.

To garnish your Margarita with lime wedges you’ll need 2 limes for those 10 Margaritas. Two limes will probably do it for limes wheels as well.

I prefer lime wedges to lime wheels because they’re interactive. You, or your guests can squeeze a little extra juice into their Margarita and, boom, they feel like they’re involved in the process.

Simple Syrup

For this classic margarita recipe we are going old school and skipping the simple syrup. Triple sec has about 10 grams of sugar per ounce

The Cointreau and lime juice balance each other out nicely.

How to Build a Classic Margarita

Chill a cocktail glass
Add a kosher salt rim to part of your glass. (It’s nice to leave a little salt free area to take a break from the salt.) Run a lime wedge around the rim of the glass and dip the glass in salt.
Fill your cocktail glass with ice
Make Some Freshly Squeezed Lime Juice. Squeeze 1 lime for each drink.
Add tequila, cointreau and lime juice to your cocktail shaker
Shake vigorously for 10-15 seconds.
Strain into your prepared glass.

How to Make a Frozen Margarita at Home

Sadly, this recipe will not transfer to making frozen margaritas at home. You need to do more than simply throw a bunch of ice cubes in a blender and call it a day.