A cocktail that is well known and also quite popular. If I am to describe this cocktail, what it is, in terms of other cocktails, I would consider it to be a tequila sidecar or a tequila white lady. The reason for this is that it is a sour with orange liqueur as sweetener. Similar to the other two some use additional sweeteners, such as agave syrup. Though for me, who like tart cocktails, I will not present a recipe with additional sweetener. It is, similar to the sidecar and the white lady, spirit, Cointreau, and citrus. Where the cognac and gin are combined with lemon, that tends to be a bit sweeter than lime as well as less acidic, this cocktail uses lime. Due to these characteristics I have chosen to dial back the lime compared to the lemon in the two other cocktails.

When making a margarita the most important thing is the tequila. There is a saying that the cocktail is never better than the worst ingredient. In many cases, the tequila used is quite bad. By using a tequila that is 100% agave the cocktail will be better than if a bottom shelf tequila made with 51% agave was used. Using a good triple sec is something that I take for granted because one of the best is usually only talked about using its name, Cointreau. For orange liqueurs, Cointreau and Grand Marnier can almost be considered to be consistently good. There are a few other brands that are good though they are not as widely available as these two brands. Limes should be fresh, using bottled lime or a margarita mix will kill the experience. Lastly, for this cocktail it can be debated whether or not salt should be used. Personally, I would not use salt on the rim of the glass, however I know that there are others who would not even consider drinking the cocktail if there wasn’t any salt. Though I think that if a good tequila is used the necessity for salt decreases drastically. To summarise, the secret to a good margarita is good tequila, Cointreau and fresh limes.

My Recipe:

• 2 oz (6 cl) Tequila (100% agave)
• 1 oz (3 cl) Cointreau
• 0.75 oz (2.25 cl) Lime Juice

Before creating the cocktail, create the salted rim of the cocktail. Cut the lime and slightly squeeze the lime, such that there is a bit of juice on the surface where the lime was cut. Rub the lime along the top outer part of a chilled coupe glass, this should ideally only be done along half of the rim. Then dip the part of the glass with lime juice in salt, the juice will help the salt to stick. After the glass is prepared, add the ingredients to a shaker and shake with ice. Strain into the prepared glass and garnish with a lime wheel or a lime wedge.