Margaritas pair beautifully with spicy flavours so try adding a dash of hot sauce to the recipe above (there’s a blood orange variety of Cointreau that works well). Make a chilli salt for the glass rim by mixing together ½ tsp of mild chilli powder, 1 tsp of sea salt flakes and the zest of ½ a lime. Mezcal margarita Scale up: For easy entertaining, opt for a pitcher version to serve a party of 6. Fill a jug with crushed ice, 2 sliced limes and 1 sliced orange. Pour in 350ml tequila, 270ml fresh lime juice and 180ml Grand Marnier, then stir to combine. Let the pitcher sit for 5 minutes to allow the ice to melt a little, stir again, then pour into 6 salt-rimmed glasses filled with fresh ice. Garnish with a wedge of lime of you like. Scoop out ½ a fresh passion fruit (set aside the other ½ for garnish) and add it to a shaker filled with ice. Add all other ingredients and shake until chilled.

Created in the 1990s in San Francisco, the Tommy’s Margarita recipe uses agave as a sweetening ingredient over triple sec (orange liqueur). Smoky mezcal makes for a sultry, potent margarita – just swap out the tequila for mezcal in the classic recipe above. Dirty margarita The reason this works so well is that tequila is produced using the agave plant so these ingredients perfectly complement each other.Our drinks expert, Hannah Guinness, shares her at-home bar tips to help you take your margarita to the next level. What is a margarita? Reposado tequila meets smokey, sweet ag ave syrup and lime juice. Your mouth will explode a combination of sharp and sweet flavours. A mezcal margarita uses tequila’s less popular (yet growing cousin) mezcal to create a margarita that boasts more of a smokey flavour.

The spirit is distilled from the blue agave plant (agave azul) and there are two distinct grades, those made from 100% fermented agave juice and a lower end version that must be made from at least 51% agave (the rest is made up with other less expensive ingredients such as molasses and corn syrup). Adding the passion fruit is satisfying to do but also adds a sophisticated touch so this is definitely a margarita recipe that is best for a date! This tropical take on a margarita is fruity yet subtle and doesn’t take away from the original recipe. Blanco or plata (white/silver): bottled after distillation or up to 2 months in stainless steel or briefly in oak barrels. Shake all ingredients in an ice-filled shaker until the shaker becomes cold to touch. Strain into an ice-filled low ball glass and add a lime wedge for garnish.

Ingredients

Tequila’s name is derived from the town of Tequila northwest of Guadalajara in Mexico where the spirit originated and legally it can only be made in just a few places close to the town. A skinny margarita is a popular option for modern-day drinkers that want to watch their weight whilst still enjoying an alcoholic beverage. With 40% fewer calories than an original margarita, a skinny margarita can definitely be your guilty pleasure. You don’t need alcohol to enjoy a margarita. The virgin margarita gives a refreshing and sweet drink, all without the hangover or additional calories. Oro (gold): can be a blend with older aged tequila, but the colour most often comes from added colouring. When squeezing limes, try rolling them firmly on a worksurface beforehand as this will help release the juices. For the salt rim, don’t use salt that’s too fine or too coarse – sea salt flakes work best. You could also mix in a little mild chilli powder for a spicier end result. Use a chilled margarita, coupe or tumbler glass.

Squeeze the limes into a bowl. Add to heat the water, lime juice and sugar over a medium heat, whisking occasionally until the sugar has dissolved and then leave to cool. The only thing better than a frozen margarita is its fruitier and more refreshing variation – the frozen strawberry margarita.Squeeze in the lime juice, pop on the top part of your shaker, then shake hard for about 30 seconds to mix it all together and chill the liquid really well. Run a lime wedge around the outside of the rim of your glass before rolling the rim in a little fine sea salt. Once cool, stir in the triple sec and place in an airtight sealable bottle (like a Kilner jar). Store in the fridge for up to one week. Start by chilling your glass – the easiest way is to fill it with ice, or if you’re super organised, pop it into the freezer 30 minutes before you need it.

Shake all ingredients in a shaker filled with ice until it becomes cold to touch. Strain into a low ball glass filled with ice and garnish with a lime wedge. We’ve spent countless hours creating a bottled Margarita recipe which is fresh and vibrant, with that unmistakable agave flavour. Add all ingredients to a blender (make sure it’s a heavy-duty one and not a bullet) and blend briefly to mix all ingredients.