Grand Margarita Cocktail Recipe
A Margarita built on cognac-based orange liqueur instead of triple sec — rounder, warmer, less sharp at the edges.
- Category: New Era Drinks
- Glass: Margarita glass
- ABV: 24%
- Difficulty: Easy
- Prep time: ~3 min
Ingredients
- Tequila45 ml (1.5 oz)
- Orange curaçao30 ml (1 oz)
- Fresh lime juice25 ml (0.8 oz)
How to Make It
- Rim half a margarita glass with salt.
- Shake all ingredients with ice until well chilled.
- Strain into the prepared glass.
- Garnish with a lime wheel.
Garnish
Salt rim and a lime wheel
What it tastes like
The citrus acidity leads and it smells of lemon and lime peel.
The technique
Shaking. Anything with juice, syrup, egg white or cream gets shaken: the shaker chills the drink and adds roughly 20% water, and that water is what takes the edge off. Twelve to fifteen seconds, until the tin frosts over. Under-shaking leaves the drink harsh because it never got enough dilution.
Glass and ice
The wide-rimmed margarita glass. That rim exists for the salt — the salted edge meets your lip while the drink itself stays unsalted.
Ingredient notes and substitutes
- Orange curaçao
- A liqueur made from the bitter orange of Curaçao; usually brandy-based, which makes it darker and rounder than Cointreau.
- Fresh lime juice
- Freshly squeezed lime. Bottled lime tastes cooked and flat; one lime gives about 30 ml. If you have none, half lemon and half grapefruit juice comes closest.
The Story
The upsell version that spread through American bars in the 1980s and stuck, eventually earning its own IBA line.
Frequently asked questions
- How is a Grand Margarita mixed?
- It is shaken and served in a margarita glass.
- How strong is a Grand Margarita?
- Roughly 24% ABV as served — in fortified-wine territory — plan it as a single drink.
- Can a Grand Margarita be made without alcohol?
- Simply leaving the spirit out does not work — the body and the bitterness go with it. The 86 alcohol-free recipes in the catalogue are built to hit that balance from the start.
- Is a Grand Margarita hard to make?
- Easy. No bar kit required — a measure, ice and a jar will do.
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Alcoholic drink recipes are intended for those aged 18 and over. Please drink responsibly.