Your Margarita guide to perfect summer entertaining
5 hot tips for summer entertaining (and perfect Margaritas!)
#1 Start with the original and the best
#1 Start with the original and the best
Nothing says long lazy sunny summer days like the Original Margarita. And when you know how the Margarita was invented, it's no surprise. The year was 1948, and the place was Acapulco, a tropical Mexican getaway of the rich and famous. Notorious for her lavish parties, wealthy Dallas socialite and party girl Margarita Sames was planning her latest get-together. She wanted to surprise and delight her wealthy friends with a brand-new cocktail. In a moment of inspiration, Margarita combined her two favourite spirits, Cointreau and Tequila, with lime juice.
Margarita was often quoted as saying, “A Margarita without Cointreau is not worth its salt”. Her jet-setting friends adored the new drink as much as she did and named it after their hostess. And the Original Margarita was born.
The Original Margarita – ingredients and directions
30ml Cointreau L'Unique
30ml Silver Tequila
30ml Fresh Lime Juice
Make a salt rim on your glass. Combine all ingredients in a shaker with ice, shake vigorously until well chilled. Strain and pour into a Margarita glass, and garnish with a lime wheel. One of the key components in the classic Margarita, the salted glass rim is a must-learn. First, hold the glass by the stem and slide the lime wedge around the rim. Next, dip the glass into salt, then turn it upright. Last, gently tap on the foot of the glass to remove any excess salt.
#2 Mix it up with Margaritas for all occasions
The original Margarita adds a sophisticated touch to any summer gathering. But why stop there? Since that original Acapulco party, the Margarita has been much adapted. With over 60 variations, it's not hard to find the perfect Margarita recipe to suit any taste or occasion. With tropical summer berries that give it its beautiful, bright pink colour, the Berry Margarita brings a welcome festive touch to any gathering. Bring a taste of tropical delight to your next summer BBQ with the Coconut Ginger Margarita. Or get your New Year's Eve party really jumping with the refreshing zing of the Cucumber Jalapeno Margarita, the way to spice up any gathering. You’ll find these 3 recipes and links to plenty more at the end of this article.
#3 Make sure you use the right ingredients
A well-made Margarita strikes the perfect balance between sweet, tart and refreshing. As far as Margaritas Sames was concerned, the secret to the perfect Margarita is always Cointreau.
According to the best noses in the world, Cointreau gives off almost 40 different aromas. With so many different olfactive notes, the Cointreau in your Margarita acts as a flavour amplifier. Using Cointreau helps to reveal the other ingredients, bringing balance, depth and unrivalled freshness to the mix. As every good bartender knows, Cointreau is the secret weapon that delights your palate when mixing the perfect Margarita.
#4 Accompany your Margaritas with fantastic food
#4 Accompany your Margaritas with fantastic food
Of course, no great summer gathering is complete without something delicious to eat. So, we've also compiled a list of tasty recipes that perfectly complement the tangy, delicious Margaritas you'll be serving. If you’re planning to offer the Original Margarita, Tacos “Al Pastor", conceived by the famous Franco-Mexican chef Alexis Delassaux, are the perfect fit.
To complement the tang of the Original Margarita, you need sweet or spicy dishes. Alexis’ succulent, Mexican-inspired marinated pork shoulder tacos fit the bill perfectly. Twin your Cucumber Jalapeno Margaritas with Cucumber with fromage frais and fresh herbs, perfect for cooling down. This light appetiser is ideal for warm summer days and is very easy to make. Accompany the sweet tang of your Berry Margaritas with Mini Salmon and Caviar Bites to pass around. While for tropical, summery Coconut and Ginger Margaritas, Prawn Skewers with Cointreau are magic on the barbie.
#5 Go next level with homemade Margarita salt
Last but not least, here's one final touch that's bound to impress your summertime guests. Salt is an essential component of a Margarita – and this homemade Margarita salt is the best way to add that extra special something to any Margarita. It’s seriously simple to make:
2 tablespoons coarse-grain non-iodised sea salt
Zest of 1 lime
Zest of 1/2 orange
Zest the lime and orange. Place all the ingredients on a cutting board. Use a rolling pin to crush them into tiny pieces. Store in a sealed container in the pantry for up to 1 month. When you pull out the cocktail shaker this summer, make sure you reach for Cointreau. Zesty, fresh, floral, sweet… and even more flavour notes just waiting to delight your palate when you mix the perfect Margarita…
Summer just isn’t summer without the Margarita! And with over 60 Margarita recipes to try, from sparkling to fruity to frozen and more, you could be forgiven for wishing summer would last forever. But whatever you do, make sure you do the legendary Margarita (and your guests!) justice with the one and only, the Original - Cointreau L’Unique. As Margarita Sames herself so famously remarked, “A Margarita without Cointreau isn't worth its salt.”
Joyeuses vacances d'été (Happy summer holidays) from all of us at Cointreau Australia.
