Looking for a quick & easy Golden Margarita to make at home? You’ve come to the right place!
Our refreshing Mexican cocktail recipe features premium gold tequila (Reposado or Añejo), Grand Marnier cognac orange liqueur, fresh lime juice, simple syrup, salt rim and lime slice garnish.
Leave that basic tequila blanco on your bar cart and elevate your next margarita by using an oak barrel aged Reposado or Añejo.
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What Is A Golden Margarita?
A margarita is a Mexican cocktail consisting of tequila, orange liqueur, and lime juice often served with salt on the rim of the glass. The drink is served shaken with ice, blended with ice, or without ice.
According to cocktail historian David Wondrich, the margarita is related to a popular Mexican drink, the Daisy (margarita is Spanish for daisy), remade with tequila instead of brandy. Daisies are a family of cocktails that include a base spirit, liqueur, and citrus.
It became popular during Prohibition as American residents travelled to Mexico for alcohol. There is an account from 1936 of Iowa newspaper editor James Graham finding such a cocktail in Tijuana, years before any of the other margarita creation myths.
One of the earliest stories is of the margarita being invented in 1938 by Carlos “Danny” Herrera at his restaurant Rancho La Gloria, halfway between Tiju ana and Rosarito. He apparently created it for customer and former Ziegfeld dancer Marjorie King, who was allergic to many spirits, but not to tequila. This story was related by Herrera and also by bartender Albert Hernandez, acknowledged for popularizing a margarita in San Diego after 1947, at the La Plaza restaurant in La Jolla.
The Golden Margarita, which is sometimes called a Grand Marnier Margarita, offers a slight riff on the classic Mexican cocktails standard ingredients. Triple Sec is swapped with the more luxurious Grand Marnier and blanco tequila is substituted with a golden coloured aged reposado or anejo.
You may also enjoy these Margarita cocktail recipes:
- Passion Fruit Margarita
- Spicy Mezcal Margarita Jalapeño Cocktail
- 1800 Tequila Margarita
- Thanksgiving Margarita
- Raspberry Chambord Margarita
- Perfect Patron Margarita
- Tommy’s Margarita
- Rum Margarita
- Vodka Margarita
- Rum Margarita
Travel To Mexico to Taste The Best Tequila
There’s no better way to familiarize yourself with the perfect Grand Marnier Margarita then by planning a vacation to visit the world’s best tequila distilleries.
As cocktail enthusiasts we’ve traveled the world to visit the best tequila, gin, whiskey and rum distilleries.
We love traveling to Mexico. We’ve sipped tequila muddled cocktails in Puerto Vallarta, Los Cabos, Mexico City, Merida, Chichen Itza and Playa del Carmen.
The bar at Four Seasons Mexico City is ranked as one of the best cocktail bars in the country. The creative mixologists behind the Four Seasons bar make classic cocktails, eye-popping modern marvels and refreshing drinks like a Golden Margarita.
If you want to learn first hand how tequila is made we suggest planning a trip to Jalisco. All tequila is produced in this state, while other agave-based distilled spirits made outside the region are called mezcal.
At the end of a tequila distillery tour you’ll enjoy a tutored tasting and opportunity to sip a Golden Margarita at the bar.
Grand Marnier Margarita Recipe Ingredients
Our homemade cocktail is made with fresh and premium ingredients:
- Reposado Tequila: also known as Gold Tequila, has been rested and aged in French oak barrels for 2-12 months, giving it a golden colour (“reposado” means “rested” in Spanish). The amber hue of the tequila is what gives this cocktail its unique appearance. In addition to the different colour, aged tequila has a smoother flavour profile than more basic blanco tequila, which is bottled directly after being distilled.
- Grand Marnier: is a French brand of liqueurs. The brand’s best-known product is Grand Marnier Cordon Rouge, an orange-flavoured liqueur created in 1880 by Alexandre Marnier-Lapostolle. It is made from a blend of Cognac brandy, distilled essence of bitter orange, and sugar, containing 40% alcohol.
- Lime Juice: we always suggest juicing fresh limes as you’ll taste the difference. Do not use citrus juice from concentrate.
- Simple Syrup: you can easily make homemade simple syrup, which is prepared by heating equal parts water and white sugar.
- Salt: we suggest decorating the rim of your cocktail glass with kosher salt.
- Lime Slice: garnish the cocktail glass with a fresh lime slice, wheel or wedge.
Directions
This cocktail is easy to make at home in just 3 quick steps. It takes less than 5 minutes to make!
- Combine liquid ingredients in a cocktail shaker and shake vigorously with ice to chill for 20-30 seconds.
- Strain into an ice-filled salt-rimmed rocks glass.
- Garnish with lime slice.
Golden Margarita Recipe Tips
This cocktail recipe is easy to make at home, ready to serve in under 5 minutes.
We love serving our Golden Margarita recipe in the hot summer months. The refreshing tequila cocktail is a crowd pleaser at garden parties, family barbecues and cottage cocktail hours.
Our Grand Marnier Margarita serves one person. If you’re hosting a large gathering feel free to multiply the ingredients by the number of guests and muddle the drink in a punch bowl or jug rather than a cocktail shaker.
We suggest storing the tequila and Grand Marnier bottles in your freezer an hour before guests arrive so they are will chilled when you’re ready to shake up drinks.
We’ve used simple syrup in this recipe but you can substitute for agave syrup if you prefer.
We’ve made this drink with a salted rim but if you don’t like salty beverages you can skip this step.
Best Bartender Tools & Cocktail Equipment
Before hosting a swanky Golden Margarita soiree you’ll need to ensure you have the best bartender tools and cocktail equipment.
- Cocktail Kit: cocktail kits are the perfect gift for newbie mixology fans as they include basic bartender tools like a jigger, shaker and spoon.
- Cocktail Shaker: a bartender’s best friend. Purchase a premium cocktail shaker to muddle or shake up your favourite pink gin cocktails.
- Cocktail Glassware: make sure your bar is stocked with a selection of unique glassware to show off your favourite cocktail creations.
- Hawthorne Strainer: this unique strainer features tightly wound coils and perforated holes. It keeps ice and other large ingredients like lime wedges in your cocktail shaker rather than in the glass.
- Bar Spoons: slender and long bar spoons are a must-have when stirring drinks.
- Bottle Opener: easily open bottles of beer or cider with the flick of your wrist or purchase a corkscrew for fine wine.
- Pouring Spout: once you’ve opened a new bottle of gin insert these affordable pourers to make cocktail assembly a breeze.
- Cutting Board: purchase a petite cutting board for your bar to slice garnishes or citrus wedges like lime, orange, lemon or grapefruit.
- Ice Bucket: chill bottles of gin quickly in an ice bucket or keep by the bar when muddling gin mixers into cool creations.
- Ice Crusher: fans of the Mint Julep love an ice crusher.
- Ice Cube Kit: we suggest purchasing a selection of ice cube trays. Silicone styles are our favourite as they’re easy to clean and are available in various shapes and sizes.
- Jigger: use a jigger to accurately measure spirits, juices, syrups and shrubs.
- Juicer: invest in an electronic juicer or buy an affordable hand-held to easily juice fresh citrus like lemons and limes.
- Muddler: fans of the Mojito love a sturdy muddler to mix mint and lime. Muddler’s are handy for any cocktail featuring ingredients that need a pounding like fresh herbs or citrus wedges.
- Citrus Peeler & Zester: adorn your craft cocktails with a thick citrus peel or finer ribbons of lime or lemon zest.
- Rimmer: Bloody Mary and Caesar lovers should outfit their bar with a handy rimmer for salting and sugaring glassware.
Grand Marnier Margarita Serving Suggestions
If you’re hosting a cocktail party it’s best to serve a selection of snacks to pair with the drinks you’re mixing for guests at the bar. Here are some of our favourite Mexican dishes to serve with margaritas:
- Vegetarian Chipotle Mexican Bean Soup
- Gazpacho Moreliano Mexican Fruit Salad
- Tostadas de Tinga
- Tostadas de Camaron
- Pastel Azteca Mexican Tortilla Chicken Casserole
- Homemade Mexican Tortillas de Maiz
- Chicken Fajita Tacos
- Mexican Queso
- Albondigas al Chipotle Smoky Mexican Meatballs
- Chicken Pork & Shrimp Mexican Paella
- Asado de Boda Mexican Chile Pork Stew
- Mango Pico de Gallo Salsa
Reposado VS Añejo
Golden Margaritas get their unique colour by substituting simple blanco tequila with an aged Reposado, as the spirit takes on an amber colour when resting in oak barrels.
To be called a Reposado the tequila must be aged for at least 2 months. If you’re getting fancy you can use an even finer bottle of tequila called añejo, which are aged for a longer period of time, at least one year.
So the major difference between a Reposado and Añejo tequila is simply time. The latter is more expensive due to its aging requirements and has a smoother mouthfeel.
You May Also Enjoy These Tequila Recipes…
- Mexican Mezcal Mule Cocktail
- Tequila Smash Cocktail
- Aperol Tequila Cocktail
- Long Beach Iced Tea Cocktail
- Mexican Cantaritos
- Frozen Mezcal Paloma Slushie Cocktail
- Mexican Mule Tequila Cocktail
How To Make A Golden Margarita Cocktail
Golden Margarita Cocktail
Equipment
- Jigger
- Cocktail Shaker
- Rocks glass
Ingredients
- 1.5 oz Gold Reposado Tequila
- 1.5 oz Grand Marnier
- 1.5 oz Lime Juice
- 1 oz Simple Syrup
- Kosher Salt rim
- Lime Wedge garnish
Instructions
- Pour a small amount of kosher salt onto a plate. Run a lime wedge around rim of a rocks to moisten so salt sticks. Turn glass upside down in salt to rim the edge. Fill with ice.
- Pour tequila, Grand Marnier, fresh lime juice and simple syrup in a cocktail shaker filled with ice. Shake vigorously for 15-20 seconds until cold. Strain over ice in prepared rocks glass.
- Garnish with a lime wedge.
Nutrition
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