The Best Top Shelf Margarita You'll Ever Make!

This top shelf margarita recipe is the Cadillac of margaritas. It is big on flavor and is loaded with high quality ingredients. If you're tired of weak watery and just plain average margaritas, you came to the right place. We use top shelf ingredients like grand marnier, patron anejo tequila, lime juice, and agave!

Okay so we went through all the search results that claimed to have the best flavored margarita recipe and were continuously disappointed with the weak watery flavor. Our top shelf margarita is loaded with flavor, so if you're looking for tang this margarita recipe is for you.

We tried margaritas with silver tequila for our first 10 or so attempts, changing the amounts of lime juice, agave, and brands of orange liquor.. but something wasn't right.

Finally we were out on our date night at one of our favorite restaurants and tried their delicious margarita and noticed they used gold tequila, also called anejo tequila. So we bought a bottle and it was a game changer for us! So if you like a top shelf drink too, this is for you!

WHAT IS THE BEST MARGARITA MADE OF?

My delicious authentic top shelf margarita recipe is made with just 4 ingredients:

1. Anejo tequila
2. Grand marnier
3. Fresh lime juice
4. Agave nectar

And of course you'll have to pull it all together with a salted rim glass!

HOW DO YOU MAKE MARGARITAS TASTE BETTER?

ALWAYS USE HIGH QUALITY INGREDIENTS. This means the best tequila and orange liquor you can afford.

USE FRESH LIME JUICE. Bottled lime juice will never taste as good as fresh.

USE A DRINK SHAKER. Shaking your margarita over ice and then straining it will give you a signature smooth and slightly frothed top.

NEVER EVEN LOOK AT A MARGARITA MIX. Those $5 bottles of "margarita mix" not only are loaded with chemicals, but they taste terrible.

SALT THE RIM! Salt balances tequila and is the finishing touch on a perfect margarita.

What have you tried to make your margarita taste better? Leave me a comment below!

WHAT IS THE SECRET TO A GOOD MARGARITA?

I read so many posts with 100's of 5 star ratings. So I thought okay these people really have the perfect margarita recipe down! But we found most of the margaritas out there lacked flavor and tanginess. We wanted a lot of flavor with the perfect balance of sour and sweet.

Here are my tips for the most delicious margarita that tastes just like the one's I drank travelling!

1. Always use high quality ingredients
2. Never use triple sec
3. NEVER NEVER use a margarita mix
4. Always use FRESH lime juice, not bottled
5. Don't forget to salt the rim!

HOW TO MAKE THE BEST MARGARITA ON THE ROCKS!

For this recipe, you will need 2 margarita glasses or cocktail glasses, a shot glass, a lime/ lemon juicer, and a drink shaker.

STEP 1: PREPARE SERVING GLASSES

First, use ½ of one of your limes and run it along the edges of the glasses. Dip the glass in sea salt. Fill the glass to the top with ice.

Another delicious way to salt the rim is to get a little bit of agave nectar on your finger and run it along the rim of the glass and then dip that into the salt. The agave actually helps your salt stay on the rim for much longer!

STEP 2: ADD INGREDIENTS TO DRINK SHAKER

Fill your drink shaker about ¼ way with ice cubes. Add 1 ½ shots patron anejo tequila, ½ shot grand marnier, the juice of 4 limes, and 1 shot of agave nectar.

Cover and shake until the outside of the drink shaker is cold and frosted.

STEP 3: STRAIN AND ENJOY!

Strain the margarita over ice into your prepared drink glasses.

Hope you enjoy!

HOW TO MAKE A DELICIOUS MARGARITA FOR A CROWD

Want to impress your guests and have them asking for your recipe! My pitcher serves 10 people with 2 drinks each (so 20 drinks)

• 15 shots tequila (22.5 ounces)
• 5 shots grand marnier (7.5 ounces)
• 40 limes, juiced (40 ounces of lime juice)
• 10 shots of agave nectar (15 ounces)

Add all ingredients to a pitcher and stir to combine. As you refill glasses, pour from the pitcher into a cocktail shaker filled with ice to get a really nice cold drink!

FAQ's

Frequently asked questions on how to make a really good margarita.

WHAT TYPE OF TEQUILA IS BEST IN A MARGARITA?

I'm big on buying high quality ingredients. I would rather buy an expensive bottle of tequila and drink 1 delicious margarita once a week, than buy a cheap bottle and drink a cheap margarita every day.

When it came to silver versus gold tequila, the gold tequila definitely tasted super authentic. And it gave that perfect golden color you see in authentic margaritas in Mexico and South America.

WHAT TYPE OF ORANGE LIQUOR SHOULD I USE FOR A GOOD MARGARITA?

We tried cointreau and grand marnier in our margarita experiments and found that grand marnier definitely added a smooth flavor. The cointreau tasted a little bit harsh to us so we're saving that bottle for martinis.

We did try fresh squeezed orange juice in one and it was pretty delicious, but not very strong as the orange juice watered down the alcohol a bit. But, if you do like your margarita a little less strong, squeeze a fresh orange juice along with my other ingredients.

Finally, never use triple sec or a "margarita mix" these are very low quality ingredients and not only will give you a headache the next day, but your margarita will taste cheap and watery!

WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A CADILLAC MARGARITA AND A REGULAR?

Okay so I just learned that a cadillac margarita is made using only the best ingredients like grand marnier, patron, and fresh lime juice. So whether you call it the best classic, or a cadillac this is what I've made here! 🙂

WHAT IS THE MIX RATIO FOR A MARGARITA?

So whether you are making a big pitcher of margarita's for a party, or just want a single serving, this is the ratio for 1 serving. Multiply it by how many servings you want.

• ¾ shot of Patron Anejo
• ¼ shot of Grand Marnier
• Juice of 2 limes
• ½ shot of Agave nectar

I use a standard American shot glass, that is 1.5 ounces.

Are you looking for a margarita mocktail instead? Try these favorite flavors!

1. Spicy Mango
2. Strawberry Basil

If you try The Best Margarita Recipe, please let me know your thoughts by leaving a rating and comment below! Ready for more? Subscribe to my newsletter or follow along on Pinterest, Instagram, Facebook, and Youtube!