How To Make The Perfect Margarita, According To A Hotel Bartender Who Has Served Thousands Of Them

America is ordering another round of margaritas. The tequila classic is, once again, the country’s favorite cocktail, according to CGA by NielsenIQ’s latest cocktail tracker.

A four-ingredient cocktail, the margarita’s ingredient list is straightforward. But making a perfectly balanced margarita is an art form that requires a just-right tequila, fresh lime juice and a good shaking method.

We asked Gabe Sanchez, an award-winning cocktail expert and general manager at Dallas’ Midnight Rambler, to share his classic margarita recipe as well as tips and tricks for perfecting the tart cocktail.

The Midnight Rambler is a subterranean bar in The Joule, a neo-Gothic landmark in the heart of downtown Dallas. Sanchez estimates he’s made as many as 3,000 margaritas over the years.

Recipe for a Classic Margarita

Midnight Rambler’s Margarita Recipe:

Ingredients:

1.5 oz Patron Roca Silver Tequila

1.0 oz Cointreau

0.75 oz Fresh Lime Juice

0.25 oz Simple Syrup or Agave Nectar

Instructions:

1. Add ingredients to a small shaker tin, fill with ice and shake 20 seconds to incorporate and dilute.

2. Strain into double Old Fashioned glass filled with ice and rimmed with favorite salt.

3. Garnish with a lime (preferably a dehydrated lime peel)

What Glassware Should You Use for a Margarita?

Your best bet is a double Old-Fashioned glass with a thick base, says Sanchez. It’s the perfect size for a margarita. You can also try a tumbler style glass. The key is to have a glass that’s around 11 ounces, he says.

What’s The Best Tequila for a Margarita?

When it comes to choosing the star of your margarita, go with a blanco or “silver” tequila because you’ll get bright and grassy flavor notes, Sanchez says.

Patron Roca Silver is his pick.

“It is made with the ancient tahona method, using a large stone wheel for crushing the agave in a pit,” he says. It doesn’t have any flavor additives and it’s a bright fresh blanco tequila you can sip on its own.”

What Liqueur Should You Mix in a Margarita?

When it comes to the orange liqueur, build your margarita with Cointreau, suggests Sanchez. It’s lightly sweet and has notes of spice.

“I think it pairs perfectly with the brightness of the fresh limes and the grassy young flavors of the Patron Roca,” Sanchez says.

How to Choose the Best Limes for Margaritas

Skip the pre-made mixers and opt for fresh lime juice. Look for limes that are slightly large, have a lighter green hue and a thin smooth skin; these will give you the best juice, Sanchez says.

“You can tell by the color and the pock marks on the skin if it is going to be a good juicing lime,” he says. “But if you are not sure, roll it over a hard surface. If the lime doesn’t give to the pressure of your hand, it is going to work best.”

When you get ready to make the margaritas, take the limes out of the fridge long enough in advance so they will get to room temp, he recommends. Give them a slight roll on the counter before you slice into the citrus, and then juice them by hand and strain out the pulp.

How Do You Shake a Margarita?

How you shake your ingredients can take your margarita from good to great. A little known tip? Chill your tin first by adding ice to them. Dump the ice out and then build the margarita in the small tin adding the juice, the sweetener or modifier and then the liquor last. Add ice, pop the other side on and start shaking.

“I will aggressively shake 20 times tops,” he says. “if you can hear the ice breaking early on and the shaker is frosting you can stop at 15.”

What Should You Put on The Rim of Your Margarita?

Large-granule salt is the most common thing to put on the rim of your margarita. But for something a little different, try Tajin. It has a little bit of spice and adds to the margarita’s flavor without profiling it, Sanchez says.

To create a rim on your margarita, cut a lime into quarters and run the lime around the rim of the glass. Place your salt or Tajin on a plate and dip your glass into the salt.