Grapefruit Margaritas {with jalapeños and lime}

Slightly Spicy, Super Refreshing Grapefruit Margaritas

These grapefruit margaritas are a refreshing balance of fresh, tart, sweet, and salty, with a mild jalapeño kick that goes down easy.

Even though margaritas are one of those drinks with an endless number of possible variations, I generally prefer a simple mix of nothing more than tequila, triple sec or cointreau, lime juice, and salt.

But, this grapefruit version is delivering some serious competition to the classic margs I usually go for.

• They are tart, but with just enough sweet to keep it on the “non” side of the pucker line.
• Rather than the traditional orange liquor, these margaritas call for orange juice. Using juice instead of liquor creates a balanced drink that’s tequila forward without being overly boozy.
• A few slices of muddled jalapeño gives these a nice kick without setting your mouth on fire. Heat is a wonderful compliment to sour, somehow managing to make sour flavors brighter while rounding out their rough edges.
• Salt is the perfect complement to everything. It reduces bitterness, while pushing the sweet and sour elements in this drink forward on your tongue. Salt is kind of like a great frame – you might have a fantastic photo, but the right frame can make it even more so. For grapefruit margaritas, you can either coat the rim of the glass with some coarse salt, or stir a pinch directly into the drink.
• They include the option of adding club soda – as much or as little as you like, or none at all. If you like your margaritas strong, don’t add any. If you want a more mild flavor, or just want to leisurely sip your drink for as long of a time as possible, add some club soda.

A couple of thoughts about juice and simple syrup.

Freshly squeezed orange and grapefruit juice is the best choice for these margaritas – IF you have access to flavorful, ripe, juicy fruit. At the moment, I’ve been getting really good oranges at the store, but the grapefruit is dry and flavorless. So, the last couple of times that I’ve made these, I reached for a bottle of grapefruit juice instead of juicing a fresh grapefruit.

The bottom line with adding juice to drinks is that you simply want to use good juice. If you have good fruit, use that. If you don’t pick up a bottle from a brand you trust to be high quality 100% juice with no sugar added.

For this recipe, I also like to use Rose’s Sweetened Lime Juice instead of fresh lime juice. While I’m not a fan of sweet drinks, this margarita really does need a touch of sweetness to balance out the sour, spicy elements.

Usually, with cocktails, that means reaching for some simple syrup, but for this recipe, I found that Rose’s Lime Juice adds the right amount of sweet AND lime. If you can use one product in place of two with great results, why not?

How to choose a good Tequila for margaritas.

I am not a tequila contour. Far, far from it. But, I can tell you this for sure: When purchasing tequila always choose one that’s 100% agave.

Tequila that says it’s 100% agave contains agave and nothing else. If the bottle doesn’t say 100% agave, it can contain up to 49% non-agave ingredients. “Other” ingredients usually means sugar cane and other distilleries, but probably also means artifical flavorings and colors.

You know those bottles of “gold” tequila? Agave doesn’t give it that color.

Tequila producers are not required to tell you what they use in addition to agave, so you’re never really going to know what’s in that bottle.

The bottom line: stick to 100% agave tequila.

Used in this recipe:

• Good Grips Cocktail Shaker
• Cocktail Muddler
• Rose’s Sweetened Lime Juice

More Cocktails You Might Like:

• The Pepper Blossom Cocktail
• Fresh Squeezed Orange Margaritas 
• Cranberry Green Chili Lemonade 
• Cherry Citrus Prosecco Spritzer

If you give this recipe a try, let me know! Leave a comment, rate it, or take a picture and tag it #alittleandalot on Instagram.

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