Mezcal and Tequila – to the Margarita and Beyond: Part II, The Tequila Queen
Part II: The Tequila Queen
Part I of this analysis of agave distillation traveled back through liquid Mexican history. We journeyed from the first sips of a fermented blue agave to the tasty tequilas and mouth-watering mezcals on today’s liquor store shelves. In Part II, we start down the agave cocktail trail focusing on the one drink that comes to everyone’s mind when tequila is mentioned, the classic Margarita.
Today, bartenders everywhere are whipping up creative new tequila and mezcal cocktails. However, the classic Queen Margarita has maintained her position as by far the most popular tequila cocktail of all time. Ms. Margarita is not only the favorite tequila cocktail, she is also at the top of most world and American popularity lists for all cocktails. She is enjoyed in all seasons and in all geographical locations. Being versatile, she can be served shaken, blended, frozen, straight up, or on the rocks. She is the sovereign of salted rims. And, like the martini, she even has her own glass.
Her Birth
Many classic cocktails near the top of popularity lists (the Old Fashioned, the Manhattan, the Martini, the Negroni) are gin and whiskey based and have their origins in the 1800s. Tequila didn’t really find its way into the American drinking mainstream until Prohibition added a boost to the alcohol smuggling trade from Mexico. Therefore, Margarita is a youngster by comparison. Her birth occurred sometime in the 1930’s or 1940’s, depending on who you choose to believe.
So, who did invent the popular Margarita? That is a difficult question to answer. The story of her origin is as foggy as one’s brain on the morning after having too many Margaritas. If you drank a Margarita for every person laying claim to its invention, you would wake up with no memory of any of them. Maybe none of the stories are true. But, perhaps one or more are, and who doesn’t love a good story. So, let’s once more travel that trail of cocktail tales.
One can find recipes similar to the Margarita as far back as 1937. That was when executives at London’s Cafe Royal published a Cocktail Book. It contained a recipe for a drink called a Picador. The Picador has a 2:1:1 ratio of tequila, Cointreau, and lime – pretty much the recipe for the classic Margarita without the salted rim. Therefore, we could probably conclude that some unknown British barkeep invented the Margarita under another name. But, did someone steal his recipe? Probably not. It is more likely that around the same time, someone else on the other side of the pond invented a parallel cocktail with a different name. But exactly when and by whom is where things get really blurry.
There are seemingly endless claims to the Margarita’s invention. Those claims almost always involve a bartender, a bar, and a woman of inspiration. Apparently, there were a hell of a lot of inspirational women back in the day named Margarita or Margaret or Marjorie or Rita or Peggy.
Blurry Claim Number 1:
My name is Carlos Herrera, but you can call me Danny, everybody does. In 1929, my wife and I settled just south of Tijuana. I wanted to build a place that could serve as a stopping point for all the tourist traffic heading down to Rosarito Beach. I must say that I am very proud of my little ranch. We call it Rancho de Gloria, after our beautiful daughter. After a lot of hard work, it is quite a lovely small hotel with a swimming pool, a restaurant, and a bar. And, I was right; It became a regular stopping point for tourists, including those rich actors and socialites travelling south from California to the Baja beaches. Well, enough of my bragging. You want to hear about my Margarita.
It was a busy steamy Baja night behind the bar. I was serving drinks to a group of Ziegfeld performers having a little vacation break. One particular beauty caught my eye. She was looking a little down in the dumps while her friends drank shots and partied. She was drinking only club soda. Having a few minutes, I introduced myself and asked her what was the matter. She smiled and said, “It’s not that I don’t want to have a drink, but I’m allergic to most alcohol. Except for tequila.” With a giggle, she added, “And, I don’t really like the taste of tequila.”
Always looking to please a pretty lady, I said, “Let me see what I can do to change those taste buds.”
As I looked at the lineup of tequila shots and their accompanying sliced limes and salt shakers, I had an idea. I dumped two shots in my shaker, squeezed in a lime for some citrusy tartness, and added a shot of orange liqueur for some sweetness. After a good shake and a little taste, I knew I had a winner. I grabbed a nice champagne glass from the rack, rimmed it with the salt, and poured in my concoction.
I presented the lady with my offering. She looked at me somewhat suspiciously and tentatively gave it a little sip. A big smile broke out on her lovely face. “Wow,” she said, “Salty, tart and sweet all in one. I love it! What do you call it?”
“I never did get your name,” I replied.
“My name is Marjorie King. Why do you ask?”
“Well Marjorie,” I said, “Marjorie en Español is Margarita. So, this will forever be a Margarita. Cheers!”
She blushed and took another big swallow.
Blurry Claim Number 2:
The bar in this claim is the famous Baja bar, Hussong’s Cantina in Ensenada. The bar is operating today, and dates back to 1892. That is when German immigrant Johann Hussong bought the Southern Lane stagecoach stop. He remodeled it and opened a small restaurant where he sold beer for a nickel and whiskey for a dime. In 1892 he bought his liquor license, which is still on the books today. Hussong at 29, started what would become the oldest and most famous bar still in operation in all of Baja California.
Fast forward to 1941. Bartender Don Carlos Orozco was working behind the bar at Hussong’s. As the story goes, he was in an inventive mood one evening, trying new cocktail combinations. He had mixed a drink of equal parts lime juice, Tequila, and Damiana. Damiana is a Mexican traditional sweet herbal liqueur made from the leaves and stems of the locally growing Damiana plant.
He turned to his nearest customer who happened to be Margarita Henkel, the daughter of a German ambassador. She was his willing taste-tester and so, he named his drink after her. According to the Hussong family, the story is on record in the Ensenada Historical Society. And, it was verified by Margarita Henkel herself at one time. The Hussong family still owns and manages the cantina in Ensenada and now there is another in Las Vegas. in keeping with their history, they proudly serve a hand-shaken Original Damiana Margarita.
Blurry Claim Number 3:
The Balinese Room was a famous nightclub in Galveston, Texas. It was built on a pier over the waters of the Gulf of Mexico. It became a hot entertainment spot in the 1930s and 1940s, featuring acts by Frank Sinatra, Bob Hope, George Burns, Tony Bennett, the Marx Brothers and other big names of the time. In 1948, a singer from North Dakota named Norma Delores Egstrom was performing there. On a nightly basis, she would order her favorite cocktail, the Sidecar from bartender Santos Cruz.
One evening, Cruz, a big fan, offered her his tequila riff on her cocktail. He swapped out the cognac for tequila and the lemon for lime, and named the drink in her honor. The singer was Peggy Lee. Peggy being a nickname for Margaret, the tequila cocktail naturally became a Margarita.
In 1997, the National Register of Historic Places included the Balinese Room and it was reopened to some local fanfare. However, Galveston and hurricanes have a rough intertwined history. Although the connectively-named Hurricane Rita passed the pier by in 2005, it was Hurricane Ike in 2008 that was not so kind. Ike reduced the pier and the Balinese Room to a pile of rubble. But, there still remains hope that this possible home of the Margarita will rise from its ashes and thrive once more.
Blurry Claims Numbers 4 and 5:
This is a tale of two “hot spots.” In the 1920’s and 30’s, hot spots of tourism and entertainment blossomed around two of Mexico’s natural hot spots of volcanic mineral water. Spot number one was Puebla, Tehuacán. There, mineralized glacial mountain meltwaters surface as hot springs after an eight-year journey through the volcanic rock.
The rich tourists flocking there needed a place to stay. So, José María Garci-Crespo built a spa resort in 1934, the Grand Garci-Crespo Hotel. This is where Danny Negrete, yet another claimant to this throne of cocktail creation, and his brother David opened and operated the hotel bar. The year was 1936 and the woman of inspiration is also a bit blurry. Some say it was Danny’s girlfriend named Margarita. However, according to Salvador Negrete, Danny’s son, his father created the drink in honor of his sister-in-law, Margarita, at his brother’s wedding.
In any case, his recipe was one-third Cointreau, one-third tequila, and one-third squeezed Mexican lime juice, served over hand-crushed ice in a rocks glass. And the story concludes with a notation that whichever Margarita it was, she loved salt on everything. Hence, he added a salted rim.
Hot spot number two was the famous Agua Caliente area. The healing springs of Agua Caliente bubble up on the south side of the Tijuana River. Because of those springs, fun spots also bubbled up in the 1920’s, 30’s, and 40’s. Investors built the grand Agua Caliente Casino and Hotel in 1928. It was a lavish resort that included a casino, spa, championship golf and tennis facilities, its own airstrip, and a lot of entertainment.
Bartender Enrique Bastate Gutierrez worked at the Foreign Club where Margarita Carmen Cansino worked as part of a dance act. Gutierrez claims to have invented the Margarita in the dancer’s honor. Our same Danny Negrete from Garci Crespo found his way in the 1940’s to a spot behind the bar at the Agua Caliente Racetrack. Margarita Cansino performed there. This Margarita could have been the inspiration for either Enrique’s creation or Danny’s re-creation of the famous cocktail. Who was this inspirational Margarita Cansino? You probably know her as Rita Hayworth.
Blurry Claim Number 6:
In 1937, McHenry’s Tail O’ the Cock restaurant in Los Angeles wasn’t so much about its steaks as it was its cocktails. It was a popular place for people to meet for drinks, especially late in the afternoon. Its patrons consummated a whole bunch of Hollywood deals over a Tail o’ the Cock cocktail.
Vern Underwood, a Los Angeles liquor importer and distributor, noticed that his McHenry’s account was selling more of Cuervo tequila than his other accounts put together. Underwood asked bartender John Durlesser what was up with that. Durlessor said it was the popularity of his cocktail he called the Margarita. Was the woman of influence a wife or girlfriend? No, in 1966, Durlesser, still in the same job, told Bon Appetit magazine that he simply duplicated a Mexican vacation drink as described by a lady customer. Her name was Margaret. Underwood subsequently advertised Durlesser’s drink all over the country, making it one of the nation’s favorite drinks.
Blurry Claim Number 7:
This claim is a little different. There is no bar, and the one serving the drinks is the Margarita of inspiration. And so, the mists of possibilities and imagination swirl amidst those of history to reveal another unchronicled tale of cocktail lore.
It was a beautiful sunny Acapulco day in March of 1948. Margaret “Margarita” Sames, a wealthy Dallas socialite, and her husband, Bill, had invited some friends to visit them at their magnificent villa nestled on the cliffs overlooking the glistening waters of the Pacific Ocean. Margarita, Bill, and their guests had gathered for a lazy afternoon poolside.
“I think it must be Happy Hour somewhere, everyone,” exclaimed Margarita. “I’m going to play the bartender and invent something new and tasty. Let’s see…Bill and I brought along some rum from our last visit to Cuba. I’ll use that.” She presented her rum creation to her taste-tester husband.
“Well, Darling,” said Bill with a grimace. “Nice try, but I think it’s back to the drawing board if you are dead set on something Tiki.”
Margarita was not deterred from her goal. “No, forget the rum. I am in Mexico after all,” she whooped. “Break out the tequila!”
Tequila was, after all, her favorite spirit. And, Margarita had tasted and enjoyed the orange-based French liqueur Cointreau. She had savored many Sidecar cocktails while occupying a barstool in her favorite Dallas bar, The Library, in the Warwick Melrose Hotel. She also grabbed a couple of fresh limes she had plucked from the tree in the villa’s backyard that morning. “Two of my favorite liquors and some fresh citrus, what could go wrong with that,” she thought. And she was right. The result was different this time.
“Oh my, Margarita!” exclaimed her friend Tommy Hilton, as he savored the concoction she had passed to her guests. “You hit a home run with this one. Of course, we must dub it the Margarita.” He liked the drink so much that when he returned to the States, he added it to the bar menus of his growing chain of Hilton hotels.
Blurry Claim Number 8:
This claim is ripe for another embellishment of cocktail history with details only the imagination can bring.
James Graham, the owner and editor of The Moville Mail newspaper in Moville, Iowa had been looking for a vacation break in a warmer clime. The Iowa winter of 1936 was particularly cold, and sunny Southern California had beckoned.
He and his wife had booked a room at the magnificent Hotel Del Coronado in San Diego. Graham had heard that the hotel was a favorite playground for Hollywood stars. Always the newspaperman, he hoped a story of stars and starlets might develop.
One morning, after several days of typical San Diego sightseeing, he put down his morning paper and took a thoughtful sip from his coffee. He looked across the table and said to his wife, “Honey, today we are going on an adventure. Other than our one glimpse of Katherine Hepburn the other afternoon, things have been pretty uneventful around here. I think a road trip is in order. Pack a day bag we’re heading south.”
They excitedly headed to the concierge desk in the lobby, and a few minutes later were climbing into the back seat of a brand new Ford Lincoln Zephyr Sedan. “Where to, Señor?” said Santiago Alvarez, their driver for the day.
“We are off to explore Tijuana, my good man!” exclaimed Graham.
“Excelente, Señor!” Replied Santiago. “I have family there and know the way well.” Soon, they were cruising down Route 101.
Their destination was the legendary town just across the nearby Mexican border. Graham knew that just a few years ago, during Prohibition, Tijuana had had dozens and dozens of bars and casinos filled with cocktail-hunting thirsty Americans that flooded across the border. However, with the end of Prohibition in 1933, and President Cárdenas’ closure of all gambling casinos in Baja, the once bustling Avenida Revolutión was much more sedate. Even so, Graham wished to experience cocktail history and perhaps find a story amid the drastic changes to the town over the past few years.
As Santiago drove them around the Tijuana area, the closed, yet still magnificent, Agua Caliente complex fascinated the Grahams. During the eight years that the resort had operated, its hotel, casino and spa had achieved a near mythical status, with Hollywood stars and gangsters flying in for fun and games.
The sightseeing over, the Grahams, always lovers of a good happy hour back home, were now looking to find a good Tijuana watering hole. As they cruised into town, Graham questioned his driver, “So, Santiago, any suggestions on where we can find a refreshing afternoon cocktail?”
Santiago Alvarez was a good one to ask. He had spent many a night enjoying the liquid refreshments at the many bars along the Avenida. “Well, Señor, I think you might enjoy the Turf Bar. I know the bartender there, John Madden. He makes a wonderful Tequila Daisy that is mucho delicioso – or, as we locals call it in the Baja, La Margarita.” Fifteen minutes later, the Grahams were seated at the Turf bar sipping a “Margarita” and deep in conversation with John Madden.
And, a couple of days later they were home in Iowa. The afternoon in Tijuana became part of the sightseeing article Graham had envisioned. He wrote, “When we parked, the driver told us of places of interest that are now not so interesting as in the days of Prohibition in the States. Then there were 150 bars open, now there are nine. One of these is run by an Irishman named Madden. The driver had told us of his skill in mixing drinks. One of his inventions has given his saloon the name of ‘The Home of the Famous Tequila Daisy.’ As a newspaperman seeking information, I entered the joint and told Mr. Madden my curiosity was aroused regarding The Daisy…After a while, he told me that the The Daisy was not an invention, as no skill was employed in its creation, it was a mistake. Mr. Madden was not the most talkative of men, but eventually he was persuaded to admit that the drink’s creation was a mistake. ‘In mixing a drink, I grabbed the wrong bottle and the customer was so delighted that he called for another and spread the good news far and wide,’ said Mr. Madden.”
Possible Real Story:
All of the above tales are intriguing, but it may be likely that the Margarita just evolved naturally or accidentally as bartenders played with the sour family of cocktails. A sour is simply a liquor + citrus (generally lemon or lime juice) + sweetener (usually simple syrup). In the mid-1800’s people were drinking Brandy Sours, Gin Sours, and Rum Sours. The next step of cocktail evolution was to add another ingredient, generally a liqueur, to the sour formula. The result was dubbed a Daisy.
By the time Prohibition rolled around in 1920, Whiskey Daisies and Gin Daisies were both going strong, with orange liqueur being the additive to the sours. With the onslaught of Prohibition, two things pertinent to this story happened. People went south to Mexico to drink and party legally, and cheaper accessible tequila came north into those illegal Speakeasy bars. If you were a bartender in Chicago, and you make a Daisy with tequila, you might just call it a Tequila Daisy. But, if you were a bartender in Tijuana, your Tequila Daisy might use local limes over lemons, and you might call it the Spanish word for daisy. That word is Margarita.
Some of these claims are definitely fairy tales. However, that doesn’t mean that all but one fit that category. With the recipe being a simple one that was begging to be created, there could be an element of truth in a few of the stories of origin. And, since the recipe for a cocktail called a Margarita did not find its way into print until a 1953 Esquire magazine article, multiple bartenders could have just independently found their way to the same drink.
Beyond the Invention
Whenever the blurry birth occurred, the Margarita was certainly solidly entrenched in American cocktail culture by the 1950s. And, unlike the questionable beginning of the drink, it has a well-documented subsequent history. Other important landmarks along the trail of Margarita history mostly revolve around various drinking establishments (big surprise). Let’s go on a Margarita bar crawl!
Bar Stop Number 1, Mariano’s Hacienda: Bartenders across the country had been making frozen Margaritas in blenders since the late 1950s. At his restaurant in Dallas, Texas, Mariano Martinez sold a ton of them but he wasn’t happy. He disliked the slowness and inconsistency of using the blender over and over. In 1971, looking for a better approach, he tried to purchase a 7-Eleven Slurpee machine. 7-Eleven said no. Undeterred by their refusal, he bought a soft-serve ice cream machine and tweaked it for frozen Margarita making. It was an instant success. That original Frozen Margarita machine is now on display at the Smithsonian Museum of American History. And, you can still get those tasty tequila slurpees at Mariano’s locations all across Texas.
Bar Number 2, Lung’s Cocina del Sur: In 1975, Jimmy Buffett was touring Texas with his group, The Coral Reefer Band. He spent a bit of time at the Cocina del Sur in Austin, where he discovered the frozen Margarita. That discovery was the inspiration to begin writing his hit Margaritaville.
After the tour, he headed to Key West for a break. He finished his classic song sitting at Bar Number 3, the Old Anchor Inn using the gridlock of tourists crowding the Florida Keys as further inspiration. Margaritaville hit number 8 on the charts in 1977, and Parrot Heads everywhere sang along while sending sales of “that frozen concoction that helps me hang on” through the roof.
In 1985, flushed with success, Buffett opened Bar Number 4, Margaritaville in Key West. Now there are 27 Margaritaville locations around the world. And there’s Margaritaville Mix and Margaritaville tequila that you can blend into a cocktail using one of the many models of the Margaritaville Frozen Concoction Maker.
There are many variations on the classic Margarita developed over the years. But one stands out above the rest – the Tommy’s Margarita. Bar Number 5 is Tommy’s Mexican Restaurant in the Richmond neighborhood of San Francisco, the home of this variation. It was there that, in 1990, Julio Bermejo, bartending at his parents’ restaurant, thought to replace the orange liqueur component with agave nectar. He also started using Herradura tequila instead of the cheaper mixto tequilas his family had traditionally used. Freshly squeezed lime juice and elimination of the salted rim completed the makeover. called Tommy’s. In 2008, Tommy’s Margarita became the first venue specific cocktail to be added to the International Bar Association manual.
Concoction Choices
With Tommy’s riff in mind, we should conclude this celebration of all things Margarita with an exploration of all the options available in constructing a Margarita of choice.
A traditional modern Margarita includes 2 ounces of tequila, 1 ounce of Cointreau, and 1 ounce of lime juice. However, because there have been so many variations upon that classic three-ingredient recipe, the term Margarita can today be thought of as an entire category of cocktails. Not everyone wants to stay within the boundaries of that original recipe, as good as it is. As with crafting most cocktails, there are choices to be made. One’s own personal taste is the most important factor in making Margarita choices, since the best Margarita is always the one made the way the drinker likes it. That aside, here are some thoughts to consider in the search for “La Margarita Perfecta.”.
Choice 1 – Type of Tequila: We already addressed the types of tequila in Part I of this post. Suffice it to say, always choose a 100% agave tequila. But don’t waste a smooth aged añejo on a Margarita…rather choose to use a good silver or reposado tequila.
Choice 2 – Type of Orange Liqueur: Let’s face it, there are a whole lot of orange liqueurs out there. I currently have seven of them adorning my bar shelves. A discussion of the differences between them, and which is best in a Margarita could be an entire essay unto itself. But, what it really comes down to is: 1) How much do you want to spend? 2) How boozy do you want you’re your Margarita? And most important, 3) Which one tastes best to you?
Orange liqueurs are made with a wide-range of base alcohols, orange types and sweetness levels, making each brand of orange liqueur taste a little different. Those with lower alcohol content, like Triple Sec and Curaçao, are generally simpler, lighter, sweeter, and less expensive. Those that are brandy-based, such as Cointreau and Grand Marnier, are more complex, bold, flavorful, and as a result, more expensive. I prefer more booziness and less sweetness, so I generally gravitate to the ones with the cognac component.
Choice 3 – Extra Ingredients: Just because having the same classic Margarita all the time can get boring, sometimes a little liquid latitude is warranted. Margarita variations can come in every flavor imaginable, since many fruits and fruity liqueurs pair well with tequila. The possibilities are endless, from the expected strawberry, mango, and watermelon, to the unexpected cinnamon, hibiscus, and carrot. Imaginations can run wild.
Choice 4 – Frozen or On the Rocks: Jimmy Buffet’s Margaritaville informed us that, “There’s booze in the blender, and soon it will render that frozen concoction that helps me hang on.” Contrary to Jimmy’s preference, if I’m using a good tequila and a good orange liqueur or even some other great additions, I want to taste them. I don’t want them blended with ice into a frigid cold slush that freezes my taste buds before they can savor the ingredients. Therefore, I choose to pour my mix over one large ice cube.
Choice 5 – Salt or No Salt: I like salt on my rim, although in small amounts so as to not overpower. I feel that it is all part of the Margarita taste experience. And when using salt, I agree with two recommendations: 1) Use a large granular salt like kosher salt, and 2) When salting the rim, wet the outside of the glass with the lime wedge garnish and roll the glass in the salt to keep the salt on the outside of the glass not inside where it falls into the drink.
Other variations of the Margarita are best when not straying too far from its basic ingredients. A popular variation substitutes Cointreau with blue curacao for a “blue Margarita”. By just adding strawberries and sugar to the original margarita recipe, a strawberry margarita is born. A peach margarita follows the same simple addition of sugar and peaches. Essentially, any fruit can be used with the addition of some sugar for a sweeter, fruitier margarita.
Some Historical Recipes
Original Hussong’s Cantina Margarita Recipe: Salt; 1 lime, quartered; 1 ounce good quality white tequila; 1 ounce Damiana liqueur;1 ounce freshly squeezed key lime juice; Ice cubes; Lime peel for garnish. Pour salt onto a small plate. Moisten the rim of a large margarita glass with a quarter of lime and dip the edge into the salt. Pour the tequila, liqueur, and lime juice into a shaker, fill with ice cubes and cover to shake until the liquid is ice cold, about 1⁄2 minute. Pour into the glass and garnish the rim with lime peel.
Original Tequila Daisy: 2 oz blanco tequila; 1 oz Cointreau; ¾ oz fresh lime juice. Shake with ice and strain into a stemmed cocktail glass or champagne saucer that has been lightly rimmed (or not) with salt.
The Esquire Magazine 1953 Recipe: Simply 1 oz tequila, a dash of triple sec, and the juice of half a lime or lemon.
Tommy’s Margarita: 2 oz Reposado Tequila; 1 oz Freshly squeezed lime juice; 0.5 oz Agave nectar. Salt rim a chilled glass and set it aside. Add all ingredients into your cocktail shaker with plenty of ice. Shake until the drink is well chilled and strain over ice into your cocktail glass.
Conclusion
The Margarita has traveled a long road from simple blurry birth to the multitude of wonderful variations offered today. Now it sits atop the cocktail pinnacle of popularity. No matter what recipe you prefer, classic, modified, or something else of your own doing, a good Margarita is a perfect storm of taste sensations. After being greeted by the saltiness on the rim, the mouth encounters a beautiful blend of tequila’s bitterness, lime’s sourness, and orange liqueur’s sweetness. Ok, I have now researched myself into a desire for a Margarita for tonight’s happy hour. Cheers!
