Mixology at Home - Tequila Sunrise

RAPID CITY, S.D. (KEVN) - There are so many easy-to-make cocktails that you should not be intimidated in trying new recipes.

This week, it is the Tequila sunrise, a drink I never made until this year. No one asked for it before. It is another one of those one-two-three ingredient cocktails; no chemistry degree needed.

Ingredients

• 2 oz blanco tequila
• 4 oz freshly-squeezed orange juice
• ¼ oz Grenadine

Put two ounces of blanco tequila in a tall glass, add ice and then fill with four ounces of orange juice.

As for the orange juice, you can get away with using store-bought but really, try to have some fresh oranges on hand. Juice from an orange tastes better than store-bought so it is worth it to spend a little more for a sweeter, natural taste. My tweak on this is that I use Cutie oranges.

Stir to mix and then drizzle a quarter ounce of grenadine down the side of the glass so it settles on the bottom, giving you that sunrise look.

Tequila Sunrise History

Legend has it that this drink originated in a California bar and in 1972 Mick Jaegger and the Rolling Stones were in the bar, and Jaegger asked for a margarita but a bartender talked him into their drink, a tequila sunrise. Mick liked it so much that the Rolling Stones kept ordering it throughout their American tour. And the drink caught on.

However, the original tequila sunrise originating in an Arizona hotel sometime in the 1930s to 40s is quite different.

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 oz tequila
• 3/4 oz crème de cassis
• 1/2 oz lime juice
• Soda water

Pour the tequila, crème de cassis and lime juice into a shaker; shake for a couple of seconds, strain into tall glass with ice, top with soda water. Pour the soda water lightly so it kind of sits on top. Add a cherry for garnish.

A tweak I found is to add a dash of Angostura bitters aromatic bitters.

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