Move over, espresso martini. This coffee margarita is a staple in my drink rotation, and for good reason. The combination of coffee and tequila is a match for tequila lovers and haters alike: this drink is smooth, strong, and barely sweet.
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Summary
- Use a cocktail shaker or mason jar to shake up this coffee margarita. It’s best served in a chilled glass, so leave your margarita glasses in the fridge for a few minutes before making this recipe.
- You can use strong brewed cooled coffee, espresso, or cold brew to make this coffee tequila cocktail.
- The vanilla cream on top is optional, but makes for a super smooth and delicious drink.
- Welcome to the world, coffee margarita. This coffee tequila cocktail is legendary, and the perfect pick-me-up drink for just about any time of day.
- Coffee margaritas are an ideal drink before a long night… or maybe in the morning for brunch. I won’t say anything! If you like, you could even make this drink blended like a classic blended margarita. Just combine all of the ingredients into a blender with ice, and blend until smooth and frothy. Try making a sugar rim if you really have a thing for sweet drinks.
What is a Coffee Margarita?
This coffee tequila cocktail takes pointers from one of the most famous cocktails on the planet: the espresso martini. Coffee margaritas combine the best thing about tequila (tequila) with the best thing about espresso martinis (coffee liqueur, strong coffee, and sugar syrup). If you like espresso martinis, you have to try a coffee margarita.
Is Tequila Good in Coffee?
Funny you ask, because yes, tequila is absolutely good in coffee. This recipe is proof. If you’ve never tried tequila and coffee together, prepare to be pleasantly surprised: the acidity of coffee couples with tequila as perfectly as a squeeze of lime.
Take Your Pick: Brewed Coffee, Espresso, or Cold Brew
For this coffee margarita recipe, strong brewed coffee works just as well as espresso, works just as well as cold brew. Using cold brew creates a smoother coffee margarita (my favorite) but coffee and espresso get the job done very well.
How to Quickly Cool Down Coffee
If you’re fresh out of cold brew and don’t have an espresso maker — but coffee margaritas are on your mind — here’s how to quickly cool down that steaming cup. Pour the hot coffee into a shallow bowl and let it sit for a few minutes. If you’re really pressed for time, add an ice cube. It’ll be ready to shake up in no time.
What Kind of Tequila Should I Use?
In general, there are three types of tequila that you can find at your local grocery store or liquor store: blanco, reposado, and añejo. As a tequila ages from blanco to añejo, the flavor grows mellower, woodier, and more complex. To make a coffee margarita, you’ll want to stick to a blanco or reposado. The older a tequila is, the better it is to sip straight, so stick to a younger tequila for this cocktail.
Ingredients for a Coffee Margarita
- Tequila: As mentioned above, you’ll want a blanco or reposado tequila to make a coffee margarita. I tend to stick to blanco, but that’s just personal preference.
- Coffee liqueur: Kahlúa is probably the most well-known coffee liqueur you can buy. Tia Maria is also readily available in most grocery and liquor stores.
- Coffee of choice: Strong coffee, espresso, or cold brew.
- Brown sugar simple syrup: Regular simple syrup works just as well, but I like the darker, more complex flavor of brown sugar in this cocktail. You can make brown sugar simple syrup in 5 minutes: combine one cup of water and one cup of brown sugar in a saucepan, and bring to a simmer just until the sugar dissolves.
- Heavy cream (optional): If you’re feeling indulgent, shake up some heavy cream to make a silky smooth foam that sits on top of the coffee margarita. Just like Starbucks… but better.
- Vanilla extract (optional): For the vanilla cream.
How to Make a Coffee Margarita
- Chill Your Glasses:
- Place your margarita glass, martini glass, or short glass in the fridge while you’re making this recipe. It’ll keep your drink colder for longer.
- Make the Margarita:
- Add ice to a cocktail shaker or mason jar.
- Add 2 oz of tequila, 1 oz of coffee liqueur, 2 oz of strong cooled coffee or cold brew (or 1 oz espresso), and 1/2 oz of brown sugar simple syrup.
- Shake it up, and shake it really well. This is how you create that signature foam on top.
- Strain:
- Pour the coffee margarita into your chilled glass. You can stop here, if you like, and garnish your coffee margarita with the classic 3 coffee beans. (They represent health, wealth, and happiness.)
- Make the Vanilla Cream (Optional):
- In a mason jar, add 2 oz of cold heavy cream and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract.
- Shake it up for at least a minute.
- Hold a spoon upside down over the coffee margarita, and slowly pour the vanilla cream over the spoon. This will make the cream sit in a foamy layer on top of the drink.
Helpful Tools to Make This Recipe
- Cocktail shaker: It’s time to buy a cocktail shaker. At least that’s what I told myself when I was two years out of college and still mixing drinks with my pointer finger.
- Mason jars: You can easily use a mason jar if you don’t have a cocktail shaker. You’ll also need one to shake up the vanilla cream.
- French press: Make strong coffee in a French press for this coffee margarita recipe.
- Cold brew maker: Or, do as I do and make a batch of cold brew for coffee margaritas all week! I’ve said it a million times and I’ll say it again: this Primula Burke cold brew maker changed my life. If you’re a cold brew fan, you need it in your life.