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Home > Recipes > Tequila

Cranberry Margaritas

This easy cranberry margarita recipe is bursting with fall flavors. They’re made from scratch with cranberry juice and orange liqueur. Celebrating Christmas or another holiday? Garnish with fresh cranberries and herbs for a festive look!
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Cranberry margaritas in glasses rimmed with salt, garnished with a lime wedge, mint sprig and fresh cranberries.
Table of Contents
  • Why we love these cranberry margaritas
  • Here's what you'll need to make it
    • Equipment
    • Ingredients & substitutions
  • How to make cranberry margaritas
  • Everything you need to know cranberry margaritasc
  • More holiday cocktail recipes you'll love
  • More margarita recipes you should try
  • Cranberry Margaritas

Why we love these cranberry margaritas

  • These easy cranberry margaritas made from scratch, which means they taste way better than any margarita mix you could ever buy.
  • Who’s ready for the weekend? I know I am, and these cranberry margaritas are just the thing to celebrate this summer being almost over. The margaritas are perfect for the heat, but the cranberry reminds you that fall is just around the corner. Yes. The heat will end. Maybe not as soon as I would like it, but there is an end in sight.
  • In case you don’t know how to rim a cocktail glass, check out this article. If you do it the right way, it’s super easy.

P.S. We also really love this sparkling cranberry cocktail, if you’re looking for other ways to use your cranberry juice!

A hand picking up a red holiday tequila cocktail, garnished with a lime wedge, mint sprig and a few fresh cranberries.

Here’s what you’ll need to make it

**This post contains affiliate links. I may earn commission from qualifying purchases at no additional cost to you. I will never recommend a product I don’t use or trust.**

Equipment

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Cocktail Shaker

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Glass Rimmer

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Easy Measure Jigger

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Ingredients & substitutions

  • To be honest, I haven’t always been a huge fan of margaritas. I mean, I would get them at Mexican restaurants, but I never, ever ordered one anywhere else. And, I never considered making them. Partly because I never had the ingredients, but also because I wasn’t a huge fan of tequila.
  • Well, I had it all wrong. I was drinking the wrong tequila. Turns out, I don’t like gold tequila, and I don’t like margarita mix that much. There are a few that I don’t mind (and adding a squeeze of lime can go a long way), but margaritas from scratch are a totally different experience.
  • Anyway, I switched to silver tequila, and I’m officially obsessed. The thing about fresh margaritas is that they require a lot of lime juice, but not these cranberry margaritas. The amount of juicing you need to do is more than cut in half.
A cranberry margarita rimmed with coarse salt and garnished with cranberries and a lime wedge.

How to make cranberry margaritas

Rim a lowball or margarita glass with sugar and fill with ice.

Stir ingredients together in a cocktail shaker and pour into glass.

Garnish with a lime wedge.

Close up of a margarita garnished with fresh cranberries and garnished with a mint sprig and a lime wedge.

Everything you need to know cranberry margaritasc

Is Triple Sec necessary for margaritas?

No triple sec isn’t necessary for margaritas, but it adds a great depth of flavor and a touch of sweetness to your margaritas. If you don’t have triple sec, an orange liqueur, such as Cointreau will work. You can also substitute another fruity liqueur or an equal amount of simple syrup.

What is better in a margarita Cointreau or Triple Sec?

It honestly just depends on what you’re going for. Cointreau has a higher alcohol content, so it won’t be quite as sweet, but I prefer it to triple sec. Triple sec, however, is significantly cheaper (making it a great budget-friendly option) and on the sweeter side for those that prefer their drinks sweet.

What’s the best tequila for margaritas?

I recommend buying the highest quality silver tequila you can afford, but it doesn’t have to be the best tequila on the shelf either. You will be mixing it with sweeteners and lime juice – and in this case cranberry juice. I don’t recommend gold tequila for margaritas, but if you do prefer the flavor, go for it.

More holiday cocktail recipes you’ll love

  • Spiked eggnog
  • Fig jam whiskey cocktail
  • Peppermint white russian
  • Brandy slush
  • Cranberry bourbon smash

More margarita recipes you should try

  • Apple cider margaritas
  • Spicy jalapeno margarita
  • Easy prickly pear margaritas
  • Strawberry margarita on the rocks

Cranberry Margaritas

By: Melissa Belanger
This easy cranberry margarita recipe is bursting with fall flavors. They’re made from scratch with cranberry juice and orange liqueur. Celebrating Christmas or another holiday? Garnish with fresh cranberries and herbs for a festive look!
Prep Time: 3 minutes mins
Total Time: 3 minutes mins
1
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Ingredients 

  • 2 ounces cranberry juice
  • 1 ounce lime juice
  • 1/2 ounce triple sec or orange liqueur
  • 1 1/2 ounces tequila
  • Sugar, for garnish
  • Lime wedge, for garnish

Instructions 

  • Rim a highball or margarita glass with sugar and fill with ice.
  • Stir ingredients together in a cocktail shaker and pour into glass.
  • Garnish with a lime wedge.
Last step!Share a picture on Instagram and tag me at @anothercocktailblog!

Nutrition Information

Calories: 176kcal (9%), Carbohydrates: 14g (5%), Protein: 0.3g (1%), Fat: 0.1g, Saturated Fat: 0.03g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.1g, Monounsaturated Fat: 0.01g, Sodium: 3mg, Potassium: 81mg (2%), Fiber: 0.2g (1%), Sugar: 12g (13%), Vitamin A: 40IU (1%), Vitamin C: 14mg (17%), Calcium: 9mg (1%), Iron: 0.2mg (1%)

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Hi! I’m Melissa.

I’m so happy you’re here!

I’m a food blogger, photographer and cocktail enthusiast – and a mom of 2. I started Another Cocktail Blog to share the fun of mixing cocktails at home, so grab some ice and stay for a while.

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