Easy Cranberry Margarita

Name: Easy Cranberry Margarita
Prep time: 5 min
Total time: 5 min
Ingredients: 3 ounces 100% cranberry juice; 1.5 ounces tequila (blanco or resposado); 1 ounce triple sec or cointreau; 0.5 ounce lime juice; 0.5 ounce simple syrup

Celebrate the holiday season with this Easy Cranberry Margarita! A Christmas drink with tequila? Yes, please! Made with classic margarita ingredients and tart cranberry juice, it’s the cocktail we all know and love, but with a festive twist. The beautiful bright red color makes this a perfect Christmas margarita, but it’s tasty enough to drink all year!

Thirsty for more cocktail recipes? A classic Frozen Limeade Margarita is a must-have for any celebration! This Green Midori Margarita would be a fun cocktail for a Christmas party alongside this red margarita!

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A cranberry margarita in a glass with a garnish of cranberries and a sprig of rosemary. Fresh cranberries, rosemary, and limes surround the glass.

Why You’ll Love this Cranberry Margarita Recipe

You will love the delicious sweet tart flavor! Cranberry juice in a margarita is a match made in heaven – it got me thinking, why haven’t I tried this sooner?
Serve this for any occasion that calls for a red cocktail – Valentine’s Day, 4th of July, Christmas – all of the above!
This cranberry margarita recipe is made with only 5 ingredients!
It’s simple and easy to whip up and comes together in under 5 minutes!

A Christmas margarita with a salt rim surrounded by fresh cranberries and limes. A bottle of blanco tequila is behind the drink.

Cranberry Margarita Ingredients:

Cranberry Juice – I like to use 100% cranberry juice, which is unsweetened and free of added sugars. The color is more vibrant and you can sweeten your drink to taste. If you purchase cranberry juice cocktail, use less simple syrup or none at all.
Tequila – Use blanco or resposado.
Triple Sec or Cointreau – Triple sec is slightly sweeter and more budget-friendly than Cointreau. It depends on your preference, both work well in margs.
Fresh Lime Juice – Freshly squeezed lime juice is always best.
Simple Syrup – a liquid sweetener. You can buy simple syrup in the store or easily make your own by dissolving one cup of sugar in one cup of hot water on the stove. Add fresh cranberries to make a cranberry simple syrup.

Recommended Tools:

You can’t go wrong with a classic margarita glass, but I love these adorable cactus margarita glasses too!
A cocktail shaker for mixing the booze.
A cocktail jigger for properly measuring liquid.

Ingredients needed to make a cranberry margarita: tequila, cranberry juice, triple sec, limes, and simple syrup.

What’s the Best Tequila for Margaritas?

There are three types of tequila: blanco, resposado, and anejo. Their names indicate how long they have been aged and each one has a different flavor profile.

Blanco (aka Silver) has been aged less than 2 months. It has notes of citrus and pepper, and has a strong, spicy finish.
Resposado has been aged for 2 to 12 months in oak barrels. It has notes of caramel and vanilla with a smooth finish.
Anejo has been aged for 1 to 4 years in oak barrels. It has a dark, rich flavor with notes of vanilla and cinnamon. It’s best for sipping and served on the rocks.

So, to answer our question, blanco or resposado are best for making margaritas or mixing in cocktails. For this Christmas margarita recipe, I choose a blanco tequila because that’s what I had available, but a resposado tequila would taste great too.

A red cocktail in a glass with a salted rim. A garnish of rosemary and a cranberry are on top of the drink.

How to Make a Cranberry Margarita

One of my favorite Christmas drinks with tequila is this Cranberry Margarita. It’s easy to make yourself one for happy hour or many for a crowd. Here’s how to make one drink:

Step 1: Wet the rim of the glass with a sliced lime. Dip the rim in salt. Salt will enhance the sweet, sour, and tart flavors of this holiday cocktail.

Step 2: Add all ingredients along with ice to a cocktail shaker. Shake until chilled and pour into a margarita glass.

Step 3 (optional): Garnish this holiday margarita with cranberries and rosemary sprigs.

How to Make a Pitcher of Margaritas

Bring out the pitcher and let’s make big batch margaritas! If you’re making cranberry margaritas for a crowd, it’s best to make them ahead of time. After all, it’s your party too – enjoy it!

This big batch margarita recipe serves 8 drinks. Here’s the cranberry margarita recipe for a crowd:

3 cups of 100% cranberry juice
1 1/2 cups of tequila
1 cup of triple sec or cointreau
1/2 cup lime juice
1/2 cup simple syrup

A red margarita in a glass with a salt rim surrounded by fresh cranberries and limes.

More Boozy Beverages

If you try this recipe or any recipe from Happy Honey Kitchen, please rate the recipe and leave a comment below! If you take pictures, share them with me on Instagram so I can repost on Stories!