Welcome to Day 11 of the Advent of Cocktails 2025! Today's cocktail is...

Tequila Sunrise

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History

The Tequila Sunrise has a long and captivating history that dates back to the 1930s and have changed to a completely different cocktail over time. Upon researching the history of today's cocktail, I noticed most of the sources repeatedly credit one of two locations as the origin of the Tequila Sunrise. Below is the one source I found that actually mentions both:

The Tequila Sunrise's history can be found firmly planted in American pop culture and Rock and Roll curiosity.

The cocktail was a fun and exotic escape from the chains of Prohibition, where many would cross the border in search for relaxation and boozy prosperity.

Before the gaze of Hollywood, there were two claims to the throne in the 1930s. One being at Agua Caliente, a major Prohibition-era resort in Tijuana and the other at Arizona’s Biltmore Hotel in Phoenix. Both had the original concoction of tequila, lime, crème de cassis and soda water on their menus. According to Dave Wondrich (author of ‘Punch’ and ‘Imbibe!’) Hotel Agua Caliente was a popular trek for Californian’s that wanted to gamble, drink, and bet at the casino and racetrack.

^{Source: "Tequila Sunrise", Spirits Beacon}

The modern version, which provides the iconic sunrise effect, was developed in the 1970s by Bobby Lozoff and Billy Rice at The Trident, a restaurant in Sausalito, California. It gained immense popularity when it was served to Mick Jagger during a party for the Rolling Stones' 1972 tour, ultimately becoming associated with rock-and-roll history.

The Tequila Sunrise gained its massive popularity in the 1970s thanks to these two major rock and roll connections:

• The Rolling Stones' Tour: In 1972, the Rolling Stones were at a party in Sausalito, California, where a bartender served Mick Jagger his first modern Tequila Sunrise. Jagger loved the drink so much that he and his entourage made it their signature cocktail for the rest of their U.S. tour, which Keith Richards reportedly dubbed the "cocaine and Tequila Sunrise tour".
• The Eagles' Song: The following year, in 1973, the band the Eagles released their hit song "Tequila Sunrise," which helped to further embed the drink into popular culture.

This association with two iconic bands of the era, along with Jose Cuervo putting the recipe on the back of their tequila bottles, propelled the Tequila Sunrise into the mainstream and made it a defining drink of the 1970s rock scene.

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Original Tequila Sunrise (Trader Vic's bartender's guide (1972 edition))

• 1/2 lime
• 1 1/2 oz (45 ml) tequila
• 1 teaspoon grenadine
• 1/3 teaspoon créme de cassis
• Club soda

Squeeze lime juice into old fashioned glass filled with ice cubes; drop in lime shell. Add tequila, grenadine, and créme de cassis. Stir. Fill glass with soda.

Original Tequila Sunrise (The Educated Barfly: "Master The Classics: Original Tequila Sunrise")

• 2oz (60ml) Blanco Tequila
• .5oz (15ml) Creme de Casis
• .75oz (22.5ml) Lime Juice
• .5oz (15ml) Grenadine
• Top Soda Water
• Lime Wheel Garnish

Shake ingredients, except Soda Water, with ice. Double strain into highball glass. Top with Soda Water and garnish with lime wheel

Tequila Sunrise (modern IBA spec)

• 1.5 oz (45 ml) tequila
• 3 oz (90 ml) orange juice
• 0.5 oz (15 ml) grenadine syrup

1. Pour tequila and orange juice directly into highball glass filled with ice cubes.
2. Add the grenadine syrup to create chromatic effect (sunrise), do not stir.
3. Garnish with half orange slice or an orange zest.

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Variations

Some interesting variations of the Tequila Sunrise include the 'Tequila Sunset,' which substitutes blackberry brandy or dark rum for grenadine, and the 'Amaretto Sunrise,' where amaretto liqueur is used instead of tequila. Another variation is the 'Mimosa Sunrise,' where champagne is added for a bubbly twist.

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Previous December 11 cocktails

• AoC 2020: Last Word
• AoC 2021: Oaxaca Old-Fashioned
• AoC 2022: Prospector
• AoC 2023: Bourbon Renewal
• AoC 2024: Millionaire

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Ingredient heads-up: Irish whiskey (preferably single-pot-still) and Mezcal will be called for tomorrow

NB! Variations and your own riffs are encouraged, please share the result and recipe!

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