Tequila, triple sec and fresh lemon or lime juice, these are the components of a standard margarita. The proportions may vary and orange liqueurs other than triple sec may be used, but these are the three main ingredients endorsed by the International Bartenders Association. What, then, are the ingredients in the world’s most expensive margarita?
Johnny Utah’s, a Western-style restaurant located in New York’s Rockefeller Center, features both a mechanical bull capable of rendering you permanently paralyzed and a mixed drink, The Vault, that can do the same to your wallet. Johnny Utah’s uses a $300 bottle of Herradura Suprema tequila to mix The Vault, along with grilled-lime juice and agave syrup. Notably missing from the mix is any sort of orange liqueur, though the syrup may make up for that. The drink costs $51 and was touted as the most expensive margarita in 2007.
Regardless of whether or not you consider The Vault to be a true margarita, the Riverside Hotel in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, has flattened that record with the Riverside Grand Margarita. This exclusive drink uses freshly squeezed lime juice; Cuvee Speciale Cent Cinquantenaire, a special triple sec made to commemorate the Grand Marnier company’s 150th anniversary, and Patron Tequila Gran Platinum. Both the tequila and liqueur cost about $200 a bottle. The finished product costs $65, making it the most expensive margarita in the world.
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i always preferred herradura over patron, but haven’t had the pleasure of tasting the suprema or the gran platinum.
Actually, the most expensive Margarita is sold at the Cheeky Monkey in Puerto Vallarta-Mexico. Using Don Julio Real Tequila (costing approx twice as much as the tequila in the current most expensive), the same Grand Marnier, as well as a Mediterranean Sea Salt & Black Truffle blend to rim the glass, and edible gold flakes sprinkled over the ice. The cost for that Margarita is $100.