Most serious agave geeks prefer unaged blanco tequila for cocktails, since it’s the purest expression you can get of the terroir and the agave plant.

Wipe excess salt off the inside of the rim to keep the salt from falling into the Margarita. It should only ever touch your lips — never the drink.

Pairing cocktails with food is no easy feat, but the straightforward flavours in this modern classic are a natural fit with pretty much all seafood, like shrimp tacos and fresh ceviche.

Swap in a mezcal, like Los Siete Misterios Mezcal, an authentic spirit from Oaxaca, to max out the smoky earthy flavours.

All these years later, Patrón is still boss for a reason. Every bottle contains that signature crisp and citrus-forward flavour profile that introduced tequila to the world.

Volcán Blanco is a gorgeous spirit with a perfect balance of bright fruit, sweet cooked agave and sharp minerality—one of the first real “terroir tequilas” to have ever hit Canada.

Use reposado tequila that has been “rested” in oak casks for a few months (between two and twelve), just long enough to get the liquid to relax and smooth out any rough edges.

Margarita glasses are really pretty, but a lot of bars these days just serve the cocktail in a casual rocks glass, instead — partly ’cause it’s way less likely to get knocked over.

You could pair this cocktail with just about any salty snack, but we love it with creamy traditional Mexican desserts like flan or tres leches.

Truth is, Gran Centenario Plata isn’t old enough to be a reposado, but unless you checked its ID, you’d never know this rich, oak-kissed tequila only spent a month in wood.

If this 364-day-old buttery-sweet and spicy Casa Noble Reposado had spent 24 more hours in wood, it’d be an añejo (a one-year-old).

Aged in used bourbon barrels for five months, this Reposado is rich and sweet with a gentle kick.

We used bittersweet Aperol to give this slushie classic a little hit of contemporary cred.

Serving up a frozen Margarita in a large Martini glass instead of a saucer-shaped Margarita glass helps keep the drink cool and frosty.

The frozen Marg was born to be served up with casual snacks, like fresh guac and chips or stuffed jalapeño poppers.

You’ll find Espolon Blanco at a lot of cocktail bars because it’s such a solid choice and plays well off so many other flavours.

One of the first pure agave tequilas to be exported from Mexico, Herradura Silver is still made in the same traditional way as it was when it became famous in the 1950s.

Super-popular in Mexico, El Jimador Blanco is one of the world’s top-selling brands for a reason — it’s a legit classic.