Cranberry Margarita Recipes | Margaritas for Holiday Parties

The holiday season brings a lot of joy to families around the world. However, we can make things even merrier, even brighter with the help of the right cocktails. There aren’t any cocktails filled with more holiday magic than cranberry margarita recipes.

These cranberry margarita recipes can enhance your holiday magic with the joy of the season in every drop. A cranberry margarita recipe is a festive cocktail and one of the best margaritas out there.

Something about the fresh cranberries takes this cranberry cocktail to the next level. Even those who don’t like cranberry sauce can enjoy this cocktail. We don’t even have to use only cranberries.

Numerous cranberry margarita recipes have different ingredients on the rim of the glass or the cocktail itself. Then, we can vary the type of tequila we use in the recipe. So many different ways to vary a single cocktail recipe.

However, the thing that really makes this margarita one of the favorite drinks to serve during the holidays is the cranberries themselves. Cranberries are the fruit of the holiday season.

We can add them to the best tequila in a classic margarita recipe to make a festive cranberry juice cocktail. We can even garnish it with sugared cranberries to take things to the next level.

Clearly, the cranberries are the most important aspects of the cocktail; everything starts with the cranberries.

Fresh, Frozen, or Just Cranberry Juice

​Margaritas are amazing because they come in so many different flavors. We can use fresh fruit or fruit juice to change the flavor of the margarita—for example, an orange margarita with orange juice and a slice of orange to garnish the rim.

This easy cranberry margarita pitcher recipe uses a combination of both fresh fruit and fruit juice. It is an easy recipe to use when you have a crowd of joyous people enjoying the holidays.

The cranberries put a festive spin on margaritas that only cranberries can provide. Of course, we don’t have to use fresh cranberries at all to get the same effect.

This easy cranberry margarita recipe doesn’t have fresh cranberries; instead, it uses cranberry juice by itself, and it is still great. Even cranberry margarita recipes use a can of cranberry sauce instead of fresh, frozen, or juiced cranberries.

Ultimately, how you get your cranberries in the margarita doesn’t matter; you’ll get a delicious cocktail no matter which method you pick.

Is Cranberry Juice a Good Mixer for Tequila?

Tequila always makes for good cocktails. However, not everyone is a fan of straight tequila; some prefer to mix it with something to make it more enjoyable. The good news is that cranberries are a perfect mixer for tequila.

The tartness from the cranberries offsets the alcohol enough on its own. That could be what makes a cranberry margarita recipe the best margarita recipe. Of course, we can also say that a festive cranberry margarita brings the holiday spirit with it, making it the best.

Either way, cranberries and tequila go together perfectly, making a festive drink for the adults at the gathering. Another aspect of this pairing is the diminished sweetness that comes with most margarita recipes.

The sweetness is what pushes a lot of people away from margaritas. However, these cranberry margarita recipes all have a slightly less sweet taste to them. That’s all thanks to the tart cranberry juice in holiday cranberry margaritas.

Does Cranberry Juice Breakdown Alcohol?

A common question people ask about cranberry juice is if it breaks down alcohol. Some people will swear by the power of cranberry juice to help with a hangover or to avoid a hangover altogether.

Unfortunately, and fortunately, cranberry juice does not break down alcohol. Cranberry juice can help you feel hydrated, which is a good way to avoid hangovers.

However, the cranberry juice in your favorite holiday margarita recipe will not diminish the alcohol in the cocktail. You will still get the same amount of alcohol in these recipes as you would from a classic cocktail margarita.

That’s partly what makes cranberry margaritas the perfect holiday cocktail. We can even add things like ginger beer to enhance the flavor of the cranberries in the margarita.

We won’t lose alcohol content, which is clearly one of our favorite things during the holidays. The question is, what tequila do you use when creating the perfect cocktail?

Does the tequila even matter in a cranberry margarita recipe for a crowd?

Best Tequila for Margaritas

There are plenty of tequilas out there, some of which are known as gold tequila or white tequila. These refer to the color of the tequila, but what changes its color? Gold tequila is tequila that has been aged in oak barrels.

They absorb some of that oak color, and, of course, tequila makers add dyes to deepen that color. White tequila or blanco tequila is bottled immediately after distillation. This means there is no aging process, so the tequila is clear.

The question is, which tequila should you use in your margarita recipes for the holidays? Blanco is the answer. Your favorite cocktails might use golden tequila, or you may enjoy the taste of golden tequila more.

However, the smoothness of blanco tequila makes it easier to mix the ingredients. Tart cranberry recipes will also balance more evenly with blanco tequila.

This could have something to do with the oak color that has been absorbed. Either way, bartenders highly recommend using white or blanco tequila for margaritas with cranberries and all other margarita recipes.

How to Garnish Cranberry Margarita Recipes

How we garnish margaritas, especially for a crowd, will depend on our margarita glasses. The perfect way to garnish a margarita is always kosher salt or coarse salt around the rim.

However, we can make our Christmas margaritas with sugar on the rim for those who prefer the sweeter side of cocktails. Using cane sugar to make sugared cranberries is also a great trick.

The sugar and the tartness make for one delicious garnish to pair with your signature Christmas cocktail. We also can’t forget about other seasonal fruit to garnish the drinks.

We can make a cranberry margarita with apples for a truly welcomed holiday gift. No matter which way you choose to go, garnish these margaritas the same way you would any other cocktail.

Add a sprig of thyme to make for a truly festive look. Happy Holidays!

More Holiday Recipes

Strawberry Pretzel Dessert Recipe | Strawberry Pretzel Torte | You can serve up a matching dessert with your margaritas. In fact, this is a sweet dessert that is easy and takes almost no time at all. 

Garlic Free Hummus Recipes {Perfect for a Garlic Allergy or Intolerance} | Margaritas are an essential part of any party. However, the most important part might be the dip. Hummus makes a great dip that everyone can enjoy.

Dairy Free Pumpkin Pie Recipes | Pumpkins might still be abundant, so why not use them? Pumpkin pie is a holiday season staple during the fall and winter. That makes this recipe the perfect one for your gathering.

Crockpot Gingerbread Latte with Caramel | Gingerbread cookies are amazing and filled with flavor, and the flavor goes great with a latte and some caramel.

Easy Twice Baked Potatoes Recipe | Le Creuset Mashed Potatoes | There isn’t a holiday party in the US that doesn’t have some sort of potatoes. However, twice-baked might be the best type of potatoes you can enjoy.