Classic cocktail · Guided recipe

Matador

Pineapple juice does something to tequila that no other fruit manages: it rounds the agave off without burying it. Lime keeps the whole thing from sliding into fruit punch. Drier than the color suggests.

Preparation~2 minSuper easyStrengthMediumabout 15% ABVMethodShaken8 guided stepsIngredients3Tall (highball) glass

Sour

In the glassTequila (blanco) · Pineapple juice · Fresh lime juice

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Make it with guidanceOne clear action at a time, with timers built in.

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What goes in

Ingredients

An empty clear highball glass with tall straight sides and a substantial base. — Serving glassHighball glass

Set up before you pour

Use a highball glass.

The tall, straight shape leaves room for plenty of ice and mixer while keeping a long drink lively.

Standard size: 350 ml11¾ oz
Ice & serve: Fill it with fresh ice cubes.
If you don’t own one: Use a Collins glass or any tall, straight-sided tumbler.

Tools to set out

cocktail shaker
strainer (or a small sieve)
jigger or measuring spoon

Compare all glass types

Scale to your tall (highball) glassWe’ll remember this glass size.

Tequila (blanco)45 ml
Pineapple juice60 ml
Fresh lime juice15 ml

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From bottle to glass

Method

01
Measure into the shaker
Pour 45 ml tequila into your shaker
- Tequila (blanco)
02
Measure into the shaker
Add 60 ml pineapple juice
- Pineapple juice
03
Measure into the shaker
Add 15 ml fresh lime juice
- Fresh lime juice
04
Ice the shaker
Fill the shaker with ice
Why it mattersFill it right up — more ice chills faster with less watering down.
05
Seal and shake
Seal and shake hard
Why it mattersCold hands mean it’s working. Shake until the tin frosts over.
06
Ice the glass
Fill your glass with fresh ice
07
Strain cleanly
Strain into your glass
Why it mattersPour through the strainer so the spent shaker ice stays behind.
08
Finish the drink
Finish it — add a pineapple wedge

Know your drink

About the Matador

A salt-rimmed Margarita, coral Paloma and mezcal rocks drink on an agave terrace.

The pineapple juice question

Canned pineapple juice and fresh pineapple juice are not the same ingredient. Canned is heat-treated, which flattens the sharp enzymatic bite and leaves the sugar exposed. Fresh is tarter and cloudier, and it foams when you shake it. Fresh also goes off within a day, which is why almost nobody uses it. The honest position: canned is fine here, just pull the sweetness back with lime.

Ratio matters more than provenance. Plenty of recipes run pineapple at two or three times the tequila, and at that point the agave is a rumor. Keeping it near four parts juice to three of spirit, with lime at about a third of the tequila, leaves the drink recognizably alcoholic and lets the pepper come through on the finish.

Common questions

Matador FAQ

Why doesn't mine get a foamy head?

That head comes from fresh pineapple juice, which still has enough protein and pulp in it to whip up. Canned juice is filtered and pasteurized and stays flat no matter how hard you shake. If you're using fresh, shake ten to twelve seconds and pour everything in, foam included.

It came out too sweet. What do I fix?

Pineapple juice swings wildly in sugar depending on the fruit and the brand, so treat 60 ml as a starting point. Drop it to 45 ml, or add another 5 ml of lime and taste again. Fixing sweetness with more tequila works too, but you'll feel it later.

How is it different from a pineapple Margarita?

No orange liqueur and no salt rim, which removes both the sugar and the savory frame a Margarita depends on. What's left is tequila and fruit, taller and less concentrated. A Margarita is a sour you sip. This is a highball you drink.

Can I make a pitcher of it?

It scales better than most shaken drinks. Mix tequila and pineapple ahead and keep it cold, but squeeze the lime within an hour of serving or it turns dull and slightly bitter. Then shake each glass with ice to order rather than diluting the whole batch in advance.

What ingredients are in a Matador?

A classic Matador calls for 45 ml (1.5 oz) Tequila, 60 ml (2 oz) Pineapple juice, 15 ml (0.5 oz) Fresh lime juice. That single-serve spec scales cleanly — the recipe above converts it to oz and multiplies it for 2–4 drinks.

How strong is a Matador?

A standard Matador is roughly 15% ABV once mixed (before ice melt softens it further). That makes it about as strong as a glass of wine.

Is a Matador shaken or stirred?

A Matador is shaken — the rule of thumb is to shake anything with citrus juice. About 13 seconds with plenty of ice chills and dilutes it correctly.

Sharpen the technique