Classic cocktail · Guided recipe

Tequila Daisy

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Grenadine is what makes a Daisy a Daisy. Here it pushes 60 ml of tequila into red-pink territory, sweet at the edges and still plainly agave in the middle.

Preparation~3 minEasyStrengthStrongabout 26% ABVMethodShaken9 guided stepsIngredients4Short (rocks) glass
Sour

In the glassTequila (blanco) · Fresh lemon juice · Grenadine · Triple sec / Cointreau

See exact amounts
Tequila Daisy in a heavy low rocks glass styled in an agave-country rooftop bar with pale volcanic stone, limewashed wall and distant dusty hills.
Make it with guidanceOne clear action at a time, with timers built in.
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What goes in

Ingredients

An empty clear rocks glass with low straight sides and a heavy base.
Serving glassRocks glass

Set up before you pour

Use a rocks glass.

The low, sturdy bowl suits concentrated drinks and gives one large cube enough width.

Standard size
300 ml10¼ oz
Ice & serve
Fill it with fresh ice cubes.
If you don’t own one
Use a small water tumbler with a heavy base.
Tools to set out
  • cocktail shaker
  • strainer (or a small sieve)
  • jigger or measuring spoon
Compare all glass types
Scale to your short (rocks) glassWe’ll remember this glass size.
  • Tequila (blanco)60 ml
  • Triple sec / Cointreau8 ml
  • Fresh lemon juice22 ml
  • Grenadine15 ml
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From bottle to glass

Method

  1. 01
    Instructional sketch: Measure and pour spirit vodka into the shaker tin without serving ice.
    Measure into the shaker

    Pour 60 ml tequila into your shaker

    • Tequila (blanco)
  2. 02
    Instructional sketch: Measure and pour fresh lemon into the shaker tin without serving ice.
    Measure into the shaker

    Add 22 ml fresh lemon juice

    • Fresh lemon juice
  3. 03
    Instructional sketch: Measure and pour pantry syrup into the shaker tin without serving ice.
    Measure into the shaker

    Add 15 ml grenadine

    • Grenadine
  4. 04
    Instructional sketch: Measure and pour liqueur orange into the shaker tin without serving ice.
    Measure into the shaker

    Add 8 ml triple sec / cointreau

    • Triple sec / Cointreau
  5. 05
    Instructional sketch: Add cubed ice to the shaker tin.
    Ice the shaker

    Fill the shaker with ice

  6. 06
    Instructional sketch: Seal the two-piece shaker and shake it firmly with both hands.
    Seal and shake

    Seal and shake hard

  7. 07
    Instructional sketch: Add cubed ice to the rocks glass.
    Ice the glass

    Fill your glass with fresh ice

  8. 08
    Instructional sketch: Strain the red cocktail from the shaker into the rocks glass with cubed ice.
    Strain cleanly

    Strain into your glass

  9. 09
    Instructional sketch: Finish the red drink in the rocks glass with cubed ice with Lemon Slice.
    Finish the drink

    Finish it — add a lemon slice

Know your drink

About the Tequila Daisy

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

Grenadine, properly made

Supermarket grenadine is usually corn syrup, citric acid and red dye, with no pomegranate anywhere near the bottle. That is where the cough-syrup note comes from, and in a drink carrying 15 ml of the stuff there is nowhere for it to hide. Check the label before you blame the tequila.

Making your own takes ten minutes. Equal weights of pomegranate juice and sugar, warmed only until the sugar dissolves, never boiled. A spoon of pomegranate molasses deepens the color and half a teaspoon of orange flower water is the traditional finish. It keeps about a month refrigerated, longer with 15 ml of vodka in the bottle.

Common questions

Tequila Daisy FAQ

Can I add a splash of soda?

Traditionally, yes. Nineteenth-century Daisies often finished with a little soda or seltzer, which lengthens the drink and takes some edge off the grenadine. Add 30 ml and serve it in something taller, or leave it out and keep the drink short and rich.

It's coming out too sweet.

Drop the grenadine to 10 ml before touching anything else, then check your lemon is a full 22 ml and squeezed that day. Commercial grenadine varies wildly between brands and most of it is corn syrup, so treat 15 ml as a ceiling rather than a rule.

Is the Margarita really a Tequila Daisy?

Margarita is Spanish for daisy and the two share a shape: agave, citrus, sweet liqueur. That's enough for a good story and not enough for proof. Daisies were being poured with whiskey and brandy long before anybody wrote a tequila one down.

Straight up or over ice?

Over ice in a rocks glass. Grenadine and orange liqueur make it sweet enough that a little dilution genuinely helps, and the color reads better over cubes than in a coupe. Serving it up means cutting the grenadine to 10 ml and shaking noticeably longer.

What ingredients are in a Tequila Daisy?

A classic Tequila Daisy calls for 60 ml (2 oz) Tequila, 22 ml (0.75 oz) Fresh lemon juice, 15 ml (0.5 oz) Grenadine, 8 ml (0.25 oz) Triple sec / Cointreau. That single-serve spec scales cleanly — the recipe above converts it to oz and multiplies it for 2–4 drinks.

How strong is a Tequila Daisy?

A standard Tequila Daisy is roughly 26% ABV once mixed (before ice melt softens it further). That makes it spirit-forward — closer to a Martini than to a beer, so sip it slowly.

Is a Tequila Daisy shaken or stirred?

A Tequila Daisy 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

Skills used in this recipe

Hands holding both ends of a frosted two-tin cocktail shaker above a prepared home bar.
Technique6 min

How to shake a cocktail properly

The grip, timing, ice and visual cues that make shaken drinks colder and brighter.

Read the guide
Large clear ice, standard cubes and crushed ice shown in three appropriate cocktail glasses.
Fundamentals7 min

Cocktail ice: cubes, crushed ice and dilution

Understand why ice is an ingredient—and choose the right shape for every drink.

Read the guide
Fresh lime being squeezed through a metal citrus press beside lemon, grapefruit and peel tools.
Ingredients6 min

Fresh citrus for cocktails: juice, wedges and balance

Get brighter lime, lemon and grapefruit flavor with better prep and storage.

Read the guide

Where to go next

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