There was a time not too long ago, well probably 5 years ago, when I never EVER made a margarita outside of the heat of summer. Something about that combination of fresh citrus and tequila simply screamed warm weather to me and I stuck with that mantra for many years.
What changed? I started to experiment with more than my standard. Don't get me wrong, I think this Margarita is simply the best ever; hands down, but that hasn't meant that I haven't found some really, I mean REALLY tasting versions along the way. No longer subject to just summer, now it's fun to create something using seasonal produce and today it's all about the apple.
I'm really not trying to hurry summer along; I just had some apples and a gift of ginger syrup and it seemed meant to be; the results say I was right!
Summer means blueberries, blackberries and strawberries, winter can go the route of cranberry and pomegranate and right now in Colorado it's actually all about peaches. I ordered twenty pounds of Colorado peaches but they are not quite ripe enough so the apples in my fruit bowl were calling to me instead.
Trust me; heading towards apples does not equate to seeing me starting to scream pumpkin; nope, not quite there yet. But I can't deny my love for apples and pears and I've been in an apple state of mind lately. It's the perfect star of this Apple Cider Margarita. With all of the varieties now available, cooking and baking and margarita making is so much more interesting!
I had a bottle of apple cider in the fridge from Martinelli and it was perfect for this margarita. I normally like to either make my own cider or buy unfiltered (much like OJ with pulp, I like it with some body) but I love how this turned out; crystal clear and refreshing with flavors of ginger and cinnamon to boot. Really an excellent late summer/fall tipple (that word is simply not used enough!).
I used a bottle of ginger syrup I was given as a gift but I've also included a recipe for making your own. It's so good; try it on ice cream too.
I'm not ready to go full steam ahead into Fall just yet but this drink really hit the spot this past weekend; it's another great transitional drink; fall flavors meet classic bracing margarita!
Love Apple Cider like I do? Here are some more favorite cocktails! See you next week with something peachy!
PIN 'Apple Cider Margarita Cocktail'
