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Tequila Sunrise

The earthy-meets-tangy punch that tequila and orange juice give your tastebuds is one of a kind, which is why the colorful tequila sunrise has remained one of the most popular tequila cocktails, especially for brunch.

5 minutes

1 cocktail

Beginner

Ingredients

  • 2 ounces tequila
  • 4 ounces orange juice*
  • ¼ ounce grenadine
  • Orange slice (optional)
  • Cherry (optional)

Instructions

To an ice-filled highball glass, add tequila and orange juice. Slowly pour in grenadine and marvel as it sinks to the bottom of the glass. Garnish with a slice of orange or cherry.

*Getting your orange juice from the jug is fine. If you’ve got the time and resources, freshly squeezed is the way to go.

Infuse even more color with a Unicorn
Tequila Sunrise →

Two tall highball glasses garnished with a cherry and orange wedge are layered with orange juice then bright red grenadine at the bottom. The cocktails sit atop a cool-toned wood table next to orange wedges and a bowl of cherries

The invention of the tequila sunrise

Could it have been a happy little accident when someone first made this colorfully layered cocktail? Maybe so — but we think Gene Sulit knew what he was doing when he first concocted it at the Arizona Biltmore Hotel in the 1930s. The original tequila sunrise recipe used creme de cassis (a liqueur made from blackcurrants), lime juice and soda water. Throughout the years, folks have created different renditions, with the recipe including grenadine (pomegranate syrup) and orange juice rising to the top of the list.