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 Who Invented the Margarita?
Excerpt from The Great Margarita Book, by Al Lucero
Who invented the margarita? One might just as easily ask, "Who discovered fire?" The point is, someone, sometime, took the plunge and made a margarita. And, while not as old as fire, it's flavor is unique unto itself.
There are several stories (or legends, if you will) as to the origin of the margarita. In order to cover all the bases, we asked a number of food and beverage magazines to print a request for readers' versions of the margarita story. We were surprised both by the number of responses and by the variety of theories out there. Far be it from us to say which story is true; instead, we would like to pass along the most interesting stories so you can come to your own conclusion. The accounts are given in their original versions.
The most commonly related story of the margarita's origin is this one:
Shortly after World War II, corporate America (and Hollywood) discovered Palm Springs, California, as a pleasant and scenic retreat from the hustle and bustle of the big city: play some golf, talk some business, and enjoy some good liquor with the boys. Well, Palm Springs is only a few hours' drive from Mexico and, with this close proximity, a magical "new" liquor, tequila, was discovered by affluent America.
These corporate guys were introduced to tequila the old-fashioned way: a shot of tequila, a lick of salt, and a bit of lime- brings tears to your eyes, doesn't it? The same "good old boys" then started bringing their wives and girlfriends (and no doubt in some cases both) to their little getaway out in the middle of the California desert and, like most men, they wanted to impress the womenfolk with their newly discovered tequila and their macho way of drinking it. Sorry, boys: the shot of tequila, lick of salt, and a bite of lime wasn't the ladies' cup of tea.
So along came Jones or Garcia (or whomever- history does not record the creative genius in this version) who concocted a drink that had all of the same elements of the shot of tequila - the liquor, the salt, and the lime - except that Cointreau was added to give the cocktail a little sweetness. This enterprising mixologist created the first margarita by shaking the essential ingredients in a shaker glass over ice, then straining the cocktail into a salt-rimmed glass.
Not only did the women love it, but so did the guys. Although this legend does not name the bartender responsible, it does record that he named his creation after his girlfriend, Margarita. Or, who knows - perhaps the bartender was named Margarita!
Another theory submitted by an advertising agency (published in the fall 1991 edition of the Taylor/Christian Advertising Agency magazine, !deas) identifies a specific woman named Margarita. You probably will not be too surprised to learn that Taylor/Christian Advertising was the agency of record for Cointreau when they published this story:
According to legend, it was during a party at [Margarita Sames's] cliff side hacienda in Acapulco in 1948 when Margarita began experimenting with "the drink". Cointreau was the key ingredient, and today she scoffs at recipes that call for triple sec. At the party was a group of her closest friends, among them Nicky Hilton of the Hilton Hotel legacy. Margarita was looking for something to cut the dust of a hot December afternoon in Mexico when she stumbled upon "something that kept the party going for two weeks." Margarita's original recipe called for three parts tequila to one part Cointreau and one part lime juice, but being cognizant of America's concern with alcohol, the agency asked her for permission to weaken the mixture. "Okay, as long as you don't use triple sec or blend it up like a Tastee Freeze," she replied tersely. To enjoy Margarita's original Margarita, blend one part tequila, one part fresh lime juice, and one part Cointreau in a shaker of ice. Shake vigorously and pour into a lightly salted glass. Anything else is not the Sames. And, according to Margarita, "not worth it's salt."
We heard directly from the folks at Cointreau when they learned about our quest for the origin of the margarita, and they sent us the letter below. (Note the date of the letter - clever, huh? Especially since we sent out our call for margarita legends almost fifty years later! Whether the contents of the letter are true or not, you have to admire Cointreau's enterprising publicity department!)
An article from the July 1991 Texas Monthly (submitted by Patrick O'Rourke of Remy Amerique in Sacramento, California - the U.S. distributor of Cointreau) discusses Mrs. Sames's claim. It also mentions that the owner of the Tail o' the Cock, a Los Angeles restaurant and bar, was a house guest of Mrs. Sames, hence the theory that the margarita originated there. (The Tail o' the Cock has also been mentioned in other margarita origin stories.)
This associated Press obituary, submitted by Evelyn Greenwald of the Los Angeles Public Library's State of California Answer Network, appeared in newspapers all over the country in October 1992:
Dateline: San Diego (AP) - Carlos Herrera, known locally as the man who topped a tequila concoction with salt and called it a Margarita, has died. He was 90. Herrera died Monday at Grossmont Hospital. His daughter, Gloria Amezcua, said he died of natural causes. Herrera's relatives say he invented the drink at Rancho La Gloria, a restaurant he opened in 1935 at his home south of Tijuana. He told friends that it was sometime in 1938 or '39 that he decided to mix a jigger of white tequila with lemon juice, shaved ice, triple sec and - the crowning touch - salt. Local legend has it that one of his customers was a showgirl and sometime actress who called herself Marjorie King. She was allergic to all hard liquor except tequila, and she didn't like to drink that straight. That reputedly sent Herrera to experimenting, and he named the result "Margarita" after the actress, the legend goes.
We thank Thomas Kandziora, the bar manager of the American Legion Post #288 in Cedarburg, Wisconsin, who sent us an abridged version of this article from the Chicago Tribune, and Mary Louise Rogers of San Diego, who sent a similar article that ran in the San Diego Tribune. Mary Louise adds:
I believe this story must have some merit as I remember after arriving in San Diego late in 1958, friends and I made the trek to Rosarito Beach for lobster. There was a favorite bar we stopped at on the old road on our way down, and that was where I first drank a margarita.
Although Herrera was given local credit for the frosty drink, several others have claimed to have invented the margarita, according to The Dictionary of American Food and Drink by John F. Mariani, published in 1983. The book doesn't name Herrera, but it says one story traces the birth of the margarita to an unidentified creator near the Caliente Racetrack in the 1930's, the place and time Herrera claimed he first mixed a margarita. (Hmmm... we wonder if Mr. Herrera ever worked at a bar at the Caliente Racetrack or in Palm Springs.)
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