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Chipotle Margaritas Get Makeover With Patron Tequila

Chipotle Gets Serious About Margaritas
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Editor, HuffPost Food

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Starting April 29 and just in time for Cinco de Mayo, Chipotle has announced that it will now serve hand-made margaritas with a choice of Patron or Sauza tequila. The new margaritas will be available in about 900 U.S. restaurants.

Both the Patron and Sauza margaritas will be made with the same ingredients: triple sec, a blend of lime and lemon juice and organic agave nectar. Prices will vary by region but expect the premium version (the one with Patron) version to cost somewhere between $6.50 and $8.

“Many people are not aware, but we have served margaritas at Chipotle from the beginning,” said Mark Crumpacker, chief marketing officer at Chipotle, in a press release. “Previously, however, they were made using a margarita mix and we didn’t feel they were as delicious as they could be. Our new margarita recipe eliminates the mix in favor of a few simple ingredients. The new margarita tastes much better and is a really terrific addition to our menu.”

Each margarita will take about 30 to 60 seconds to make, a Chipotle spokeswoman told The Huffington Post. The lemon and lime juice is bottled and pasteurized before it reaches the restaurants.

The addition of these margaritas comes on the heels of a few other relatively recent menu innovations. Chipotle has been testing tofu in the Bay area and introduced brown rice as an option in 2011.

Historically, alcohol only account for a small amount of Chipotle sales -- about one to two percent. The company is hoping that these new margaritas may change those numbers.

Correction: A previous version of this story stated that margaritas account for one to two percent of sales. The percent actually includes all alcohol, including beer.

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Before You Go

Margarita Recipes
Herradura French Margarita(01 of09)
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Photo Credit: Tequila HerraduraIngredients:- 1 ½ oz Herradura Blanco- ½ oz Chambord- ¼ oz Triple Sec- 3 oz Sweet and Sour MixGarnish: Lime wedgePreparation:1) Shake all ingredients with ice and strain into a salt-rimmed, ice-filled martini or margarita glass. 2) Garnish with a lime wedge. (credit:Tequila Herradura)
Blueberry-Lime Margarita(02 of09)
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RECIPE:Ingredients- 2 cups ice- 1 cup frozen blueberries- 1 cup blueberry nectar- 1/4 cup seltzer- 2 tablespoons frozen limeade- 1 tablespoon lime juice- 3 ounces tequila, optional- 1 lime wedge- Coarse saltPreparation:1) Combine ice, blueberries, blueberry nectar, seltzer, limeade, lime juice and tequila in a blender and blend until smooth. 2) Rub rim of 2 glasses with lime wedge and dip in salt. 3) Divide the margarita between the prepared glasses and serve. Flickr photo by benjaminking (credit:Flickr:benjaminking)
Herradura Honey Suckle(03 of09)
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PHOTO CREDIT: Tequila HerraduraIngredients:- 2 oz Herradura Reposado- 3\4 oz Fresh lime juice- 3\4 oz Honey syrupGlass: CoupeGarnish: Lime wheelPreparation:1) Shake all ingredients is a cocktail shaker filled with plenty of ice.2) Strain into a chilled coupe\cocktail glass.3) Garnish with a lime disc. (credit:Tequila Herradura)
Salty Chihuahua--Grapefruit Margarita(04 of09)
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This grapefruit margarita cocktail wassupposedly invented in the 1940s in Chihuahua, Mexico. Hence it's name. RECIPE:Ingredients:- Coarse salt (optional)- 4 ounces tequila, divided- 2 ounces orange-flavored liqueur, such as Cointreau, divided- 3 cups grapefruit juice, divided- 4 grapefruit slices for garnishDirections:1) Wet the rims of 4 glasses and coat with coarse salt (if desired)2) Fill the glasses with ice. Pour 1 ounce tequila and 1/2 ounce liqueur into each. 3) Top each with 3/4 cup grapefruit juice and stir. 4) Garnish with a slice of grapefruit.Flickr photo by DrinkandCocktailRecipes (credit:Flickr:DrinkandCocktailRecipes)
Margarita Fruit Cocktail (05 of09)
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RECIPE:Ingredients:- 4 cups assorted fruit, chilled (1 cup each blueberries, cubed honeydew melon, cubed pineapple and halved strawberries)- 2 Tbsp granulated sugar- 2 Tbsp tequila or water- 1 tsp grated lime zest- 2 Tbsp lime juice- 1 lime wedgeGarnish: coarse decorating sugarPreparation:1) Mix fruit in large bowl. 2) Stir sugar and tequila with lime zest and juice in small bowl. Toss with fruit, cover and chill.3) Rub lime wedge around rim of 4 margarita glasses; dip glasses in sugar. 4) Fill each glass with fruit cocktail. (credit:jupiter images)
Strawberry Margarita(06 of09)
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RECIPE:Ingredients- 1 part Bols Strawberry Liqueur- 2 parts Milagro silver tequila- 1 part fresh squeezed lime juice- 1/4 part simple syrup or agave nectarDirections1) Shake all ingredients with ice and strain into an ice-filled, chilled glass. 2) Garnish with a lime wedge.Flickr photo by little blue hen (credit:Flickr: little blue hen)
Red Hot Margarita (07 of09)
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RECIPE:Ingredients:For the Red Hot Infusion:- 1/2 7 ounce box Ferrara Red Hots- 2 cups water- 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon, preferably Mexican- 1 teaspoon light brown sugar- 1 teaspoon grated orange zest- 1 whole cloveFor the Limeade:- 3/4 cup (6 ounces) fresh lime juice- 1/4 cup (6 ounces) granulated sugar- 3/4 cup waterTo Finish and Garnish:- 1 cup (8 ounces) El Tesoro blanco tequila- 1/2 cup (4 ounces) Gran Torres orange liqueur-ice cubes- lime slicesPreparation:1) To make the Red Hots infusion, in a small saucepan, combine the Red Hots, water, cinnamon, brown sugar, orange zest, and clove. 2) Bring to a boil, then simmer over medium-low heat for about 10 minutes, or until the Red Hots have dissolved.3) Pour through a fine-mesh sieve and discard the solids. Cover and refrigerate until cold.4) To make the limeade, in a medium bowl, combine the lime juice, granulated sugar, and water. Stir until the sugar has dissolved. Cover and refrigerate.5) To finish the margaritas, in a pitcher, mix together 2 cups of the Red Hot infusion, 1 1/3 cups of the limeade, the tequila, and the orange liqueur. (You can mix up a batch of the margaritas up to 2 hours in advance and refrigerate.) 6) Pour a generous 1/2 cup (4 ounces) of the mixture into a cocktail shaker over ice. Shake vigorously for about 15 seconds, and then pour through the strainer spout into your favorite margarita or martini glass. Garnish with a few lime slices. (credit:Darcy Knoll, Flickr)
TUACArita(08 of09)
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Ingredients:- 1 oz TUACA- 1 oz Herradura® Silver Tequila- 1/4 oz triple sec- 3 oz sweet and sour- Lemon wedge, squeezed- SaltGarnish: Lemon twistPreparation:1) Mix ingredients, including squeezed lemon wedge, in a shaker filled with ice.2) Shake vigorously and strain into a salt-rimmed glass.3) Garnish with a lemon twist. (credit:Tequila Herradura)
Blue Margarita (09 of09)
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RECIPE:Ingredients:- 1 1/2 parts Milagro silver tequila- 3/4 parts Bols Blue Curaçao- 1 1/2 parts sour mixDirections:1) Shake all ingredients with ice and strain into an ice-filled, chilled glass. Garnish with an orange wedge.Flickr photo by interceptor_vn (credit:Flickr:interceptor_vn)
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