Mixing Tequila and Ginger Ale

Tequila and ginger ale are a surprisingly delicious combo! Use tequila reposado if you can in this tasty 2-ingredient cocktail.

Delicious cocktails don’t have to be complicated. Here’s an interesting mixer for tequila that makes a surprisingly balanced drink: tequila and ginger ale!

Ginger beer is often mixed with tequila in a Mexican Mule, but ginger ale is something different altogether. The sweet, delicately bubbly ale makes a surprisingly tasty pair with the oaky and vanilla notes of tequila reposado. It’s a fun, low-alcohol way to enjoy a good tequila that’s bubbly and refreshing. It’s also perfect for summer!

A little background

Tequila and ginger ale is a highball cocktail similar to a tequila soda or a whiskey highball, where alcohol is mixed with soda water. It makes it easier to drink and is an interesting way to enjoy the flavors of a good liquor. Here’s what else you should know about this drink:

• Tequila and ginger ale is a highball cocktail that’s a mix of tequila and ginger ale. Serve it in a highball or lowball glass with ice, and it’s a refreshing cocktail that brings out the interesting notes of a good tequila. It has a sweet, bubbly flavor with a subtle ginger finish.
• Mixing tequila and ginger ale results in a cocktail that’s sweeter and more subtle than a Mexican Mule, which pairs the strong flavor of spicy ginger beer and tangy lime juice.

Choosing a tequila

You can use any type of tequila when you make tequila and ginger ale, but I have a strong recommendation for the best blend. Here’s what to know about the different types of tequila:

• Tequila reposado is the best option. This type of tequila is aged 2 to 12 months in oak barrels. (“Reposado” means “rested” in Spanish). Because of this, it has a very smooth flavor, and notes of oak and vanilla. It makes for a beautifully intriguing drink when mixed with ginger ale.
• Tequila blanco also works. Tequila blanco is not aged, so the flavor is more straightforward with that signature tequila burn. The drink is a little less interesting than with reposado, so you may want to add a squeeze of lime or a few dashes of bitters. Or, you can just drink it as is. It’s still tasty!

Choosing a ginger ale

There are lots of ginger ale brands on the market! My favorites are the same as my favorite brands of ginger beer. Here they are:

• Q Ginger Ale: This is my top choice! It comes in small cans, so you only have to use a little at a time.
• Fever Tree Ginger Ale: Fever Tree is made with real ginger and has no artificial sweeteners.

Related drinks

Adding a carbonated mixer to alcohol is an age-old tradition. In fact, the whiskey highball was invented in the early 1900s, mixing whiskey with soda water or ginger ale for a whole new way to enjoy it.

The idea of mixing sparkling water and wine also goes back hundreds of years. If you love tequila and ginger ale, here are a few more highball cocktails you might enjoy:

• Ginger ale: Vodka and Ginger Ale, Rum and Ginger Ale, Pimm’s Cup, Shandy, or Whiskey Ginger
• Sparkling water: Vodka Soda, Gin Rickey, Whiskey Highball, Ranch Water, or Tequila Soda
• Tonic water: Vodka Tonic, Whiskey Tonic, Gin and Tonic, Rum and Tonic, or Tequila and Tonic
• Ginger beer: Moscow Mule, Dark and Stormy, Mexican Mule, Gin Gin Mule, Kentucky Mule, Irish Mule, or Floradora

When to serve your cocktail

Mixing tequila and ginger ale takes 2 minutes, so it’s the perfect refreshing drink for a laid-back afternoon or cocktail hour. Try it as a:

• Summer drink
• Afternoon drink
• Dinner party drink
• Before dinner drink (aperitif)

Print