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Southern California winters are like a dream. Take it from a kid who grew up with the harsh Bulgarian winters; I still find myself watching in disbelief while people surf in December, kayak in January and play beach volleyball in February. But if I were to tell you that January is also one of our favorite months to make fresh juice cocktails, you might scratch your head and wonder if I’ve been hit one too many times in the head by one of those volleyballs.

But January is, in fact, a holy month for bartenders and cocktail enthusiasts, as we finally see one of the most beautiful citruses pop up on the market – Blood Orange.

With its dazzling deep red color and intense (almost raspberry-like) flavor, blood orange is the fruit to cocktail with this January.

Living in Santa Barbara (where it’s a Margarita time all year round), we just had to celebrate the Southern Cali dream with a blood orange Margi in hand.

Stepping away from the predictable, we made this Blood Orange Margarita riff with by combining reposado and Blanco tequila, ginger syrup, fresh lime juice and a generous amount of freshly squeezed blood orange juice instead of orange liqueur. And to add a little pizzazz and character to the cocktail, we added bay leaf and grapefruit bitters.

We chose to shake our margarita and strain it over a big ice cube, but you can certainly make it on the rocks as well. Or get wild and pull out the old blender and make a frozen batch for Superbowl Sunday. Believe me; it will be gone in minutes!

This dazzler is one bright, rich, and easy to make drink. The perfect cocktail to honor the winter harvest and another bar quality cocktail you can make at home.

Print Cali Margarita Ingredients 1.5 oz Cazadores Reposado Tequila

.5 oz Cazadores Blanco Tequila

1.5 oz Freshly Squeezed Blood Orange Juice

.5 oz Ginger Syrup

.5 oz Fresh Lime Juice

2 dash Grapefruit Bitters

1-2 Bay Leaves Instructions Juice some blood orange. Save the extra skins Add all ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice and shake vigorously for 15-20 seconds Fine strain over a big ice cube Garnish with a blood orange zest (leftover peels from the juicing)

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