The recipe
for your table
Fill a tall glass with ice cubes.
Pour the tequila and orange juice into the glass and stir.
Pour the grenadine slowly along the inside of the glass - it will sink to the bottom on its own.
Don't stir anymore! Garnish with orange and a cherry.
The story
The original Sunrise from the 1930s (Arizona) still contained crème de cassis and soda, but the version that conquered the world emerged in the early 1970s at The Trident in Sausalito, where bartenders Bobby Lozoff and Billy Rice mixed it with orange juice and grenadine. When Mick Jagger discovered it there at a Rolling Stones party in 1972, the band ordered it throughout the entire tour. The Eagles hit and a film starring Mel Gibson did the rest: the Sunrise became world-famous.
The right glass
The sunrise effect is everything in this cocktail, so choose a tall, crystal-clear highball glass of 44 to 55 cl. The taller it is, the more beautiful the color gradient from red to orange. Avoid glasses with a lot of texture - a smooth wall shows the gradient most clearly. If you want to serve it more tropically, a hurricane glass is also suitable. For a more tropical presentation of the same color gradient, see our hurricane glasses.
Bormioli Rocco Diamond Highball Glass 47 cl (6 pieces)
Arcoroc Islande Highball Glass 33 cl (6 pieces)
Both sets — together € 35,90.
The right tools
For a Tequila Sunrise, besides the glass, you use a bar spoon for stirring, a jigger for precise measuring, a citrus press, and glass straws. These are the bar tools we use ourselves; you can find everything in our bar tools & cocktail sets.
Glass set (our choice 01) + 4 bar tools - together € 73,75.
Variations & twists
The original Sunrise from 1930 used crème de cassis and soda - worth trying for purists. Using orange soda instead of fresh juice makes it retro-sweet, like the disco years. Freshly squeezed juice and 100% agave tequila bring it into the present. Looking for more inspiration? Browse more than 100 cocktail recipes.
Serving tip
The secret to a beautiful sunrise: pour the grenadine over the back of a spoon and then leave the glass undisturbed for two minutes. Serve with a stirrer for anyone who wants to make the sun set.
The ratio and alcohol percentage
This cocktail is built around 4.5 cl tequila, 9 cl fresh orange juice, and 1.5 cl grenadine - exactly a one-to-two ratio of liquor to juice. With ice, you end up with about 15 cl in the glass, containing 1.7 cl of pure alcohol if your tequila is 38%. That works out to 10 to 12%, roughly a glass of wine, although the juice makes it taste much smoother. For a lighter afternoon version, keep the tequila at 3 cl and increase the orange juice to 12 cl.
Which tequila should you choose: blanco or reposado
At the very least, choose a bottle labeled 100% agave; a mixto contains up to 49% other sugars and produces that sharp, cloying aftertaste responsible for tequila's bad reputation. Blanco is unaged, fresh, and peppery, letting the orange juice speak most clearly. Reposado rests on oak for two months to a year and adds vanilla and a light woody note, making the cocktail fuller. An añejo would be a waste of money here. Expect to pay twenty-five to thirty-five euros for a decent blanco.
Fresh orange juice or orange soda
The classic recipe calls for freshly squeezed juice, and that is no minor detail: three medium oranges yield about 18 cl, enough for two glasses. Fresh juice is more acidic and less blandly sweet, so the grenadine does not overpower it. Juice from a carton works too, provided you choose one without added sugar. Orange soda or other orange soft drinks turn it into the sweet disco version from the 1970s; fun for nostalgia, but the bubbles also disrupt the color gradient that gives this cocktail its name.
For a group: in a pitcher
For six guests, mix 27 cl tequila with 54 cl fresh orange juice in a pitcher and chill it for at least an hour. Do not add the grenadine, because then you lose precisely the effect it is all about. Fill the glasses with ice, pour 13 cl of the mix into each glass, then pour 1.5 cl of grenadine down the inside of each glass. Allow for more than half a bottle of tequila and nine oranges if you squeeze them fresh. Do not stir afterward; leave that to your guests.
Frequently asked questions
What goes into a Tequila Sunrise?
A Tequila Sunrise contains 4.5 cl tequila, 9 cl fresh orange juice and 1.5 cl grenadine, plus plenty of ice, an orange slice and a cocktail cherry. That's all there is to it: the effect lies in the order, because you slowly pour the grenadine down the side of the glass last.
How do you drink a Tequila Sunrise?
Let it stand for a moment without stirring so you can see the color gradient from deep red to orange-yellow. Then stir it with a stirrer and let the sun set, as it were, as the grenadine mixes with the juice. Serve ice-cold and with a straw.
What lemonade is in Tequila Sunrise?
There is no lemonade in the classic recipe: the base is fresh orange juice. The sweet retro version from the disco era uses orange soda instead of fresh juice, making it sweeter and much less refreshing. Grenadine is a pomegranate syrup, by the way, not a soft drink.
What percentage of alcohol does Tequila Sunrise contain?
With 4.5 cl of 38 percent tequila in approximately 15 cl of liquid, you end up at roughly 10 to 12 percent, depending on how much ice melts. The orange juice makes it taste smoother than that. Serve it in a tall glass; see our highball glasses.
Also delicious
Everything for your bar,
to one address
Glasses in hospitality quality, delivered per set. Order today, delivered quickly.
Shop the glasses →