Spiced Clementine Margarita (with Izze Soda)

Name: Spiced Clementine Margarita
Prep time: 5 min
Total time: 5 min
Ingredients: 1 1/2 oz. Tequila; 1/2 oz. lime juice; 2-3 oz. Izze Sparkling Clementine Soda; 1/4 - 1/2 oz. agave syrup; 1/8 tsp. cardamom; 1/8 tsp. cinnamon; 1/16 tsp. nutmeg; 1/8 tsp. clove

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Made with Izze Clementine Soda, this Spiced Clementine Margarita has tons of citrus flavor combined with warm spices. It’s a great way to bring a little bit of summer flavor into the fall and can be made in under 5 minutes!

Cocktail on a table with rosemary sprig garnish. — A simple margarita made with clementine soda and warming spices.

With the addition of spices typically found in fall baking, this Spiced Clementine Margarita recipe is comforting and refreshing at the same time.

If you’re a fan of easy tequila cocktails, this twist on the classic margarita is sure to be your new favorite drink!

Why this recipe works

In California, where our weather is always pretty moderate, sometimes you’re ready to embrace the next season but the weather hasn’t entirely caught up yet.

This Spiced Clementine Margarita is the perfect tequila cocktail for those transitional times. The tequila and citrus make things feel summery, while the spices hint at fall. It’s really delicious.

With spices like cinnamon, cardamom, nutmeg and clove, this mixed drink may trick your mind into thinking you should put a sweater on. You’ve been warned.

If you love how this sounds, you’ll probably also love my Blood Orange Margarita and my Fresh Watermelon Margarita.

Ingredients

The ingredients for this Spiced Clementine Margarita are simple. But Izze Sparkling Clementine (one of the easiest to find flavors – you’re welcome) is the star of the show.

It has 70% juice and carbonated water giving it a little bit of fizz and a great pairing for tequila.

I typically prefer a blanco tequila, but for this recipe, you can use a reposado to add a little more flavor. But you can absolutely use whatever you have on hand.

I’m a big believer that you don’t need to have a huge bar at home to make great drinks. I really don’t think using a different type of tequila will change the flavor of the overall drink that much.

The spices in this cocktail are bold flavors. Feel free to change them up or change measurements based on your flavor preferences! Also, in the image above I accidentally grabbed whole cloves but you need ground.

Directions

Woman dipping a cocktail glass in spiced sugar on a small plate.

I’m not a huge fan of rimmed cocktails. But this Clementine Margarita is tasty with this spiced sugar on just a small portion.

Before you make the cocktail, use a small piece of citrus (you can use the lime before you squeeze it for the drink) and rub it on the part of the glass you want the sugar to stick to.

Then just dip the wet edge into the spiced sugar. I bought the spiced sugar but you can easily make your own by mixing together the same spices you use for this drink along with a little bit of white sugar.

Or skip it altogether. You can learn how to rim a glass in this post.

Woman adding tequila to a cocktail shaker.

Add the tequila to the cocktail shaker.

Woman pouring lime juice into a cocktail shaker.

Follow that with fresh lime juice. This is my favorite citrus squeezer. It gets the most juice out of limes. It’s way more efficient than hand squeezing.

In a pinch, you could use bottled lime juice, but fresh lime juice is the best thing to use for cocktails.

Woman adding cinnamon to a cocktail shaker.

Add the spices.

If you don’t love one of the four spices I used, you can just leave it out.

Add ice to the shaker and shake the heck out of it. Spices do not mix well when you try to mix with a spoon. Shaking helps to get them scattered all throughout.

Woman pouring margarita into a cocktail glass filled with ice.

Strain it over fresh ice into the rimmed cocktail glass. I love being able to see the little specks of spices.

Woman pouring Clementine Izze Soda over ice into a cocktail glass.

Top with a few ounces of Izze Clementine Soda.

Woman using a bar spoon to mix a cocktail on a counter.

Use a bar spoon to gently mix everything together for the perfect fall cocktail idea.

Woman holding a cocktail in her hand with rosemary sprig garnish.

Garnish your Spiced Clementine Margarita with a sugared rim or leave it plain.

Fresh rosemary is another good garnish! The way it hits your nose as you bring the glass to your lips…it’s very complementary to the clementine.

Tips

Never put the Izze soda in the cocktail shaker or it may explode!
One bottle of Izze will be enough for 4 cocktails so this is easy to batch and make a bunch. Just pre-mix the spices together and juice a bunch of lime juice.
Don’t have spiced sugar? You can rim the glass with salt, Tajin or even do without!
Want to make it a little smokier? Try it with mezcal instead!

Frequently asked questions

What makes a margarita a margarita?

A classic margarita is made with tequila, orange liqueur and lime juice. I skipped the orange liqueur in this recipe because of the orange flavor from the Clementine soda.

What if I don’t own a cocktail shaker?

A mason jar also works really well! Also, you can make this Spiced Clementine Margarita straight in the glass (if you prefer), but I love to do the first part in the cocktail shaker to mix the spices really well and make sure it’s extra chilled.

Can you substitute other flavors of Izze?

Yes! Using Izze soda is a great way to add flavor, sweetness and the tiniest bit of fizz to a cocktail. I would make the recipe without the spices first to see if the base is balanced (you may need to add more fresh lime or simple syrup). Then add back spices that pair well with the soda flavor.

What if I can’t find Izze soda?

Another brand of clementine soda should work, and you can always substitute with fresh juice though you might need to adjust the flavors slightly – give it a taste and see what you think!

What is the best tequila to use?

As I made this recipe with fall in mind, I used a reposado tequila for the aged flavor. If making in summer, I might use a blanco. There are 3 brands of tequila that I like and are great for people who are unsure about tequila cocktails. Casamigos, Santo, and DeLeon are all super smooth and delicious!

Can I use this recipe to make a regular Clementine Margarita?

Yes! Just leave out the spices and add another 1/2 ounce of fresh lime juice.

Woman holding a shaker next to text about free cocktail recipes.

A few more easy recipes you might also enjoy!

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