Thousands of America's Finest citizens drank tens of thousands of margaritas during PACIFIC's third annual Margarita Month competition and taste-fest, presented by Milagro Tequila. They sipped, snapped and hashtagged varieties of San Diego's original craft cocktail at 34 of the city top bars and restaurants throughout the month of May, and then converged to taste and vote for their favorites at the Grand Tasting Event, June 17 at the Horton Grand Hotel, where more than 1,000 patrons enjoyed more than 30,000 mini margaritas. Holy mierda, that's alotta tequila.
When this many bartenders, mixologists and tequila lovers get together, everyone wins (especially Uber and Lyft). Here's how the margaritas fared.
People's Choice Awards
(Results tallied from 762 consumer ballots cast at the Grand Tasting Event)
Grand Champion: OB Surf Lodge
Winning margarita: Night Rider (Milagro Silver Tequila, coconut rum, lime juice, agave nectar, Cointreau, activated charcoal, key lime salt foam)
#obsurflodge, obsurflodge.com
Best Presentation: Hello Betty Fish House
Winning margarita: Sugar Skull (Milagro Silver Tequila, Cointreau, lime, Crème de Violette, prickly pear; rimmed with black salt)
#hellobetty, hellobettyoceanside.com
Best Name: PB Shore Club
Winning margarita: Apri-Scott-Disick (Silver tequila, apricot liqueur, pistachio orgeat, fresh-squeezed lemon and lime, citrus Italian soda)
#pbshoreclub, pbshoreclub.com
Judge's selections
(Results tallied from distinguished panel of judges' ballots cast during Grand Tasting Event)
Grand Champion: Florent
Winning margarita: In Bloom (Kumquat-infused Milagro Silver Tequila; lime and tangerine juice blend; Florent's house-made Super Bloom Syrup with hibiscus, jasmine and rose; garnished with Merlot-stained salt and micro bouquet)
#florentsd, florentsd.com
Best Presentation: Florent
Winning margarita: In Bloom (see ingredients above)
#florentsd, florentsd.com
Most Original Margarita: Sea180 Coastal Tavern
Winning margarita: Lavender Margarita (Milagro Silver Tequila, lavender syrup, triple sec, muddled lime and mint, topped with sour mix; salted rim)
#sea180coastaltavern, cohnrestaurants.com/sea180
Best Spicy Margarita: Wonderland Ocean Pub
Winning margarita: I Pine for You (Fresh-juiced pineapple, cilantro, serrano chilies, fresh-squeezed lime, orange-infused Milagro Silver Tequila and agave; rimmed with sugar, salt, Tajin and fresh cilantro)
#wonderlandob, wonderlandob.com
Best Use of Fresh Ingredients: Cerveza Jack's
Winning margarita: Watermelon Crawl (Milagro Silver Tequila, watermelon juice, lime juice, agave nectar, fresh jalapeños, Tajin rim; garnished with a Mexi-candy lollipop)
#cervezajacks, cervezajacks.com
Best Garnish: Uptown Tavern
Winning margarita: Adios Cruda (Mezcal joven, Milagro Silver Tequila, lime juice, agave ranchero syrup; garnished with homemade tortilla chips, micro cilantro and an egg gummy)
#uptowntavernsd, uptowntavernsd.com
Best Name: Sandbar Sports Bar & Grill
Winning margarita: Jala-Pin-Yo-Business (Milagro Silver Tequila, fresh grapefruit juice, fresh pineapple juice, fresh lime juice, agave, jalapeno slice, splash of citrus soda)
#sandbar718, sanbarsportsgrill.com
Best use of non-traditional ingredients: OB Surf Lodge
Winning margarita: Night Rider (Milagro Silver Tequila, coconut rum, lime juice, agave nectar, Cointreau, activated charcoal, key lime salt foam).
#obsurflodge, obsurflodge.com
¡Gracias, amigos!
Uno, dos, tres cheers and thank yous to Margarita Month 2017's participating venues:
Bootlegger
Bub's at the Beach
Cat Eye Club
Cerveza Jacks
Coasterra
Curadero
Don Chido
El Chingon
Firehouse
Florent
Galaxy Taco
Hello Betty's
Indigo Grill
Level2 At George's at the Cove
O.B. Surf Lodge
Oceana
Park & Rec
PB Shore Club
Puesto
Sandbar Sports Bar & Grill
Sea 180
Senor Grubby's
The Blind Burro
The Deck at Moonshine Flats
The Local PN
The Prado
The Rabbit Hole
Tin Roof
True North
Uptown Tavern
Urge Gastropub (San Marcos)
Voltaire Beach House
Westroot Tavern
Wonderland Ocean Pub
#youreit: Social media superstar
In case sipping and hashtagging margaritas for an entire month weren't enough, Amanda F. of Pacific Beach is hereby anointed el Santo Patrón of Margarita Month 2017. Ms. F., you just won a $50 gift certificate to each of the 2017's 34 Margarita Month venues. ¡Salud, señorita, y buena suerte con su hígado!
Sounds good
A big gracias to the music makers who brought magical melodies to the Margarita Month Grand Tasting Event: Mariachi Real ( mariachireal.com), Techno Bitch DJ Misha ( djmisha.com), DJ KAOS of Party Naked, The Roster ( djkaossd.com), DJ Jaysyx (@jaysyx).