Tequila Sunset vs Sunrise: Are They the Same

The Tequila Sunrise and the Tequila Sunset are the same idea in two colors: tequila and orange juice over ice, with a second ingredient that sinks or floats to make a layered drink. The Sunrise uses grenadine and settles red at the bottom. The Sunset uses a dark fruit liqueur or blackberry brandy and ends up darker and less sweet. Here is the recipe for each, where they came from and which tequila to use.

Tequila Sunrise

The modern Tequila Sunrise dates to the early 1970s at the Trident, a bar in Sausalito, California, where two bartenders reworked an older 1930s drink of the same name from the Arizona Biltmore in Phoenix. The original had been tequila, crème de cassis, lime and soda; the Sausalito version swapped in orange juice and grenadine, and that is the one that spread across the country through the 1970s and gave the Eagles a song title in 1973.

Recipe

• 2 oz blanco tequila
• 4 oz orange juice
• 1/2 oz grenadine
• Orange slice and a cherry

Fill a highball glass with ice, add the tequila and orange juice and stir. Pour the grenadine slowly down the inside of the glass or over the back of a spoon; it is denser than the juice and sinks, leaving a red layer under the orange. Do not stir after that. Garnish and serve.

Tequila Sunset

The Sunset came later and has never had one fixed recipe. The most common version keeps the tequila and orange juice and replaces the grenadine with blackberry brandy or crème de cassis, which gives a deeper purple-red layer and a drier finish. Another version floats grenadine on top instead of sinking it, and a third uses red-tinted soda water for the color with no added sugar at all.

Recipe

• 2 oz blanco tequila
• 4 oz orange juice
• 1/2 oz blackberry brandy or crème de cassis
• Orange slice

Build exactly as the Sunrise: tequila and orange juice over ice, then the liqueur poured slowly so it sinks. If you want the lighter version, use 1/2 oz grenadine floated on top and skip the liqueur.

The difference in one line

Same base, different second ingredient: grenadine for a sweet, red-bottomed Sunrise; blackberry brandy or cassis for a darker, less sweet Sunset. If you like one you will almost certainly like the other, and the only way to settle a preference is to make both.

Which tequila to use

Blanco (silver) tequila. It is unaged, so it has none of the oak and vanilla of a reposado or añejo, and it lets the orange and grenadine do the talking. Our guide to tequila types explains the categories. Widely available blancos that work well in either drink include Casamigos Blanco, which is soft with vanilla and citrus notes, Don Julio Blanco, which is crisper with citrus and black pepper, and Patrón Silver, which sits between the two. All three are 100% blue agave.

Other tequila drinks worth knowing

• The Margarita: tequila, lime juice and orange liqueur, shaken, with a salted rim.
• The Paloma: tequila and grapefruit soda over ice with a squeeze of lime. Mexico’s most popular tequila drink.
• The Tequila Collins: tequila, lemon juice and agave syrup, topped with soda water. A Tom Collins with tequila in place of gin.

Saucey delivers tequila, juice and grenadine in as fast as 25 mins in the cities we serve. Browse tequila on Saucey.