These days, it seems like everyone loves a good Champagne cocktail. The Jalisco Flower is one of the very few that pairs it excellently with tequila. (Photo: Geraud Pfeiffer/Pexels)

Champagne cocktails like the Negroni Sbagliato have been eating up viral popularity over the past few years. But somehow, the sparkling wine trend has largely avoided tequila.

Though agave spirits and Champagne haven’t historically been the best of friends, there are still a few worthwhile diamonds in the rough worth trying out for yourself.

Created by Vincenzo Marianella at LA’s Doheny Bar in 2008, the Jalisco Flower pairs aged tequila and Champagne with summer-friendly flavors of elderflower and grapefruit. Marianella, an Italian ex-pat and onetime semipro basketball player, invented the cocktail after a stint at the Michelin-starred Providence in Hollywood.

Marianella’s tenure at the Providence garnered him enough mainstream attention that the Jalisco Flower was featured in an entire profile of its own in the LA Times.

Unfortunately, the cocktail has since faded into relative obscurity. In a 2021 bartender poll conducted by VinePair, the Jaslico Flower ranked as one of the ten most underrated tequila cocktails in the United States.

So, you ask, how might I make one myself?

Apart from Champagne, the most difficult ingredient to acquire for this recipe is elderflower liqueur (not exactly a mainstay on most home-mixologists’ shelves). Marinella named St-Germain as his elderflower liqueur of choice in the original recipe, but Fiorente or Chase work just as well.

Alternatively, you could try making elderflower liqueur at home if you have half an hour to spare.

Without further ado, we present:

The Jalisco Flower

Ingredients

• 1/2 oz Reposado Tequila
• 3/4 oz Elderflower Liqueur
• 1 oz Ruby Grapefruit Juice
• 2 oz Champagne or Prosecco

Directions

1. Combine tequila, liqueur, and grapefruit juice in a cocktail shaker with ice. Shake until chilled, 20-30 seconds.
2. Pour into a highball glass, top with Champagne then quickly stir.
3. Garnish with grapefruit rind or flowers.

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