Comments on: Secret Lime Juice

By: Don

Don — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 04:07:08 +0000

The lime juice is the key. Columbine Beverage in Denver is the firm that makes the blend for the Rio. And the others are correct it used to be Beich’s. There is another supplier that is very close, Haystack from Louisville. Anyway one 1.75 L bottle of Cuervo Gold, 1 Liter of Juarez Tripple Sec, 1/2 gallon of the lime juice, this is very close to 2 L of the lime Juice. I have found that adding 20 ml of Apple Juice to the Lime juice gets very close to the special blend the Rio uses.

By: antoinette

antoinette — Sun, 19 Jun 2011 14:53:52 +0000

Where in the Denver metro area can one find Island House? I’ve called Davidsons, Applejack and Tipsys, as well as some smaller stores and no one has heard of it!

By: doug

doug — Fri, 05 Nov 2010 00:34:54 +0000

Julia,
Interested in your taste test of the lime juices. I agree, I believe it is all Cuervo.

By: Julia

Julia — Fri, 03 Sep 2010 00:32:55 +0000

Arex, it is a widely known fact since the beginning of the Rio days in Ft. Fun that they use Cuervo Gold and there is even stuff out there on the net now of how the Rio is one of the largest buyers of CG. I am not buying the Sauza Commemorativo part, but otherwise your recipe looks like the others (assuming 2 parts CG instead of the SC).

I just ordered some Duffy’s. I’m curious the difference between Duffy’s and Island House and will try them out.

By: arex

arex — Mon, 02 Aug 2010 22:33:27 +0000

I’ve been packing a copy of the Rio Marg recipe for about 15 years now, gotten second-hand from a former cook at the Rio Grande, rather than being reverse-engineered. It’s quite specific about the ingredients.

RIO GRANDE 3-DRINK-MAX MARGARITA
——————————–

1 part Cuervo Gold
1 part Suaza Commemorativo
1 part Triple Sec
1 part Beich’s lime juice
1½ to 2 parts apple juice

DO NOT SUBSTITUTE!

1. Mix everything.
2. Pour over crushed ice in salt-rimmed glasses.
3. Don DOT-approved helmet, and enjoy.

==================

I’ve never been able to find Beich’s lime juice (found this blog entry in a search for it), but I’ve always substituted half Rose’s and half fresh lime juice. It’s not quite the same.

By: Allan

Allan — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 02:25:26 +0000

My brother-in-law, who lives in Boulder, has worked to reverse engineer the Rio margarita for years. He’s done scientific taste tests with different levels of different ingredients and has come up essentially the same recipe as above, but in slightly different proportions and the addition of water:

1 part Cuervo Gold Tequila
1 part water
1 part Juarez Triple Sec
1 part Island House lime juice
1/4 part apple juice

It’s a very yellow margarita, which might throw some people off, but it’s tart and delicious. I only regret that I can’t find Island House here in San Antonio. Need to search for local substitutes – you’d think I would be able to find them here!

By: Barry

Barry — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 00:21:34 +0000

Cory is close but the “Real” secret in the apple juice.

When you mix this margarita it should be a golden clear liquid not cloudy.

Equal parts-

Cuervo Gold Tequila
Island House Lime Juice
Juarez Triple Sec
Any 100% apple jucie (golden)

This is the closest you can get to the “real” Rio’s Margs., without the owner’s telling you. They and a hand full of people are the only one’s that mix up the “money” in 5 gallon buckets daily and/or weekliy.
Try this recipe you will not be disappointed.

By: Todd

Todd — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 23:05:38 +0000

If Duffy’s is the closest approximation of the lime juice that Rio Grand
uses, you can find it at Unionjack liquor here in Louisville.

By: How to make Rio Margaritas | TravisT

How to make Rio Margaritas | TravisT — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 23:38:38 +0000

[...] secret to the ingredients might be the Duffy’s lime juice, as Mike points out in his article Secret Lime Juice. On Mike’s blog he suggests a couple places one might be able to find Duffy’s, in [...]

By: Mike

Mike — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 03:06:18 +0000

Thanks, Cory. We’ll definitely look into Island House lime juice!