Name: The JH Hibiscus Margarita
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 35 min
Ingredients: 25 g/ 1oz Dried hibiscus flowers; 240 ml/ 1 cup Water; 250 g/ 1 cup Caster sugar; 30 ml/ 2 tbsp Hibiscus syrup; 20 ml/ 4 tsp Lime juice; 20 ml/ 4 tsp Lemon juice; 20 ml/ 4 tsp Cointreau; 80 ml/ 1/3 cup White tequila ((or silver tequila)); Ice; Lime wedges; Salt crystals; 30 ml/ 2 tsp hibiscus syrup; 12 raspberries; Lime wedges; Ice; Lemon-Lime Soda ((such as Sprite or 7-UP))

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The JH Hibiscus Margarita blends enticing, dark hibiscus syrup with Cointreau, lemon, lime and tequila. Tangy. Fruity. Strong. It’s a beautiful hibiscus cocktail.

Contents hide

1 What is Hibiscus?

2 How to Make a Classic Margarita

3 How to Make The Hibiscus Version

4 How to Make Hibiscus Syrup

5 Recipe

6 The JH Hibiscus Margarita

Hibiscus Margarita serve in a tumbler with ice, a lime wedge and a salt rim.

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One year ago today I flew off to Chicago for a short break with my best friend. Whilst there, I had a stunning hibiscus margarita in the Signature Room of the John Hancock Center. It was a blend of hibiscus syrup, Cointreau, lemon, lime and tequila. It was tangy, fruity and strong. Just how I like my cocktails.

After my first sip of the Signature Room hibiscus cocktail I knew instantly I would be attempting to make my own at home. This hibiscus cocktail is my re-creation of that drink.

I’m not normally a tequila kind of girl, but it was the mention of hibiscus that drew me in and made me order a margarita. I like to try unusual flavours. It did not disappoint.

What is Hibiscus?

Hibiscus is a flower that is commonly dried and used in herbal tea. It tastes floral and fruity. It is quite punchy and delivers juicy cranberry & raspberry flavours. That’s why it teams up so well with the lemon & lime in this Hibiscus Margarita.

Dried hibiscuc flowers on a white table top

How to Make a Classic Margarita

A classic margarita cocktail is made from tequila, Cointreau (or Triple Sec) and lime juice:

Salt the rim of your glass by taking a wedge of lime, running it along the rim of the glass, then dipping the glass into salt. Drop some ice cubes into the glass
Add some ice to your cocktail shaker, pour in the liquid ingredients and shake vigorously for 30 seconds
Strain the cocktail into the prepared glass
Garnish with a lime wedge and serve

Simple! The tangy lime blended with sweet orange liqueur and the punchy hit of tequila is a long-standing winning combination.

How to Make The Hibiscus Version

I, however, like to mix things up. Just like all good Margarita recipes, my version also includes:

Tequila (silver or blanco is ideal)
Cointreau (Triple Sec is fine instead)
Lime juice
A salt-rimmed glass

But it also contains hibiscus syrup and lemon juice. The additional citrus is there to counterbalance the sweetness that the syrup imparts and to draw out the floral and fruity nature of the syrup.

Hibiscus syrup poured into a glass with lime wedges and ice in the glass.

Once the hibiscus syrup is made, it is just as easy to make this version of the drink than it is the classic – simply add the syrup to the cocktail shaker when pouring in the other ingredients.

This hibiscus drink recipe is a walk in the park, even for amateur cocktail makers.

How to Make Hibiscus Syrup

It’s very easy to make hibiscus syrup. Just put dried hibiscus flowers, sugar and water into a saucepan and heat gently until the sugar dissolves, then bring to a gentle simmer and cook for 10 minutes. Take off the heat and let the mixture steep for 10 more minutes, then strain the syrup through a sieve and let it cool.

For such little work your reward will be a bottle of hibiscus syrup that is:

Thick
Dark
Fruity
Mysterious

It really is something special.

A bottle of homemade hibiscus syrup with dried flowers in the background

And what I really can’t get enough of in this hibiscus drink is that vibrant, sweet, tangy hibiscus syrup followed by a strong, hearty lick of tequila.

Where Can I Find Dried Hibiscus Flowers?

You can buy ready-made hibiscus syrup, but it is relatively expensive. I recommend making your own for a fraction of the price in less than 30 minutes. You’ll also get to enjoy watching the ingredients turn into that gorgeous, deep ruby coloured syrup.

I picked my pack up from Amazon but I daresay you can find dried hibiscus flowers in plenty of health and wholefood stores too.

Is There a Non-Alcoholic Hibiscus Drink Recipe?

Forgive me for getting carried away, but well, the hibiscus syrup is simply too gorgeous to keep solely for the drinkers. For the non-drinkers and children amongst us, I’ve also created a Hibiscus & Raspberry Soda drink recipe. It’s divine:

Layer ice, lime wedges and raspberries to the top of two tall glasses
Pour 15ml of the syrup into each glass (admire how beautiful this looks as it trickles down the ice)
Top up with lemon-lime soda and serve with a straw or a stirrer

Sparkling hibiscus drink recipe served in tall glasses with raspberries and lime.

More Hibiscus Cocktail Recipes:

Fun in Chicago

Anyway, Chicago. Why was I there? Well, last year I had a significant birthday – 40 (arrgggghhh). So did my best friend.

So, we decided that we would accept the inevitable barrage of age reminders and the age-related jokes in good faith. We also hatched a plan to celebrate in style by skipping off to Chicago for a long weekend.

We had 4 days of fun in this fabulous city, wandering around just gawping at the scenery & architecture (plenty of that in Chicago).

I got slightly obsessed by The Bean (aka Cloud Gate) and trying to squeeze a Toy Story Hamm Piggy Bank into my suitcase for Hannah. Plus, since we are both huge ER fans, we got ourselves onto a bit of an ER related trail, complete with a ‘quote from the show’ game that lasted the entire length of the holiday. Should I ever be admitting that? Probably not.

I do wish that I had been blogging one year ago. Then I would have taken more notice of the eateries we visited and told you about them.

Of course, bagging a window seat in the Signature Room, slowly sipping a well made cocktail like the hibiscus margarita and taking in the far-reaching views was a hard to beat highlight.

I generally find it hard to come up with names that are interesting, appropriate and not totally ridiculous. This time I have cracked it though in this hibiscus drink recipe the words hibiscus & margarita tell you exactly what you can expect. But here’s the best bit – JH are not only the initials of the place I first savoured this drink. They are also those of my best friend, whom I was with when I dived into this drink, high up in Chicago. The JH Hibiscus Margarita. I suddenly feel like a genuine genius. Cheers JH.

Try My Other Fruity Cocktails:

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The JH Hibiscus Margarita

What is Hibiscus?

How to Make a Classic Margarita

How to Make The Hibiscus Version