Not for lack of things to say, but I haven’t had it in me to blog much recently. The flood of “information” that has been coming out of Washington for the past month has been, frankly, a bit much for me. OK, that’s an understatement. Truth is, I’m working on an exit plan. I’m not sure what it would be like to live in another country, but I’m game to find out. The fact that I love other cultures more than my own helps a lot.

Today is National Margarita Day, which should be a time to only be happy about a fun cocktail, but has somehow (for me, anyway) become but a temporary escape from the living hell before us. Billionaires driving the bus of our nation. Fascists calling the shots. Christian Nationalists pretending they know what Jesus would do.

I’m done. I’ve held my tongue longer than is reasonable for these times, and I feel like I’m about to explode. Enter, tequila. Thank you, Mexico, for everything. Seriously, I’m feeling a little spicy, and I don’t care if it shows.

Lord, give me the gumption of my grandmother, who lived through the Great Depression, and of my great grandmother, who was the first generation on the female side of my family to earn the right to vote. I need to embody all of their strength today. Oh yes, indeedy-doodee-daddy, I need to remember where I came from— I need to feel it in my bones. I’ve seen on numerous Instagram posts recently that women in the 1930s and ‘40s wore red lipstick as a means to protest fascism and piss off the people in power, so until further notice… 

With that off my chest, I present the cocktail that easily found its way into my repertoire this week. The spicy mango-melon margarita. It is a super easy, flavorful cocktail that melts my rebel heart with its spicy-meets-sweet flavor profile, and a spirit that says, “hell, no!!” The recipe is a bit of a shortcut—something I don’t do very often— and it works here, because I’ve been trying so hard to keep everything else between the lines that I haven’t had time to create many things from scratch. But I trust Q brand mixers, and using this one means that the drink is EASY to make at home. Even if you can’t even.

The key ingredients you need are tequila (any would probably work, but reposado is appropriate for the pause I’ve taken in sharing my true feelings), melon liqueur (Midori seems obvious because it is the real deal, not a knock-off) and the Q brand spicy mango margarita mixer, which has all the stuff I love and none of the stuff I don’t. Truth be told, I could probably drink this mixer over ice by itself and feel that I’ve accomplished something. But not today. I’m grateful for the tequila. Here we go, beginning with prepping the glass:

This may seem like an opinion piece, and maybe it is— only you can decide what it means to you. But I’m sticking with my red lipstick and my spicy cocktail and my spicy attitude. It’s still a free country, after all. At least, for now. 

Spicy Mango-Melon Margarita

• Servings: 1 cocktail
• Prep Time: 2 minutes
• Difficulty: Easy!
• Print

A store-bought shortcut makes this spicy, sassy cocktail super easy, and just in time for National Margarita Day!

Ingredients

• 2 oz. reposado tequila (recommended 1800)
• 3/4 oz. Midori melon liqueur
• 3 to 4 oz. Q brand spicy mango margarita mixer (lesser amount results in a stronger drink)
• fresh lime and Tajin spice to decorate glass

Note: I don’t typically use store-bought cocktail mixers, but I’ve made an exception here because the Q mixer brand does not use high fructose corn syrup or fake flavors. I was startled at how much I liked this mixer, even on its own. You can trust it here.

Directions

1. Use a lime slice to moisten rim of a cocktail glass. Roll outside rim of glass in Tajin spice.
2. Add tequila, melon liqueur and margarita mixer to a cocktail shaker. Add one cup ice cubes and shake the hell out of it, like you’re pissed off at the state of everyting.
3. Strain over a fat ice cube into the prepared cocktail glass.
4. Repeat as needed for four years.