The right tequila and liqueur can make or break your margaritas. Follow our tips and wow your guests with the perfect margarita cocktail.

To mark the 30th anniversary of Jimmy Buffet’s legendary cocktail song we’ve deconstructed the noble margarita and come up with a couple failsafe recipes — enough to have you “wastin’ away” right through to the fall. NOTE: not responsible for lost or stolen shakers of salt.

Margaritas come in many shapes, sizes and colours but a basic margarita is made with three ingredients — tequila, orange liqueur and lime juice, then shaken with ice. Although, if you insist on blending yours with ice, we’ll let it slide. However, if you have a bottle of “gold” tequila in your cupboard and insist on using that to mix drinks, we’re sorry but that just will not do and you should dispose of it immediately.

A look at three of the newest liqueurs on the market, plus tasty cocktail recipes for each.

Liquor companies and their marketing teams spend loads of cash and even more time developing new products based on consumer trends. Their objective: to create a product that not only taps into the mood of the public but also has legs and won’t disappear after a year or two. It’s too early to tell the success of these liqueurs, so feed your curiosity now, it just might be your only chance.

High-end picks are a recognition of craftsmanship and achievement

Uh-oh! Are the eighties back? With seven new Starbucks opening daily and Whole Foods all but dominating the high-end grocery business, it’s easy to see how the premium experience has materialized around us. It’s also easy to compare this trend to the credit-card flush days of the ’80s, especially with The Donald gracing our TV screens again.

Where the ’80s were about excess (and mesh sandals), the premium experience is more altruistic. It’s a trend where product knowledge and experience are the driving factors, not consumption. It’s a trend about craftsmanship, achievement and the creation of a unique emotional connection.