As many times as I have been to Austin, and as many margaritas as I have had the pleasure of sipping in Austin, I had never heard of either the Mexican Martini or the originator—Trudy’s—until my good friend Anthony, who went to college in Austin, let me in on the secret. And, now it is too late for me and anyone else who never went to Trudy’s. On January 13, 2025, they closed their doors after 47 years in business. [Note: My conversation and drink experimentation happened before Trudy’s abruptly closed two weeks ago.]
When he was in college, Trudy’s was still booming, and they let you customize your margarita. His go-to order was Herradura Blanco Tequila with a Grand Marnier floater on the side, so he could add as much or as little as he I wanted. Regardless of your favorite tequila, every Margarita got the secret ingredient!
The secret ingredient that flips the switch from Margarita to Martini is olive brine which technically makes it a Dirty MexMart. (MexMart is the nickname of the cocktail for those in the know—and in case you didn’t know, the “dirty” part of a martini comes from the addition of olive brine.)
The addition of the olive brine provides the salty element so you don’t need to salt the rim of the glass to get a perfectly balanced drink to sip on. If that sounds both delicious and potentially dangerous, you are right. It strikes the perfect balance.
My favorite straight-up margarita is made with Grand Marnier and top-shelf Blanco Tequila, so I knew I would like it. I decided that I needed to make a Trudy’s “MexMart” copycat as soon as I could but it turns out that it wasn’t that easy to find the definitive recipe.
Anthony sent me a copycat recipe that included making your own sweet and sour mix, and I culled through half a dozen recipes that included ingredients like sprite and orange juice.
I wanted to honor Trudy’s and try the copycats, so I bought Sprite and oranges. I love the Palomas made in Mexico with the soft drink Squirt, and I thought like that drink, it might be unexpected but good.
I tried both the orange juice and the Sprite, but it wasn’t for me. I felt that it took away from the purity of a really good margarita or a really good martini.
If you can find the Limones del Carmen, a.k.a. small limes from Mexico, use them in your MexMart.
After another discussion with Anthony, he said, “make your favorite margarita and add the olive juice.” I was lucky enough to find small limes from Mexico, a.k.a. Limones del Carmen and I juiced those. To the fresh lime juice, I added a generous amount of best-quality Blanco Tequila, Grand Marnier, olive brine that was heavy with Vermouth, and added my own little touch.
That touch was to make mini olive ice cubes. I took small pimento-stuffed green olives and placed them in the center of a small hexagonal ice tray. I covered the olives with the brine, topped them off with filtered water, and let them freeze overnight. The mini ice cubes were both cute and tasty and kept the drink cold longer without diluting the flavor.
And, as cool as this little touch is, the real beauty of this Mexican Martini is the olive brine that provides the salty element, so even if you don’t take the time to make the olive cubes, make your next margarita with olive brine.
Making the mini olive ice cubes is easy with a small silicone ice cube tray and small … [+]
Mexican Martini
Forget the rest! If you are a cocktail purist, this will be the best margarita that you will ever taste. The sweetness comes from the Grand Marnier liqueur and the salt comes from the olive brine to make a perfectly balanced, cool and refreshing sophisticated margarita.
Makes 8 ounces
3 ounces best-quality Blanco Tequila
1.5 ounces Grand Marnier
2 ounces fresh-squeezed lime juice, Limones del Carmen if you can find them
1/2 ounce Martini olive brine, preferably a Vermouth brine
Fresh lime wedges for garnish
Martini Olive Ice Cubes for serving, optional
1. Fill a cocktail shaker full of ice. add the tequila, Grand Marnier, lime juice and olive brine. Close, seal and shake until frothy and very cold.
2. Place a Martini Olive Ice Cube in the bottom of the Martini glass. Pour the cocktail into the glass. Garnish with another ice cube and a wedge of lime.
3. Serve ice cold.