Paloma

Tequila, grapefruit soda, and fresh lime — the dove-named Paloma, more consumed in Mexico than the Margarita, championed by craft bartenders from the 2010s.

The Paloma is Mexico's most widely consumed cocktail — by domestic market measures it surpasses even the Margarita within the country — combining tequila with grapefruit soda (most commonly Jarritos Toronja or the American brand Squirt), fresh lime juice, and a salted rim. The name means dove in Spanish, and its origin is the subject of contested claims; the most frequently cited attribution connects it to Don Javier Delgado Corona of La Capilla bar in Tequila, Jalisco, who is also credited with the Batanga, though the Paloma's origins may predate his involvement and reflect a regional drinking tradition rather than a single inventor's creation. The combination of tequila and grapefruit has a natural logic rooted in the overlapping flavor chemistry of both: tequila's vegetal, slightly citrusy agave character and grapefruit's naringin-derived bitterness and aromatic essential oils share a broadly herbal, complex register that makes them complementary rather than competing. The Paloma remained largely unknown outside Mexico until the 2010s, when American craft bartenders began advocating for it as a more refreshing, food-friendly tequila cocktail than the Margarita's sweeter triple-sec formula produces.