This review is just a touch outside our element since it isn’t really a spicy product, but rather a product made by one of the companies whose products we have come to enjoy. Apple Canyon is the parent company that produces the Santa Fe Seasons salsa, which is some of the most amazingly good salsas we’ve tried.

This, however, is not one of those. One thing that makes this review unusual for us is that it’s a true “team” review since we both put in equal time and effort in sampling this mix. It’s a margarita mix, so for us as tequila aficionados it was not a tough sell to inspire us to try it.

Joe’s take: I am not usually the one who likes frozen margaritas, but this mix seemed like it might be a good one for that. So, I broke out the blender and mixed up a batch using 4 parts mix and 1 part tequila, with a touch of agave syrup just for taste. I didn’t have a good blanco tequila to use, so I went with my best middle-of-the-road reposado and hoped for the best.

Sadly, the margaritas this makes using just the mix are rather nondescript. I really liked seeing that there are no artificial dyes used in this mix, especially since the ingredients are otherwise natural. I really wanted a mix made with real blood oranges than take anything non-natural in my food.

The margaritas were fair, but not great. Just like margaritas you would make from scratch, this mix needs the addition of an orange liqueur (triple sec, Cointreau, Citronge) to make it a more well-rounded flavor since the blood orange flavor is not terribly distinct. I like the fact that this isn’t overly sweet, but it needed something else by my estimation. I had it out to try, but this might be a good mix to use with the Tabasco tequila to mix in a little “heat” with this since it lacks any semblance of that with its current formulation.

Linda’s take: I made my margarita on the rocks with the recommended recipe of 4 parts mix to 1 part tequila. I was definitely a bit disappointed that the color of the mix is wonderful, but it doesn’t match its taste. I really wanted a punch of blood orange and I just didn’t get it. In fact, to me, it was similar to a regular margarita, but reddish in color. I found it to be a bit bland, but the more Joe and I talked about it, the more we thought it needed something…more orange. So, on the next margarita I used 3 parts mix, 1 part tequila and 1 part Citronge. This was MUCH better, in my opinion. I don’t mind playing with ingredients to get something to the way I like it. However, I think a mix should be a “right-out-of-the-box” kind of product and I think this falls a bit short. Personally, this may be a very good mix to use with champagne to make a blood orange breakfast mimosa. I may try that this weekend.

Overall recommendation: As margarita purists (or snobs, some might say), we were not impressed by this mix. Blood oranges have a great taste, and this didn’t translate to this product as much as we would have liked. Granted, we didn’t try to use this for anything but margaritas (it suggests martinis, for example), so this mix may have the potential to do well with other kinds of drinks. If you’re a “mixologist” and can use this mix as a base for your margaritas, you might be able to fine tune it to your liking. As a pour-and-use mix, we were not overly impressed.