Cinco De Mayo Tequila Takeover

Cold, hard truth: Tequila is a big deal in Mexico, but Cinco de Mayo isn't.

The May holiday commemorates an important 1862 military victory over the French. A national holiday, yes, but not one with country-wide partying like Mexico's Independence Day in September.

Here in the U.S., we've adopted Cinco de Mayo as our main day for celebrating all things south of the border. In addition to tacos and mariachi bands, that means lots and lots of tequila.

As much as we love a good margarita, we think tequila and its agave-based cousin mezcal should also be admired for their versatility. It's astonishing what they can do when used to replace the base spirit in a wide range of classic cocktails.

The results are so good, you may make every day a holiday.

Check out 8 delicious classic cocktails, tequila-fied, on Liquor.com now.

This story was originally published at Liquor.com. For more stories like this join Liquor.com and drink better. Plus, for a limited time get How to Cocktail in 2014, a cocktail recipe book — free!