The relative importance of the song to Buffett's career is referred to obliquely in a parenthetical plural in the title of a Buffett greatest hits compilation album, Songs You Know by Heart: Jimmy Buffett's Greatest Hit(s). Named for the cocktail margarita, with lyrics reflecting a laid-back lifestyle in a tropical climate, 'Margaritaville' has come to define Buffett's music and career. After Buffett’s death on September 1, 2023, the song re-entered the Top 40 for the week ending September 16, 2023. It was Buffett's highest charting solo single. Billboard ranked it number 14 on its 1977 Pop Singles year-end chart. In the United States, 'Margaritaville' reached number eight on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, and went to number one on the Easy Listening chart, also peaking at No. ' Margaritaville' is a 1977 song by American popular music singer-songwriter Jimmy Buffett from the album Changes in Latitudes, Changes in Attitudes. You literally just shave all the ice into the pitcher, dump it out, and let it air dry.īut despite those setbacks, on the days I crave margaritas, it's all so worth it.A margarita cocktail: the inspiration for 'Margaritaville' The ice reservoir, however, is really easy to empty. And they all come apart, so while most everything is dishwasher-safe you still have to disassemble and reassemble it every time you clean it. There are a lot of parts, not to mention the insanely sharp blades in the ice hopper and the pitcher. I'm forced to keep it on a shelf in plain view, which only adds to the overcrowded vibe of my tiny third-floor apartment kitchen.Ĭleaning is also a bit of a hassle. It’s really not something you’ll want to keep on your counter 24/7 (unless you’ve got a dedicated bar in your home), and it weighs anywhere from 22-24 pounds depending on the model. I have a small kitchen with limited storage space, so my biggest concern was where to keep this beast of a machine. There's only one ice setting (shaved) and the pitcher can sometimes leak a bit, which is definitely not ideal. Everything has its flawsĪs much as I enjoyed the end result, there are a few quirks and design issues that stop me from saying this is a must-have for frozen drink lovers. And if you maybe added too much or not enough of your booze and mixer, you can add more of whatever you need thanks to a switch that manually shaves more ice or blends your concoction. In under two minutes, you’ve got a pitcher of the perfect margaritas. Once there’s enough ice in the pitcher, the blender starts to combine the liquid with the pile of ice sitting on top. There’s even a little row of shark fins that light up one by one so you know how close you are to your happy hour. It shaves the exact right amount of ice from the hopper and is all on a timer to make sure the results are just right. You choose how many drinks you’re making (one, two, or three 12-ounce servings), turn it on, and then flick a switch. With a regular blender, you generally have to turn it on, wait, and turn it back off again, which means timing is everything to get the right consistency.īut with the Margaritaville, the whole process is automated. So, when you are ready to make your drink, this is where it gets kinda cool and deviates from the traditional blender concept. The automated controls know exactly how long to blend to reach frozen drink nirvana. Making the perfect frozen drinks every time It also comes with a book of recipe ideas to get you started, which is great for deciding the right ratios whether you’re making margs, piña coladas, mudslides (yep, it does those too), or your own concoction.

The Margaritaville is designed so you can easily maneuver the pitcher in and out of its place without spilling. To make a batch of cocktails or mocktails in this beast, it's as easy as using a regular blender-maybe even a little easier. I love my Margaritaville, but even I was skeptical about that-and was pretty surprised by the results. And it turns out that the shaved ice approach melts much more slowly than pulverized ice, resulting in a more consistently awesome drinking experience. We even pit my Margaritaville up against a Vitamix, one of our favorite professional blenders to see if there really was a difference. Plus, on the Key West models at least, it can hold enough ice to make three pitchers’ worth of drinks. Rather than pulverizing ice cubes into itty bitty pieces, the top-loader has a long, super sharp blade and a mechanism that churns the ice, shaving it into an almost snow cone-like consistency that collects in the waiting pitcher. What really sets the Margaritaville apart from your everyday blender is the top-loading ice reservoir. The Margaritaville doesn't treat ice like a regular blender.

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