It’s Friday … Have a Drink: Daiquiri

It’s Friday … Have a Drink: Daiquiri
Our weekly recommendation.

I’ve written about the entire history of this drink before, so let’s stick with the abbreviated version for this post. The Daiquiri is credited to Jennings Cox, an American engineer stationed in Cuba. Co-credit is sometimes given to a Cuban named Pagliuchi … which doesn’t sound like a particularly Cuban name to me, but what do I know?

Supposedly, Cox had some visitors coming in and had run out of gin. Fearful that serving the island’s less-esteemed liquor neat would be a faux pas, he added lime and sugar, producing the first version of the drink we know and love today.

The daiquiri is one of those cocktails that really doesn’t need any mucking with. Sometimes I add a dash of orange bitters, but that’s about it. Why mess with perfection?

By the way: fresh lime juice is key, here. Sometimes you can get away with using bottled lime juice in a cocktail, but it has such a negative impact on this drink that I honestly wouldn’t bother to make one if that’s all you’ve got. A Daiquiri is at its best when it’s bright, fresh-tasting, and bursting with lime flavor.

Combine all ingredients in a cocktail shaker over ice and really shake the hell out of it, to build up a nice head of foam and a light effervescence to the drink. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with a lime wedge.

This article is a modified and enhanced version of a post that ran on my nightly cocktail blog, DrinkShouts. Liquors in parentheses are what I used when I made this recipe, and are included as suggestions.

Christopher Buecheler

Christopher Buecheler is a novelist, a web developer, an award-winning amateur mixologist, a brewer, a guitarist, a drummer, and an NBA enthusiast. He lives a semi-nomadic life with his wife and two cats, currently residing in Providence, RI. You can learn more at his website, cwbuecheler.com.