Renewed Interest in the Daiquiri

      This classic rum cocktail was named for a beach in the vicinity of Santiago, Cuba. This is made from the simplest of ingredients and the most bastardized cocktail ever in these modern times of mixes and smoothie machines. This is a simple drink that is made from lime juice, sugar (or cane syrup), and rum, all the ingredients are shaken with ice and strained into a cocktail glass and garnished with a piece of lime. It is the freshness of these cocktails attained through the use of fresh squeezed ingredients that make them the popular cocktail they really are. This is a cocktail that made it's first appearances in the beginning of the 1900's and in 2011 it is still a very popular cocktail.

Mary and Earnest Hemingway
and Spencer Tracy at El Floridita

El Floridita today

It was Hemingway that really brought a lot of attention to the cocktail in his Cuban years when hanging out at the El Floridita at the corner of Calle Obispo and Monserrate Street La Habana Vieja, Cuba. " My Mojito in La Bodeguita, my Daiquiri in El Floridita", this is the place that to this day is the mecca for the finest daiquiri's anywhere. The El Floridita first opened in 1817 at it's present location. In 1914 Constantino Ribalaigua Vert began working as the bartender at El Floridita and in 1918 he became the owner. Much of the original atmosphere and contains a large collection of memorabilia from many of it's famous clientele, Earnest Hemingway, Ezra Pound, John Dos Passos, Graham Greene, to name a few. El Floridita is famous for its fine seafood restaurant as well as it's cocktail lounge, and a must visit when in Havana.

If you haven't had the opportunity to experience one of these really exquisite cocktails, you must find a traditional bar that has the abilities to reproduce them in the traditional manner. This will be a cocktail to remember. There are several of these classic daiquiri's like the Hemingway, El Floridita (Frozen), or just go with the classic Daiquiri, all or any of these will light up your taste buds and put a smile on your face. Some of the variation include the use of any one of several liqueurs like Maraschino Liqueur, Blue Curacao. Gallliano, Falernum, or any of several others to ad a different dimension to the cocktail. No matter how you make this wonderful cocktail, do it with fresh ingredients that do NOT include "Daiquiri Mix", keep it fresh and simple you'll really enjoy it that way.