Back to Basics with the Barfly

Hi, I'm the Barfly. Nearly twelve long years ago, I married the booze whisperer and have been sipping, slugging and occasionally slurping alongside him for many years. While I defer to his expertise in matters of wine and beer knowledge and boozy history, I also have some ideas of my own that I will occasionally share.

After reading the post about Haitian rum the other day, I got inspired go looking for classic rum cocktails. No, I DID NOT look for mojitos. A former favorite drink for me, in the last couple of years I have grown increasingly irritated as fruit infused pollutions of this drink have crept their way across the mass produced drink menus of every chain bar and grill in America (acai mojitos! - what the hell are they thinking?!)

Instead I decided to delve deeper into history and focus on a drink that gained its fame from Ernest Hemingway: the daiquiri! Not the frozen, fruit filled slushes at the poolside bar, but the smooth tarty-sweet and strong ones that Hemingway was known for sipping at the El Floridita bar in Havana, Cuba.

The three basic ingredients are light rum, lime and sugar (usually very fine or powdered sugar, or simple syrup). The basic recipe can be tweaked to your liking:

1.5 oz light rum (this week I used Mount Gay)

1 oz fresh lime juice

1 tsp simple syrup or sugar (start with a little and adjust to taste)

Shake it with ice and strain to serve. El Floridita was known for adding shaved ice but it waters down quickly so drink fast. Mmmmmmmmm...divine!