Shaking Up the Daiquiri

By Rights, the daiquiri should be known as the conquistador. It was those Spanish adventurers who first compounded the soothing amalgam of rum, sugar and lime juice--quaffing it from conch shells, on sunny Caribbean shores. It could just as easily be called a rum sour, since that's what a daiquiri is, essentially. But the drink was christened officially around 1900 by a crew of fun-loving American mining engineers in Cuba, who guzzled it to ward off yellow fever. (Or so they claimed.) The name was borrowed from the Daiquiri iron mines, near Santiago, which the thirsty yanquis were developing for American interests. Perhaps the biggest daiquiri on record was concocted for steel tycoon Charlie Schwab and his entourage, when they toured the mines. Ten bottles of light Cuban rum, the juice of 100 limes, a pound of sugar and some ice--an American nicety--were slopped into a wooden keg and stirred with a paddle. As the executives emerged from the pits, each (continued on page 292)Daiquiri(continued from page 207) was greeted with a hefty dose of this "medicine."

Constantino, the legendary mixologist of Havana's La Florida Bar, is generally credited with popularizing the daiquiri. Patrons crowded around the small bar, gaping at the maestro's virtuoso performance. Limes were freshly squeezed, drinks shaken to order--then strained into champagne coupes. It was a good show and a sprightly drink.

In Cuba, they say there's only one true daiquiri--como Dios manda--as divinely ordained, calling for 1-1/2 ozs. rum, 1 teaspoon sugar and 1 tablespoon lime juice. But that dictum did not suppress Constantino, a Mozart, of the mixing glass, who played innumerable variations on the original theme ... adding a dash of curaçao, a nip of maraschino liqueur, a splash of grapefruit juice or a few drops of Falernum--as the spirit moved.

If Constantino was the high priest of the daiquiri, Rudi Greiner, general manager of San Juan's Condado Beach-La Concha hotels, may be its modern apostle. Both hotels offer a stunning variety of tropical-fruit daiquiris, including guava, coconut, papaya, mango and guanábana, or soursop--a pulpy, exotic fruit with a skin like a crocodile's. Banana and pineapple, too, of course.

Despite his enthusiasm for the daiquiri, Greiner concedes that it's a capricious drink--sometimes crisp, tart-sweet and quenching; occasionally listless and dull. Among the essentials are fresh limes, light rum, superfine sugar and lots of ice. Drinks should be mixed to order and shaken vigorously. Serve immediately in chilled glasses, preferably straight up.

A word about limes: Most recipes specify "the juice of 1/2 lime." However, limes vary in size and liquid content, so it's best to measure if you want drinks that are consistent in taste. Incidentally, Stateside bartenders lean to the large, seedless Persian limes, grown in Florida. Island barmen favor the juicy limón del país, using only the end cuts and discarding the seedy centers. A good bartender will run the lime peel around the rim of the glass, for an inviting piquancy. Do the same on the recipes given below.

[recipe_title]Derby Daiquiri[/recipe_title]

A prize winner from the Mai-Kai restaurant in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

[recipe]1-1/2 ozs. light rum[/recipe]

[recipe]1/2 oz. lime juice[/recipe]

[recipe]1 oz. orange juice[/recipe]

[recipe]1 teaspoon sugar[/recipe]

[recipe]1/2 cup crushed ice[/recipe]

Buzz all ingredients in blender for about 10 seconds. Pour unstrained into chilled champagne coupe.

[recipe_title]Frozen Daiquiri[/recipe_title]

Most bartenders toss too much ice into the blender and the drinks are more like sherbets. This one, from Puerto Rico's Caribe Hilton, is just right.

[recipe]1-1/2 ozs. light rum[/recipe]

[recipe]1/2 oz. lime juice[/recipe]

[recipe]1 teaspoon sugar[/recipe]

[recipe]1/2 cup crushed ice[/recipe]

Buzz all ingredients in blender until slushy. Pour into chilled goblet. Serve with short straws.

[recipe_title]Daiquiri[/recipe_title]

Note the moderate change from the original Daiquiri mines formula. The additional 1/2 oz. rum makes for a crisper, drier drink.

[recipe]2 ozs. light rum[/recipe]

[recipe]1/2 oz. lime juice[/recipe]

[recipe]1 teaspoon sugar[/recipe]

Shake all ingredients with cracked ice. Strain into chilled cocktail glass or over ice in rocks glass.

Bacardi Cocktail

The Bacardi is the only cocktail recipe mandated by a Supreme Court decision. It's the original daiquiri with a teaspoon grenadine added, in deference to the Cuban sweet tooth, and Bacardi rum "as its sole alcoholic ingredient."

[recipe_title]Coco Daiquiri[/recipe_title]

[recipe]1 oz. light rum[/recipe]

[recipe]1 oz. CocoRibe liqueur[/recipe]

[recipe]1/2 oz. lime juice[/recipe]

[recipe]1/2 teaspoon sugar[/recipe]

Shake all ingredients with cracked ice. Strain into chilled cocktail glass.

(concluded overleaf)

[recipe_title]Strawberry Daiquiri[/recipe_title]

[recipe]1-1/2 ozs. light rum[/recipe]

[recipe]1/2 oz. strawberry liqueur[/recipe]

[recipe]1/2 oz. lime juice[/recipe]

[recipe]5-6 fresh strawberries[/recipe]

[recipe]1 teaspoon sugar[/recipe]

[recipe]1/2 cup crushed ice[/recipe]

Buzz all ingredients in blender until almost smooth. Pour unstrained into chilled wineglass. Garnish with whole berry on pick.

[recipe_title]Banana Daiquiri[/recipe_title]

A creation of Ismael Miranda, who reigns at La Concha Hotel's Mi Sitio bar in San Juan. A slug of banana liqueur adds zing to this irresistible daiquiri.

[recipe]1 oz. light rum[/recipe]

[recipe]1/2 oz. banana liqueur[/recipe]

[recipe]1/4 oz. lime juice[/recipe]

[recipe]1 teaspoon sugar[/recipe]

[recipe]1/2 medium-size ripe banana[/recipe]

[recipe]1 cup crushed ice[/recipe]

Buzz all ingredients in blender until well combined. Pour into chilled brandy snifter. Serve with short straws.

[recipe_title]Brown Daiquiri[/recipe_title]

An exception to the light-rum rule of thumb, which results in a mellow, full-flavored drink.

[recipe]2 ozs. Jamaica or añejo rum[/recipe]

[recipe]1/2 oz. lime juice[/recipe]

[recipe]1 teaspoon honey[/recipe]

Pour lime juice and honey into shaker and stir until well blended. Add ice and rum; cover and shake briskly. Strain into chilled cocktail glass.

[recipe_title]Pear Daiquiri[/recipe_title]

[recipe]1-1/2 ozs. light rum[/recipe]

[recipe]1/2 oz. pear liqueur[/recipe]

[recipe]1/2 oz. lemon juice[/recipe]

[recipe]1 teaspoon sugar[/recipe]

[recipe]1/4 ripe Bartlett pear, cored but not peeled[/recipe]

[recipe]1/3 cup crushed ice[/recipe]

Buzz all ingredients in blender until almost smooth. Pour into chilled goblet. Serve with short straws.

[recipe_title]La Florida Daiquiri[/recipe_title]

One of the daiquiri variations credited to el maestro, Constantino, and it's a good one.

[recipe]2 ozs. light rum[/recipe]

[recipe]Juice of 1/2 lemon[/recipe]

[recipe]1 teaspoon grapefruit juice[/recipe]

[recipe]1 teaspoon maraschino liqueur[/recipe]

[recipe]1 teaspoon sugar[/recipe]

[recipe]1/2 cup crushed ice[/recipe]

Shake all ingredients briskly until well blended. Pour unstrained into large rocks glass.

The next time you're sipping daiquiris, offer a toast to Christopher Columbus, the guy responsible for it all. It was Columbus who brought sugar-cane cuttings and lime seeds, the things that supply the basic ingredients for the daiquiri, to the West Indies. Como Dios manda.

"If Constantino was the high priest of the daiquiri, Rudi Greiner may be its modern apostle."