Mojito

An average summer in Washington, DC is hot, humid, and generally oppressive, but right now we are in the middle of a nasty heat wave. The only thing to be done is to mix a cool drink and stare at a painting of an idyllic beach scene. 

Instead of working up a sweat re-inventing the wheel, summer can be a good time to fall back on a classic cocktail. The heat hasn’t managed to kill all of the mint growing in our garden. So we decided that we would put it to good use by making a mojito.

The mojito is a cousin to that other classic Cuban cocktail, the daiquiri. Both of these drinks have launched many variations – not all of them good. A classic daiquiri contains only fresh lime juice, simple syrup, and white rum. Nothing more than a chilled cocktail glass is required to make it an excellent drink. The mojito adds mint and some club soda to the daiquiri to create a highball with a lower ABV (alcohol by volume) – giving you more to sip on when it’s a hot day.

We ventured outside for 30 seconds to grab a handful of mint and then made up a batch of mint simple syrup. The traditional mojito recipe instructs you to muddle the mint with sugar and water, but creating the simple syrup makes things easier when you are ready to mix up the cocktail. The recipe for the Mint Simple Syrup can be found in our Mint Julep blog post.

 A Cuban white rum would be the traditional choice for this cocktail, but true Cuban rum is hard to come by. You can read more about why in this article from Esquire. We have been favoring Plantation 3 Stars Rum for our cocktails. This blend of rums from three islands (the 3 stars: Barbados, Jamaica, and Trinidad) has a smooth and complex flavor that plays well with other ingredients.

The Cocktail Artist has painted plenty of beach scenes. We like the way this one, with its cool blue and green tones, looks as refreshing as our cocktail.

Cheers!


Mojito

2 ½ ounces White Rum (Plantation 3 Stars)
1 ounce fresh squeezed lime juice
1 ounce Mint Simple Syrup
Splash of Club Soda

Add rum, mint syrup, and lime juice to a cocktail shaker with ice cubes. Shake well and strain into a highball glass with ice cubes. Add a splash of club soda. Garnish with lime wheels and several sprigs of fresh mint.

Beach Afternoon - original watercolor by The Cocktail Artist

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