El Floridita No. 1 (The Classic Daiquirí) from ‘Cuban Cocktails’
This week, we’re spotlighting recipes from Cuban Cocktails: 100 Classic and Modern Drinks by Ravi DeRossi, Jane Danger, and Alla Lapushchik of Cienfuegos (Sterling Epicure), a Cuban rum bar in New York’s East Village. Try making the recipe at home and let us know what you think!
Photograph by Gabi Porter
by Ravi DeRossi, Jane Danger, and Alla Lapushchik
El Floridita No. 1 (The Classic Daiquirí)
Makes 1 drink
Serve in a coupe glass
The bar that the world knows now as El Floridita opened in 1819 as La Piña de Plata, the Silver Pineapple, originally selling fresh juice. Beverage sales boomed, a bar and restaurant joined the ranks, and in time La Piña de Plata became Bar La Florida and then El Floridita, which means “little flowery one.” Under the ownership of Constantino Ribalaigua i Vert and the game-changing patronage of Ernest Hemingway, La Florida earned its reputation as la cuna del daiquirí—literally “the cradle of the daiquirí,” but in better English, the birthplace of the legendary cocktail.
2 ounces white rum
¾ ounce Luxardo Maraschino
¾ ounce lime juice
Lime or brandied cherry for garnish
Shake with ice, and strain into a chilled coupe. Garnish with a lime wheel or cherry.
Reprinted with permission from Cuban Cocktails: 100 Classic and Modern Drinks by Ravi DeRossi, Jane Danger, and Alla Lapushchik of Cienfuegos (Sterling Epicure).
More cocktail recipes to try at home:
A Not-Too-Sweet Sparkly Spiked Cider for Fall
The Ultimate Bourbon Cocktail You’ve Never Heard of
Zombie Cocktails from ‘Tiki Drinks’
