Cocktail of the Week: Mojito

With the lazy humid days of summer just starting, it's time to break out the flip-flops, sundresses and rum!  Admittedly, I'm not the biggest fan of rum.  I don't care for sweet, syrupy beverages in general, plus I had an experience with Bacardi 151 when I was eighteen that has scarred me to this day.  (Let's just say I was ignorant as to what "151" stood for, and it was the only time I've ever been officially passed out drunk at a party.  If I teach you anything in this blog, it is that alcohol % is important, people!)  But there is one drink that transcends all of the images of fruit, frozen drinks when one thinks of a rum-based drink - the Mojito!

The mojito (mo-heeto) is a highball drink of Cuban origin  that consists of five ingredients:  white rum, sugar (traditionally sugar cane juice or simple syrup), lime juice, sparkling water (or club soda) and mint.  There is a lot of history regarding the various stories of how the mojito originated in Cuba (which you can peruse at your leisure on wikipedia).  It was a favorite drink of one of my favorite authors, Ernest Hemingway. 

You can make a mojito with fruit juices, but I think it loses the whole essence of what a mojito is about when you vary from the original ingredients.  It's supposed to be refreshing, citrus-y and low in alcohol - the perfect pool cocktail. 

Here's a recipe from the largest purveyors of rum, Bacardi:

Bacardi Mojito

1.5 oz BACARDI Rum (you can use any silver/white rum, I like Don Q)
12 fresh spearmint leaves
1/2 lime
7 oz club soda
2 tbsp. simple syrup  (or 4 tsp. sugar)

Instructions:  Gently crush mint leaves and lightly squeeze lime in a cool tall glass.  ("Muddling"* the mint leaves really releases all the essence of the mint flavor).  Pour simple syrup on top to cover and fill glass with ice. Add Bacardi Rum, club soda, and stir your emerging mojito well. Garnish with a lime wedge, a few sprigs of mint, toast, sip, and enjoy Bacardi mojitos with your friends.

*  Muddling refers to the mashing up of ingredients in a drink, using a small tool called a muddler, which looks like a tiny baseball bat.  It's sort of like a pestle.

Personally, my favorite mojito is made at Casa Dinks, using fresh mint from my garden.  But Dr. D is my resident mojito expert so I asked where his favorite mojito was.  He said it was at WISH restaurant in South Beach, which I sadly learned is closed.  It must have been a remarkable mojito because I got sick midway through dinner and had to leave.  So not the best evening, but obviously a damn good cocktail.

Cheers!