The Daiquiri: Three Ingredients, One Standard, No Compromises

The Daiquiri was invented by an American mining engineer named Jennings Cox in Cuba in 1898, and it has been misunderstood ever since. Not the drink itself — the drink is perfectly coherent — but the name. Say Daiquiri in most bars and you will be offered something frozen, sweet, possibly strawberry-flavoured, arriving in a glass the size of a satellite dish. This is a different drink with the same name, and it has done considerable damage to the original's reputation. The classic Daiquiri is three ingredients, shaken hard over ice and served straight up in a chilled coupe. It takes ninety seconds to make and about the same amount of time to drink, which is the correct pace for something this precise.

METHODOLOGY

1. Chill the coupe glass in the freezer for at least ten minutes before serving, or fill with ice water and discard immediately before pouring.

2. Combine the rum, lime juice, and simple syrup in a cocktail shaker with a generous scoop of ice — the shaker should be roughly two-thirds full of ice.

3. Shake hard for a full twelve to fifteen seconds. This is longer than most people shake. The drink needs it: proper dilution and aeration are what give the Daiquiri its texture.

4. Double strain through a Hawthorne strainer and a fine mesh strainer into the chilled coupe. The double strain removes ice chips that would dilute the drink unevenly as they melt.

5. Express a lime twist over the surface of the drink — hold the twist skin-side down over the glass and squeeze firmly so the oils spray across the surface. Run the twist around the rim, then rest it on the edge. Serve immediately.