How To: Make a Mojito

By Shannon McAleenan

The Cuban embargo may be in full effect, but it hasn’t stopped Americans from sipping one distinctly Cuban drink: mojitos. At bars everywhere, fresh mint shimmies up among liquor bottles, and Bacardi ads beckon with attractive young women sipping the cool, clear concoction. If you don’t already know how to make a mojito, we’ll have you up to speed in no time.

The story of the mojito begins in Havana, Cuba in the 1580s. The British Captain Drake, visiting the island with his group of pirates, left behind the cocktail. Originally called El Draque, early versions of the drink featured the liquor aguardiente, a predecessor of rum. The drink stayed popular in Cuba and, by all accounts, improved greatly when rum became the main ingredient instead of aguardiente.

Flash forward to the 21st century, the mojito comeback. On a spring trip to Brooklyn, this writer drank them all over the city, leaving the cold weather outside and letting the cocktail indulge delusions of warmer climates. The mojito is best enjoyed in tropical settings, so here in Florida, it can always be mojito time.

To enjoy this minty cocktail out on the town, you can head to any bar with liquor—most offer mojitos, some more than one variety. Cap’s on the Water in Vilano Beach makes a mean mojito and Zhanras, on Anastasia Island, serves their own yummy version of one of Cuba’s most famous drinks. Habana Cuban Village also boasts one of the best mojitos in town.

It’s easy to whip up a mojito at home and more likely to impress your guests than popping the top off a can of beer.

To make a classic mojito, you’ll need light or clear rum, fresh mint leaves, limes, sugar and soda water. For one serving, put about 6 mint leaves, 2 teaspoons of sugar and 2 lime wedges in a tall glass. Muddle—a fancy word for smash—the ingredients together with a muddler, a fancy tool that’s like the end of a bat. Or you could use the end of a wooden spoon or any other instruments you can find to mash things together. Next, fill with ice, pour 1 ½ or 2 ounces of light rum and top off with club soda. Stir it up and enjoy. You can make this drink by the glass or by the pitcher.

For various flavors and ingredient add-ons, visit www.bacardi.com. And be careful — these things go down like water and, naturally, are the perfect antidote to a stifling hot day. One day Floridians may be able to breeze through Cuba and sample an authentic mojito, but not anytime soon. So until then, we’ll just have to stick to the Americanized version.