National Daiquiri Day 2019: Easy recipes to make the perfect Cuban cocktail at home

19 July 2019, 09:22 | Updated: 14 August 2019, 09:47

By Emma Gritt

@emmagritt

July 19th is National Daiquiri Day - we've got easy recipes to try at home and surprising facts about the Cuban concoction.

Daiquiris are a pretty popular cocktail, but did you know they have their own day?

Every July 19, fans of the Cuban cocktail celebrate its origins and legacy - it might surprise you just how much history is in every glass of mixed rum, lime juice and sugar,

The drink's origins can be traced back to the late nineteenth century, when it was reportedly invented by an American mining engineer called Jennings Cox who was working in Santiago de Cuba - at a place called Daiquiri.

It’s said that the drink stayed a local favourite until 1909 when a retired US Navy officer tried the drink - and took the recipe back to Washington D.C with him where it was added to the menu of the Army and Navy Club.

Over the decades it became a favourite of President John F Kennedy and writer Ernest Hemingway - who invented his own twist known as the Papa Doble - but it was during the 1940s it really became an American favourite.

World War 2 meant vodka and whiskey were rationed, but good trade links with South America meant that there was plenty of rum being imported in to the States.

Interestingly the drink might be even OLDER than people think. The basic recipe is very similar to what British sailors would drink during the eighteenth century to prevent them from getting scurvy.

These days its possible to get daiquiris in a variety of fruity flavours - and summer holiday friendly frozen varieties, too.

There are events happening across the UK to mark Rum Month, but here are two recipes to try making at home if you’re in the mood for a tropical tipple.

Ducky’s Daiquiri

What you'll need:

2 oz Copalli White Rum

1 oz Ducky’s Mix (2:1 passion fruit to cinnamon syrup)

½ oz lime juice

½ oz simple syrup

1 dash of Angostura bitters

Method:

Mix all the ingredients in a cocktail shaker and shake well

Double strain the mixture in to a coupe glass

Garnish with a lime wedge - and if you're feeling brave, a flamed cinnamon sliver

Bacardi Classic Daiquiri

What you'll need:

50 ml Bacardi Carta Blanca Rum

25 ml freshly squeezed lime juice

2 tsp caster sugar

Method:

Add all ingredients to a cocktail shaker

Mix well and pour over ice

Daiquiri No 3/Papa Doble

50 ml Bacardi Carta Blanca Rum

5 ml Maraschino liqueur

10 ml freshly squeezed white grapefruit juice

1 tsp caster sugar

5 ml freshly squeezed lime juice

Grapefruit peel

Method:

Add all ingredients to a cocktail shaker

Mix well and pour over ice

Garnish with the grapefruit peel