By Kevin Wilkerson, PubClub.com Cocktails Blogger
As is the case with many famous cocktails, the actual origin of the mojito is not known. There are a few stories and possibilities but there was no known moment of who made the first one, when or even exactly where. There was no Instagram around then to record such things.
Still, there are some traceable moments in its past that at least gives us a reasonable idea about the origin of the popular cocktail. This article also look at how it leaped back into the spotlight after fading away on the cocktail landscape for a while. It has also earned the status of having an official hashtag holiday, #nationalmojitoday. And, since you are wondering, National Mojito Day is July 11.
Cuba Is The Country That Created The Mojito
It is generally assumed that the mojito originated in Cuba. Wayne Curtis, in his extensive book and A Bottle Of Rum – A History of the New World in Ten Cocktails – he traces it to Cuban farmers, tho it’s basically a Rum Collins, which (legend has it) was created by a waiter in London in the 1930s. Curtis believes it spread from the farmers to Havana and eventually up to the States. Like Tijuana in Mexico, Havana was a boomtown during Prohibition as Americans swarmed the place to get there what they could not get at home. Mainly, that involved booze. It would be only natural to think that they would have been drinking mojitos and then, after the repeal of the 18th ammendment, had bartenders make them when they were back drinking in the States.
In 1939, at the New York World’s Fair in New York, the Cuban pavilion featured it in a cocktial guide for visitors and Trader Vic advertised mojitos in newsaper ads to promote his bar in Oakland, CA.
The Decline & The Rise Of The Mojito
After a while, the mojito kind of fell out of favor for Americans – you had to go looking for it rather than it being a regular drink served at bars and restaurants – until it resurfaced on occasion on the hit TV show Sex and the City. But it really took off when Pierce Bronsan’s James Bond had one instead of his usual martini in Die Another Day. “You shoud try one,” he told Hallie Barry in a line hardly has eloquent as “shaken not stirred.”
Havana’s Legendary Bars Serving Mojitos
You can find mojitos everywhere in Havana. The most popular place is Bogeduita del Medino, which has been serving up the drink since 1942. Like everything there now, it’s currently operated by the Cuban government, which has opened up locations in Dubai, Paris, Milan and Oman on the southeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia. Before the revolution, Fidel Castro drank mojitos there – a faded photo proves it – as did major celebrities at the time, among them Errol Flynn and Nat King Cole. Today, busloads of tourist pile into the tiny place to get some hurried version of the drink.
It is located on a quiet street near the Plaza de Armas.
A 10-minute walk away is El Floridita, which is more famous for its Daiquiris and the patron who drank the most of them, Ernest Hemingway. The legendary author, known for his drinking ability almost as much as his writing ability, supposedly stated “my mojitos at La Bodeguita. My daiquris at El Floridta.” This is on a sign at Bodeguita.
Despite this, Curtis recommends steering clear of mojitos in Havana because “they are not very good,” he wrote in his book.
Mojito Recipe
• Fresh mint leaves
• ½ medium lime, cut into wedges, plus a lime wheel for garnish
• 2 ounces white rum
• 1 ounce fresh lime juice
• ½ ounce simple syrup
• Club soda
• Ice (usually crushed)
Directions: In a shaker, muddle the mint leaves, (this brings out their aroma and flavor), add the rum, lime juice and simple syrup. Top with club soda. Shake, strain and pour over ice. Note: Some bars have flavord mojitos with ingredients like berries to provide different twists on an old classic.
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