How to Make Fresh Daiquiris

Doesn’t a daiquiri sound great right now? Learn how to mix one up.

London Olympics—game on! Here’s a full-on refreshing bar drink that screams out cool summer flavor to enjoy while you watch all the incredible athletes do what they do best.

As a tribute to the games, this particular daiquiri recipe features Pusser’s Royal Navy Rum, which has a lot of flavor and goes great in my well loved US Navy Screaming Eagles Fighter Squadron 51 drink glass. Yah!

Here are some quick tips regarding this drink:

• A straight, fresh daiquiri is made with only 3 ingredients: lime juice, sugar and rum. You’ll see in this recipe that I’ve added an optional shot of almond (or orgeat) syrup, which boosts the rum flavor. Rule of Thumb: For every 1 ounce of lime juice, add about 1 tablespoon sugar, and 2 ounces rum.
• About rum: In general, white or clear rum is mildest in flavor; amber rum is slightly richer in flavor: and dark rum has the most robust flavor.
• About limes: For the best possible drink, use fresh limes that are heavier in weight and slightly soft to the touch when you push in on the skin with your thumb as they should also be juicier and more flavorful than those that are lighter in weight and rock hard to touch.
• About ice: Although this may sound counterintuitive, pack a drink like this with ice to maintain its refreshing coolness and avoid diluting the drink flavor.

Preparation Time: 3-5 minutes

Ingredients

(for two 6-ounce drinks)

8 Ounces Rum
4 Ounces Fresh Lime Juice (about 2-3 limes)
3-4 Tablespoons Sugar
1/2 Tablespoon Almond Syrup (optional – boosts rum flavor; also called Orgeat syrup)
Ice

Equipment

Citrus Juicer
Sharp Knife
Cutting Board
Measuring Cup
Tablespoon
Cocktail Glass

1. Use a sharp knife to cut 2-3 limes in half.

2. Squeeze 4 ounces lime juice into a measuring cup as shown in the picture below.

3. Add 4 tablespoons sugar and an optional 1/2 tablespoon of almond syrup(see photo), and … stir until the sugar is completely dissolved.

4. Add and stir in 8 ounces rum (you’ll now have a total of 12 ounces of drink in the measuring cup as shown in the picture below).

5. Fill a cocktail glass mostly full with ice.

Add enough daiquirito fill the glass most of the way full, making sure …

to leave about an inch of free space at the top of the glass to stir the drink comfortably like this. Then …

top the glass with ice …

and serve.

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All images courtesy of Bruce Tretter