Old Cuban

Taste

An ounce and a half of aged rum, three-quarters of lime, a full ounce of simple, two dashes of Angostura, mint shaken in, then two ounces of Champagne. An ounce of syrup is a heavy pour of sugar, and the bitters and the bubbles are what hold it up. Shaking the mint takes the oil and leaves the leaf whole. Coupe, mint on top.

History

Audrey Saunders built the Old Cuban in 2001 and put it on at Bemelmans Bar in the Carlyle, in Manhattan, where by her account it took off almost immediately. She carried it to the Ritz in London for a pop-up in 2002, then onto the opening menu at Pegu Club in 2005, filed under Champagne Opportunities, and it stayed a bestseller for the fifteen years that bar ran. Saunders describes the aim as a lively yet elegant Champagne cocktail with a neotropical edge; the two parents are the Mojito and the French 75. This menu pours an ounce and a half of aged rum, three-quarters of lime, an ounce of simple, two dashes of Angostura, mint, and two ounces of Champagne, shaken, coupe, mint.

• Punch, How the Old Cuban Became a Modern Classic

Same shape, other bottles

The Sparkling family, with the bottle that changed.

• Air Mailhoney syrup for simple syrup
• Ritzcognac and lemon juice for aged rum and lime juice
• French 75gin and lemon juice for aged rum and lime juice
• Queen Beevodka and lemon juice for aged rum and lime juice
• Seelbachbourbon for aged rum
• Champagne Cocktailcognac for aged rum