The IBA (International Cocktail Association) lists a large variety of complex cocktails, and it also includes drinks that are pretty simple. A perfect example of this is the Black Russian. It is incredibly easy to make, thus, a great cocktail to mix at home.

Quick Facts Black Russian Cocktail

With the list of ingredients for a Black Russian being that short, balance is crucial: The ratio will define how sweet your cocktail is.

Black Russian cocktail Recipe

Black Russian Cocktail Recipe

The legendary mix of Vodka and coffee liqueur
Prep Time: 3 minutes
Course: Drinks
Cuisine: Belgian
Keyword: vodka
Servings: 1
Calories: 216kcal
Cost: $2.60

Ingredients

  • 2 oz Vodka
  • 1 oz Kahlúa

Instructions

  • Add both ingredients to a mixing glass with plenty of ice.
    2 oz Vodka, 1 oz Kahlúa
  • Stir for 15 to 18 seconds until the drink is well-chilled.
  • Strain it into a chilled glass over fresh ice.

Nutrition

Serving: 3.25ozCalories: 216kcalCarbohydrates: 13.1gSodium: 2mgPotassium: 2mgSugar: 13.1g
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

Ingredients with Recommendations

Considering that the classic ratio for a Black Russian is 2:1 (vodka to Kahlúa), you know you will get a seriously potent cocktail. If you want a drink that's not too thin, it's crucial to get a coffee liqueur with the right consistency:

Best Practices

Prepping this vodka cocktail is very simple, but we have some tips and tricks to help you make the Back Russian Drink perfect:

Stir for at least 20 seconds to create the required dilution from the melting ice and to chill the ingredients. Ideally, you get the vodka and the coffee liqueur straight out of the fridge.

Strain it over fresh ice into a rocks glass. Further, to minimize dilution after you have poured your Black Russian, best use large and clear ice cubes. They will melt slower than smaller sizes cubes with lots of particles and air pockets. 

Black Russian Variations

The most popular variation of the drink is the White Russian. In fact, nowadays, it is even more popular than the classic version. Adding fresh cream turns the Black Russian into a creamier and silkier cocktail. Invented in the 1960s, it was a movie from the 90s that brought the drink to fame.

Other famous twists on the classic recipe are, for instance:

History of the Black Russian

The Black Russian cocktail was invented in the late 1940s by the Belgian bartender Gustave Tops. Tops, who used to work at the bar in Hotel Metropole in Brussels, created the recipe to honor the American Ambassador, Mr. Perle Mesta, who was one of his regular guests.

The first element is vodka, the symbol of Russian (drinking) culture. The second one is Kahlúa, which is a famous coffee liqueur from Mexico and made of arabica coffee beans, sugar, and Rum. Thus, the name of the dark and boozy cocktail reflects the mix of both ingredients and the resulting color. 

Related Cocktails

If you like the Black Russian and want to mix more cocktails with coffee liqueur, I recommend trying these: 

Cynar (pronounced Chee-Nahr) is an iconic Italian amaro liqueur made from artichoke leaves and 12 other herbs and spices. It has a bittersweet taste with herbal and vegetal notes and works perfectly in a Spritz cocktail. 

It was launched in 1952 and is one of the lower-ABV Amaro liqueurs with an alcohol content of only 16.5%. Its distinctive flavor profile is one reason why Cynar is currently a popular and trending option for cocktails. 

Another reason why Cynar catches a lot of attention is the artichoke leaves that are a part of the cynar ricetta originale - the original recipe of the liqueur. These not only provide the vegetal taste but also make things you are sweeter than they are. But we will be coming to that later.

Quick Facts

How does Cynar taste?

Cynar is sweeter than most other Amari and has a bright, vegetal taste. It still has a distinct bitter note with herbal flavors, but the bitterness is far less pronounced than in other products, making Cynar much more approachable.

On the palate, the liqueur tastes herbal with vegetal notes from artichoke and sweet flavors like toffee and caramel. Towards the finish, Cynar gets a more earthy flavor with pronounced sweetness in the back.

Within the Amaro family, Cynar has a very peculiar place making it a borderline part of it. It's less bitter than Campari, less sugary than Aperol, and at the same time, less herbal than Fernet Branca or Averna

On top, it's a very light liqueur with only 16.5% of ABV (Alcohol By Volume).

Substitutes

The best way to substitute Cynar is with another amaro, the best alternatives are Averna and Zucca Rabarbaro. Other liqueurs that work well but are not great as Cynar substitutes are Amaro Montenegro (a little too sweet), Amaro Nonino (too boozy), and Meletti (a bit too fruity).

What Is Cynar Made From?

In sum, 13 different herbs and plants are used to make Cynar Amaro. And, at least I can name some ingredients that most likely are part of the recipe: Gentian, lemon, fennel, and angelica are plausible components.

What is Cynar Made from? Artichoke Cynara Scolymus

The full recipe of Cynar is closely guarded. That doesn't come as a surprise, considering this is the case for many other Italian liqueurs and Vermouths. 

The key element for sure is the artichoke. Not only is the vegetable used for production, but artichoke leaves are also on the label of the bottle. And then artichoke, in Latin Cynara Scolymus, also lends its name to the liqueur.

Additionally, the artichoke leaves are a great deal responsible for why Cynar is a popular digestif. When mixed with alcohol, the artichoke inhibits the receptors on your tongue that can detect sweetness.

When you drink or eat something after consuming the vegetable, the receptors are cleansed and then send sweetness "notifications" to your brain once again. 

This complex process is why anything you eat or drink after artichokes will taste delightfully sweet.

How to Drink Cynar?

Its extraordinary taste offers sensational options for using Cynar in recipes for cocktails. In Italy, Cynar is predominantly consumed neat on the rocks, but the possibilities to use it in Spritz or other cocktails are endless.

For instance, it is beautiful in a Cynar Spritz, replacing the common Aperol as a base: Cynar combined with Italian Prosecco and a splash of soda water. The result is a balanced and less sweet version of this beloved Spritz cocktail.

Cynar in Cocktails

The artichoke liqueur is also a great ingredient in cocktails and mixed drinks. Here are some excellent Cynar drink recipes to discover:

History of Cynar

Cynar is one of the younger Italian Amaros. Created in 1949 by Angelo Dalle Molle, Cynar was introduced to the public only in 1952. 

The initial marketing strategy for the Italian market was as unique as it was successful.

For their ads, they placed a famous Italian actor (first Ferruccio De Ceresa, who later changed his name to Ernesto Calindri) in the middle of a busy street. 

His task was to stop people passing by, then ask them to stop whatever they were doing and have a drink with him instead. The headline for this series of commercials was: "Cynar, against the attrition of modern life."

Everyone who has been to Italy knows the Italian love of la dolce vita, and a quick break from the busy life is always welcome. So, Cynar became pretty successful through this move. 

How to drink Cynar

However, outside of the country, it was less triumphant. The only region where the Amaro was remotely successful was South America. Luckily for the manufacturers, South America's general love for Italian bitter liqueurs also applied to Cynar.

Because the brand struggled to grow its customer base, it was sold to the Campari group in 1996. However, the recipe stayed the same, and after some years of stagnation, Cynar started to gain traction. 

Its low ABV combined with a less bitter and more approachable taste eventually made it a popular replacement for Campari in various cocktails.

FAQs

Final Verdict

Italian bitters or Amaros are among the essential ingredients for many cocktails. The most famous two are probably Campari and Aperol. Yet, there are many others worth talking about, and Cynar is one of them.

Cynar is a very interesting and unique type of Amaro (carciofo). It is almost impossible to compare with other Amari and offers a unique way to twist cocktails based on various Amaro liqueurs. It's a must-try due to its approachable yet distinct taste.

Related Articles

The famous French Quarter of New Orleans is home to many influential cocktails in the history of mixology. One of them is the Vieux Carré Cocktail. The refined recipe is full of flavor and contains cognac, whiskey, sweet vermouth, D.O.M. Bénédictine, and bitters.

Quick Facts Vieux Carre Cocktail

The Vieux Carré is a short drink and comparable to the Manhattan cocktail. However, the Vieux Carré is a lot more complex. 

Vieux Carré and bitters

Vieux Carré Cocktail Recipe

A short and boozy drink based on Cognac and Whiskey.
Prep Time: 3 minutes
Course: Drinks
Cuisine: American
Keyword: Cognac, rye
Servings: 1
Calories: 160kcal
Cost: $3.10

Ingredients

  • 0.75 oz Rye Whiskey
  • 0.75 oz Cognac
  • 0.75 oz Sweet Vermouth
  • 1 bsp D.O.M. Bénédictine
  • 2 dashes Peychaud's bitters
  • 2 dashes Angostura bitters
  • 1 orange peel - for garnish

Instructions

  • Add all ingredients into your mixing glass together with plenty of ice.
    0.75 oz Rye Whiskey, 0.75 oz Cognac, 0.75 oz Sweet Vermouth, 1 bsp D.O.M. Bénédictine, 2 dashes Peychaud's bitters, 2 dashes Angostura bitters
  • Stir for at least 20 to 25 seconds until all ingredients are well-chilled. This also will get you the right amount of dilution for the ice.
  • Strain over a large, clean ice cube into a rocks glass.
  • Garnish with an orange peel. - Twist and squeeze it gently while holding it over the glass to release essential oils.
    1 orange peel

Nutrition

Serving: 2.75ozCalories: 160kcalCarbohydrates: 6.11gSugar: 6.11g
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

Recommendations for the Ingredients

For a short drink, the Vieux Carré has a relatively long list of ingredients, making this one of the most sophisticated and ambitious of the vintage cocktail classics: 

Do you really need Bénédicte for the Vieux Carre?

For an authentic Vieux Carré Cocktail, you do need D.O.M. Benedictine. However, you can replace it with other herbal liqueurs if you don't want to get a bottle.

With only a bar spoon, the question of whether it really makes a difference and if you really have to buy a bottle of this liqueur is understandable and justified. Yet, it does make a difference:

D.O.M. Benedictine is a liqueur made with herbs, spices, citrus, and saffron from Normandy in France. The flavor is extremely complex, and intense. So as little as one bar spoon will alter the overall taste of your drink. 

However, if you want to replace it, Green Chartreuse, Drambuie, and even Jägermeister are among the common substitutes.

How does a Vieux Carré taste?

The Vieux Carré is intense, boozy, and bold. It's sweet, bitter, smooth, and very alcoholic. The drink's base is a blend of Rye and cognac, both of which are able to unfold their aroma. The spicy notes from the whiskey blend amazingly well with the smooth, fruity, floral notes of the premium brandy. 

The rich sweet vermouth combined with the herbaceous notes from D.O.M. Bénédictine brings a broad mix of herbs, spices, and botanicals. To round everything off, two different cocktail bitters add depth of flavor.

If you're familiar with both Manhattan and Sazerac, you can look at the Vieux Carré Cocktail as a mix of these two.

The Vieux Carre Cocktail

What does Vieux Carré mean?

Vieux Carré literally translates to Old Quarter. Vieux means old in French, and Carré quarter or square. It refers to a common nickname for the French Quarter in New Orleans: Old Quarter.

The French Quarter in New Orleans is probably the most famous part of the town. And as the name very much implies, it was under strong French influence. And the cocktail pays a well-deserved tribute to it.

History of the Vieux Carré

It was back in 1938 in the legendary Carousel Bar where Walter Bergeron mixed up the very first version of the Vieux Carré. Located inside Hotel Monteleone, the Carousel Bar was one of the most popular spots in the French Quarter at that time. 

Maybe you noticed that, despite the hotel being in the French Quarter, its name is Italian. This mix of heritages also reflects in the cocktail recipe:

The components of the Vieux Carre are French cognac, French brandy, American Rye whiskey, and sweet Italian vermouth. -A truly brilliant representation of the diverse American society in the early 20th century.

And its simple yet refined classiness is a principal reason why this cocktail is still on many cocktail menus all over the country.

New Orleans is home to many famous cocktails. And the Vieux Carré is certainly one of the more popular ones, but there is more:

Related Cocktail Recipes

Here are some more classic cocktail recipes you should try if you're a fan of the Vieux Carré Cocktail.

Drinks from New Orleans

Many different classic cocktail recipes originated in New Orleans. The most famous creations are 

More Cognac Cocktails

If you like the Vieux Carré and want to try more cocktails based on Cognac, how about:

For even more cognac drinks, head over to the overview of our favorite brandy cocktails.

Fresh, minty, sweet, and sour with just the right amount of herbal gin, that's the Southside in a nutshell. A drink that even convinced Al Capone, the infamous gangster of South Side Chicago.

Quick Facts Southside Cocktail

If you ask bartenders to describe a Southside cocktail, you will often hear: it is similar to a Gimlet with mint. However, that doesn't fully capture the essence of this cocktail recipe:

Southside cocktail

Southside Recipe

A fresh and sour Gin-based cocktail, closely related to a Mojito.
Prep Time: 3 minutes
Course: Drinks
Cuisine: American
Keyword: Gin, mint
Servings: 1
Calories: 213kcal
Cost: $3

Ingredients

  • 2 oz Dry Gin
  • 1 oz Lime juice
  • 0.5 oz Rich simple syrup
  • 6-7 Mint leaves

Instructions

  • Add mint leaves and lime juice into your cocktail shaker and muddle gently.
    6-7 Mint leaves, 1 oz Lime juice
  • Then put in your Gin and syrup as well as plenty of ice. Start shaking your cocktail until it is well chilled.
    2 oz Dry Gin, 1 oz Lime juice, 0.5 oz Rich simple syrup, 6-7 Mint leaves
  • Double strain into a cocktail glass to ensure you remove all bits of mint leaves.
  • Garnish with a fresh sprig of mint or mint leaf

Nutrition

Serving: 3.75ozCalories: 213kcalCarbohydrates: 12.5gProtein: 0.1gFat: 0.05gSodium: 4mgPotassium: 73mgSugar: 11.7gVitamin C: 10mgCalcium: 25mgIron: 0.05mg
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

What is in the Southside Cocktail?

The recipe for a flawless Southside Cocktail is simple. You only need Dry gin, freshly squeezed lime juice, rich simple syrup, and some fresh mint leaves. Yet, you should follow a few recommendations to make this cocktail to perfection.

Pro Tips & Tricks

There are things you should keep in mind to get a bar-quality Southside Cocktail at home.

Southside Cocktail

Variations of the Southside Recipe

You can tweak our Southside recipe using a combination of lemon and lime juice (0.5oz each) instead of lime juice only. Alternatively, you also can omit the lime and go with 1 oz of lemon juice instead.

Another popular variation is the Southside Fizz. Just add about 2oz of sparkling soda water to the recipe above, and you get an even more refreshing, bubbly summer drink.

History

There are many stories about the origin of the Southside cocktail. For one, the New York Club21 claims it for themselves, and quite some people agree with that. 

However, on digging a little deeper, it seems they were more likely responsible for making it popular than for actually creating this Gin Cocktail.

The Southside first appeared in written form in Hugo Enslinn's "Recipes for Mixed Drinks" in 1916. But it wasn't named Southside back then but "Southside Fizz,". Therefore, subsequently, it contained a splash of soda water.

Alternative stories

Now there are two alternative stories that are also quite famous. They both would explain how the drink got its name, as well. The first one tells us that it got invented at Southside Sportsmen's Club on Long Island.

That used to be a private club where folks from Manhattan met for hunting, fishing, and drinking. And a drink frequently served there was the Mint Julep, and allegedly this cocktail evolved into the Southside at one point.

The other story is related to the south side of Chicago. Some believe that it was one of Al Capone's favorite drinks when he controlled the south side of Chicago. 

Capone's rivals from the northern part of the city also had their drink, the northside. That was a mix of gin and ginger ale.

But because the Gin Al Capone imported was a bit rougher, it needed more sugar and citrus to hide the harsh notes of the spirit. And just like that, ostensibly, the South Side Cocktail, or Southside, was born.

Related Cocktails

Mint, sugar, spirit, and citrus make for an incredibly successful combination in the world of mixology. Here are some more cocktails that follow the same principle:

Many cocktails are special and might not be for everyone - for instance, the Bloody Mary. However, the Trinidad Sour recipe polarizes even more and takes "not for everyone" to the next level. Still, when executed right, it is an amazing cocktail you should try at least once.

Quick Facts Trinidad Sour Cocktail

The recipe calls for one and a half ounces of Angostura bitters as a base. - You can accuse this drink of many things but certainly not of a lack of flavor. If you've had bitters in a drink before, you might know that only a few drops can drastically deepen the flavor profiles of cocktails. 

Now imagine not using a few drops but 4.5 cl of it. The flavors are intense! Surprisingly enough, the result is actually very enjoyable.

Trinidad Sour cocktail

Recipe Trinidad Sour

An IBA listed cocktail based on Angostura bitters
Prep Time: 3 minutes
Total Time: 3 minutes
Course: Drinks
Cuisine: American
Keyword: angostura, whiskey
Servings: 1
Calories: 204kcal
Cost: 6$

Equipment

  • 1 Jigger
  • 1 Cocktail Shaker
  • 1 Hawthorne Strainer

Ingredients

  • 1.5 oz Angostura bitters
  • 0.5 oz Rye Whiskey
  • 1 oz Orgeat syrup
  • 0.75 oz Lemon juice
  • 1 egg white

Instructions

  • Add Angostura bitters, Whiskey, orgeat, and fresh lemon juice into your cocktail shaker. If you're using egg white, do your dry shake first. If you don't, add ice and shake the cocktail.
    1.5 oz Angostura bitters, 1 oz Orgeat syrup, 0.75 oz Lemon juice, 1 egg white, 0.5 oz Rye Whiskey
  • Then double-strain the Trinidad Sour into a chilled glass.
  • You can garnish the cocktail with a twisted lemon peel.

Nutrition

Serving: 4.75ozCalories: 204kcalCarbohydrates: 16gProtein: 3.7gFat: 0.05gSodium: 54.75mgPotassium: 76.75mgSugar: 16gVitamin C: 9.25mgCalcium: 5.5mgIron: 0.13mg
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

More About the Ingredients of the Trinidad Sour

The key ingredient should be evident by now: Angostura bitters - unique in taste and irreplaceable in the Trinidad Sour recipe. All other elements are more about calming the bitters down. Every element is necessary for balancing that cocktail:

Egg white - Variation of the Trinidad Sour

There are not many recommendable variations on this cocktail recipe. Adding an egg white to create a silky texture and an additional foam on top of the drink is widely accepted, though.

If you decide to shake up your Trinidad Sour with an egg white, make sure to dry shake your drink first. By doing that, the egg white will emulsify much quicker and better, creating a thicker foam for your drink.

If you've never done a dry shake before, here's what you should do: 

That's it already. And a perfect egg white foam will be your reward.

Trinidad Sour Angostura bitters

The History of the Trinidad Sour

The Trinidad Sour is a modern creation that dates back to 2009. Giuseppe Gonzales, former bartender at New York's famous Clover Club Bar (named after the Clover Club Cocktail), created this flavor bomb of a cocktail. 

Yet, his idea wasn't entirely new at this time. In fact, the recipe is inspired by another cocktail - The Trinidad Especial:

The inventor of the Trinidad Especial is Valentino Bolognese. He is a renowned Italian bartender from Palmoli, a small town in the Abruzzo region in central Italy. 

In 2008, Valentino Bolognese decided to participate in the Angostura European Cocktail Challenge. His two contributions were the aforementioned Trinidad Especial and RI.PA. Deuxième.

The recipe of the Trinidad Especial also relies heavily on Angostura but is balanced by lime juice, orgeat syrup, and a touch of Peruvian Pisco. 

Perhaps you already guessed it - Bolognese won the competition. That not only made him and his Trinidad Especial cocktail famous, but it also laid the ground for the Trinidad Sour.

One year later, Gonzales has taken the winning cocktail recipe and transformed it into a Sour Cocktail based on Angostura. 

He increased the amount of Angostura and kept the orgeat to sweeten the drink but replaced pisco and lime juice with a more complex mix of Rye Whiskey and lemon juice.

Related Recipes

If you like trying new things and extraordinary drinking experiences like this Trinidad Sour, we recommend giving these recipes a shot:

For quite a long time, Canchánchara was practically unknown outside of Cuba. And, actually, it wasn't much different on the island itself. 

Even today, many Cubans don't know what Canchánchara is. But as soon as you arrive in Trinidad, in the South of Cuba, Canchánchara suddenly is everywhere. And this is also the best place to learn more about this indigenous cocktail.

Despite some people claiming otherwise, Canchánchara is not the oldest Cuban cocktail. The original Mojito recipe is a lot older. But, what's more, it is more or less the forerunner of the Daiquiri cocktail. 

It is composed of Aguardiente mixed with honey, and lime juice, which is the key ingredient for making a traditional Canchánchara.

Read on and find out more about Canchánchara and how you drink it.

The history of Canchánchara

Canchánchara is said to be the one original, genuine Cuban cocktail as other cocktails like the Mojito, the Cuba Libre and Daiquiri were invented by foreigners. 

Unlike those, Canchánchara is an invention of the Cuban people attributed to the guerilla fighters called Mambises.

The Mambises fought in the Ten Years' war from 1868 to 1878 and later also in the war of independence from 1895 to 1898. 

According to cocktail historians, the time of the invention of the Canchánchara was most likely during said Ten Years' war. In the latter, it was already widely available and quite well-known.

The roots of the Canchánchara are tied tightly to the city of Trinidad. A town in a region that has a long history with slavery and was struggling to become independent. 

The drink was consumed as a form of medicinal tonic by slaves working in the fields. And already back then, it got served in traditional cups called jícaras.

As the Canchánchara was mainly popular in the South, it wasn't as famous as the Daiquiri and the Mojito. Those two cocktails were making rounds in Havana, which was a haven for Americans during the times of prohibition.

Canchánchara, in contrast, was not served in Havana. In fact, even today, many Cubans that grew up in Cuba's capital city never heard of the cocktail from Southern Cuba.

The traditional base of Canchánchara is Aguardiente. It was locally produced and widely available at the time the drink was invented. 

Yet, these days, it gets harder and harder to buy authentic Cuban Aguardiente as production volumes are low, and only a few people know what it is. Due to this limited availability, many bars in Cuba started using silver (Plata) Rum instead.

Ingredients of a great Canchánchara

The recipe is simple and reduced: Aguardiente, honey, and juice from limón criollo, also known as Mexican lime or key lime. As Aguardiente is often hard to get, you can also use clear Cuban Rum instead. 

The taste is quite similar, and the result will be comparable to the traditional recipe.

Also, the formulas to make Canchánchara can vary. Even in Trinidad, the hometown of Canchánchara, you can get very sugary and thick mixes or watery drinks with only light sweetening.

The main reason for this is the honey used in the cocktail. While some use it only pure, which does not blend easily with the other ingredients, others add water to help with this. 

The best compromise, therefore, is honey syrup. It sweetens the cocktail without making it too sticky. -And it is quick and easy to make at home and gets you a sensational Canchánchara.

Aguardiente de Cuba

What is Aguardiente?

Regular Aguardiente is a generic Spanish term for alcoholic beverages between 30% and 60% ABV. Cuban Aguardiente, in turn, is a spirit made of sugar cane, similar to Rum.

The main difference between those two is that Cuban Aguardiente is made only of sugar cane juice. Rum, for instance, is based on juice and molasses.

As a result, Cuban Aguardiente is a light and refreshing spirit with a subtle citrus flavor. That's why, if you can't get Cuban Aguardiente to make your Canchánchara, your best bet is unaged Silver Rum or another Aguardiente from Latin America.

Jícaras - the traditional clay mugs

Typically, Cancháncharas come in small clay vessels called jícaras. But as traditional as the handmade clay mugs of today look, the original jars were very different. 

Cuban slaves used to drink their Canchánchara from vessels made of the fruits from the Calabash trees. Only later did these vessels evolve into the clay mugs you can see everywhere in Trinidad. 

However, the name for these vessels has always been jícaras, regardless of the materials used. 

If you're visiting Trinidad, there are plenty of options to buy jícaras. But one man is particularly famous for making them, and everyone in Trinidad knows him as Chichi.

Chichi is a true master potter and dedicated his life to creating beautiful clay products. And, of course, many of these are hand-crafted jícaras. 

If you decide to buy some mugs from him, he's usually quite happy to share a Canchánchara with you. He can mix them in a heartbeat as if he never did anything else.

Making a Canchánchara

A few years back, friends and I attended a more or less private Canchánchara Master course. Frankly, it didn't seem like much of a big deal, and not worth the money at first. 

We sat in a circle while the instructor mixed a drink for each of us and meanwhile explained what he was doing. After that, we should try it ourselves. That was it. Pretty unspectacular.

Only then did I realize: there were no measuring tools. And this is what makes mixing this drink the traditional way so hard to master. Because if you want to do a true Canchánchara, measurement tools are not allowed. 

We had to use raw honey, and when the first of us misjudged the measurements and used far too much Aguardiente, the shortage of just that supply didn't make it any easier for the rest.

To make a short story shorter, nothing we made tasted even remotely like a decent Canchánchara. I needed quite some practice afterward. So, to save you time and trouble, use a jigger and stick to the measurements in the recipe.

When done right, the Canchánchara is a beautiful cocktail. And when served in traditional clay mugs, it transports you right into the Caribbean past.

As mentioned before, to make the drink at home or in a bar, I recommend using honey syrup (honey mix) to help to blend with other ingredients. 

Usually, a 1:1 ratio is sufficient, but Cuban recipes tend to go with a little more honey. And a mix of 2 parts honey to 1 part water will already change the taste of your Canchánchara dramatically. 

If that's still not sweet enough for you, you can increase it to 3:1.

Canchanchara in jicara clay mugs

Canchánchara

Traditional Cuban Cocktail made with Aguardiente, lime juice, and honey
Prep Time: 3 minutes
Course: Drinks
Cuisine: cuban
Keyword: honey syrup
Servings: 1
Calories: 166kcal
Cost: $1.60

Ingredients

  • 1.5 oz Aguardiente - (Alternatively use silver Rum)
  • 0.75 oz Honey syrup - (use 2:1 ratio)
  • 0.5 oz Freshly squeezed lime juice

Instructions

  • Add all ingredients into a cocktail shaker and fill it up with ice and shake of 15 seconds.
    1.5 oz Aguardiente, 0.75 oz Honey syrup, 0.5 oz Freshly squeezed lime juice
  • Strain the drink into clay mugs filled with ice. Alternatively, you can also use a chilled cocktail glass.
  • Garnish with a wedge of lime or lime wheel.

Nutrition

Serving: 3ozCalories: 166kcalCarbohydrates: 18.5gProtein: 0.1gSodium: 1mgPotassium: 58.5mgSugar: 17.6gVitamin C: 5mgCalcium: 2mgIron: 0.01mg
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!
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