Sharkbait’s Cocktail of the Week: Si, El Presidente

Happy Friday drinkers. Hopefully the majority of you are working from home watching the tournament, debating on daydrinking options. I feel an obligation to provide some inspiration in this area. This week, we’re breaking out the rum and making El Presidente. This recipe is a request from a friend who I’m trying to get to join our little corner of the internet. Signup link is at the bottom B.

This Cuban cocktail was invented in 1915, and gained renown during prohibition. The drink quickly became a favorite of the Cuban elite as well. Let’s get mixing shall we?

1^1/2 oz Rich white rum

1^1/2 oz Vermouth blanco

1 Barspoon orange Curacao or Grand Marnier

1/2 Barspoon real grenadine

Stir ingredients well with cracked ice and strain into a chilled glass. Twist a swatch of thinly cut orange peel over the top and drop in or discard. Garnish, if desired, with a cherry.

For rum I used Bacardi superior light rum, Martini & Rossi Vermouth Bianco, and subbed Cointreau for the curacao.

This one is stronger than I thought it would be. Rum heavy in the front, but the vermouth and grenadine help smooth it out, with a sweet finish.  Speaking of the vermouth, this was the first time I’ve used, or had this style. It has a subtle sweetness to it, that isn’t overpowering like a regular sweet vermouth is. I’ll definitely be finding more uses for it in the coming weeks.

Since this is a foreign prohibition era cocktail, I decided to see if there was a recipe Charles Baker came across in his book “The Gentleman’s Companion”. Sure enough, The Habana Presidente is as follows:

1 pony Bacardi Gold Seal

1 pony dry French vermouth

1 tsp grenadine

1 tsp curacao

Just put 1 pony each of Bacardi Gold Seal, and dry French vermouth, into a bar glass with cracked ice. Donate 1 tsp grenadine and the same of curacao. Stir and serve in a Manhattan glass with a scarlet cherry for garnish. Finally twist a curl of yellow orange peel over the top so that the oil strikes the surface of the drink then drop the peel in.

That man was a hell of a wordsmith. The version he describes is essentially the same. The main difference is the gold rum which is aged, rather than the clear white rum. The gold rum mellows out the rum flavor to a hint, and doubling the amount of grenadine intensifies the sweet finish. I can definitely see this being popular in the tropics. Personally, it’s a touch too sweet for my liking, but if one was served to me, I wouldn’t send it back.