What’s the Secret to the Perfect Daiquiri?

Here is the comprehensive, unparalleled, and indisputably correct guide to the perfect Daiquiri. Or, rather, five perfect Daiquiris - if we do say so ourselves. See, Daiquiris are like people - striving for balance, different in wonderful ways, and uniquely perfect once they’re surrounded by the right support. 

Using five vastly different but incredible rums, these recipes are all perfect riffs on one of the most popular cocktails to ever exist. They are simple enough to make with minimal equipment at home, but delicious enough to bring complexity and fun to your cocktail hour for anyone you’d like to impress - even if you’re trying to impress yourself. Although innumerable variations exist, we believe that there’s a Daiquiri out there for everyone. After all, every palate is unique and everyone enjoys different flavours and balance. So, here are five great starting points on your journey to find a Daiquiri recipe as individually perfect as you.

The Perfect Classic Daiquiri 

Eminente Ambar Claro

Size: 700ml
ABV: 40%
Find here: £30.95

Tradition dictates that the classic Daiquiri is an exercise in the art of balance and quality ingredients. In all recipes on this list, it is essential to use fresh lime juice for the best balance, quality, and flavour. Avoid store-bought bottles of pasteurised lime juice, as it will lack the bright, tart taste of freshly squeezed limes. But you wouldn’t be reading this if you wanted boring bottled cocktails, would you? 

In classic Daiquiris, the go-to for most bartenders is a light rum - often called white rum or unaged rum, though these are both misnomers but that’s a whole different topic which can be discussed among the most nerdy of spirits enthusiasts another time. For the perfect classic Daiquiri, the best choice for rum is Eminente Ambar Claro. This rum is light enough to delight the traditionalists and packs bold flavours like bottled Cuban sunshine. The rich nuttiness and vanilla notes of this will balance beautifully for the perfect classic 2:1:1 Daiquiri. 

Ingredients
50ml Eminente Ambar Claro
25ml freshly squeezed lime juice
25ml simple syrup (1:1 sugar to water)

Method
Combine all ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice and shake. Fine strain into a coupe or Nick & Nora glass.

The Perfect Historical Daiquiri

La Progresiva

Size: 700ml
ABV: 41%
Find here: £39.99

Tourists visiting Cuba during the early 20th century helped to popularise the drink around the world. The exact origins are somewhat disputed but any cocktail this popular will inevitably be the subject of endless hours of research from bartenders, historians, and anthropologists. Through this research we know there is a long history and tradition of craftsmanship around blending of rums to create the perfect expression of the Cuban island. For the perfect historical Daiquiri, the best rum to use is La Progresiva. Despite being one of the newest expressions to come out of the Cuban market, it’s a beautiful blend of rums with a balance that is entirely and perfectly Cuban. This caramel-forward and buttery rum is arguably a representation of how rum would have tasted back when the Daiquiri was a burgeoning boom.

Ingredients
50 ml La Progresiva
30 ml freshly squeezed lime juice
20 ml simple syrup (1:1 sugar to water)

Method
Combine all ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice and shake. Fine strain into a coupe or Nick & Nora glass.

The Perfect Dangerous Daiquiri

Wray & Nephew Overproof Rum

Size: 700ml
ABV: 63%
Find here: £29

Originating back in 2005 in a London party bar, this non-stop train to trouble town has become a beloved modern classic among bartenders. Also known as the Nuclear Daiquiri, it combines two of bartenders’ favourite ingredients: high-proof alcohol and a disregard for consequences. Plus, it is absolutely delicious - a magnificent balance of strong, bitter, sweet, and sour. The best rum choice for the perfect dangerous Daiquiri is Wray & Nephew. This Jamaican rum, famous for powerful flavour and intense strength, works in harmony with the other ingredients leaving you to dance dangerously with the devil.

Ingredients
30ml Wray & Nephew Overproof Jamaican Rum
30ml freshly squeezed lime juice
25ml Green Chartreuse
15ml falernum

Method
Combine all ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice and shake. Fine strain into a coupe or Nick & Nora glass.

The Perfect Funky Daiquiri

Clement Canne Bleue Agricole Blanc

Size: 700ml
ABV: 50%
Find here: £39.75

Funk isn’t for everyone and certainly not for the faint of flavour. Funky rhum comes with nutty, earthy, and/or fermented smell and tastes so unique that it has its own hard-to-define word that’s even harder to spell: haut-gout. The haut-gout flavour is commonly present in rhum from Martinique - called Agricole rhum. Agricole rhum is a spectacular and criminally underappreciated category. While many rums make Daiquiris smooth, sweet or easy-going, Agricole rhum brings a grassy, regional-driven sugarcane power pop. For the perfect funky Daiquiri, the best choice is Clement Canne Bleue Agricole. It tastes like pears and apples have somehow sprung from the ground in the middle of the island’s sugarcane fields.

Ingredients
40ml Clement Canne Bleue Agricole
30ml freshly squeezed lime juice
30ml pure cane sugar syrup

Method
Combine all ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice and shake. Fine strain into a coupe or Nick & Nora glass.

The Perfect Modern Daiquiri

Kromanti Rum

Size: 500ml
ABV: 40%
Find here: £34.39

A modern variation on the Daiquiri needs to celebrate the timeless appeal of this iconic cocktail while embracing the innovation and quality of modern rum. It also needs to be really yummy or it’ll never get inducted into the perfect Daiquiri hall of fame. Which is why the best choice for the perfect modern Daiquiri is Kromanti Rum. This family-owned rum is botanically infused with tamarind for a spice and fruit profile unlike anything else on the market. Their commitment to quality is unparalleled and that means the rum come through with incredible taste in cocktails. They are also deeply connected to their communities both in the UK and the island nation of Dominica, which would make it worth supporting the brand even if the rum wasn’t so wildly easy to drink.

Ingredients
50ml Kromanti Tamarind Rum
30ml fresh squeezed lime juice
20ml simple syrup

Method
Combine all ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice and shake. Fine strain into a coupe or Nick & Nora glass.

Feel free to try the perfect Daiquiri - or five of them - and alter the recipes to make the perfect Daiquiri for you - cocktails are all about experimentation and personalisation. If you’re still thirsty for more spirits fun, you can find some Stunning Margaritas or dive into some Rogue Whiskies.

By Zach Sapato

7 Daiquiri Twists to Try Right Now

Rum, lime, and sugar – the holy trinity that creates one of the world’s favourite cocktails, the Daiquiri. So simple, right? Well, you might be surprised at how easy it is to get wrong. Or maybe not, if you’ve been subject to a sickly-sweet slush puppy version before.

The Daiquiri may well have been inspired by the Cuban Canchanchara cocktail, with its rum, lime, and honey ingredients, but it is American mining engineer Jennings Cox, based in Cuba at the time, who invented it at the turn of the 20th century.

With the U.S. exploiting Cuba’s abundance of iron at the time, many Americans spent time in the nearby town of Daiquiri. One such man was Jennings, who saw the Cubans mixing rum and coffee and started experimenting with his own inventory, eventually discovering the deliciousness of rum, lime, and sugar.

And once he discovered it, so did the U.S Navy and as soon as it landed on American shores and spread to Washington D.C and New York, it became a mainstay of American bars as well as the favourite cocktail for Ernest Hemingway and John F. Kennedy.

So, if you’ve never taken to it before then we’ll help you master the original, and if it’s still not clicking with you then don’t worry because we’ve got a selection of tasty twists for you to try!

The Original Daiquiri

The Daiquiri has somewhat lost its way a little, developing a reputation for overly sweet slush with sickly fruits masking any rum in the mix. If this is your idea of the cocktail, then this is the recipe to try first. Getting back to purity and simplicity, it’s simply fresh lime juice, a little syrup, and good quality rum at the centre of it all. The key thing is getting those ratios right for your personal taste, so easy on the sugar.

Ingredients
60ml rum (Light or White, like Havana Club 3-year-old rum)
20ml lime juice
20ml sugar syrup
Lime twist (garnish)

 Method
Pour all the ingredients into a shaker with ice cubes. Shake well but do not blend! Simply strain into a chilled cocktail glass and add the garnish – voila!

The Modern Daiquiri

Traditional recipes call for a single rum, usually white, but what you’ll often find in many top bars now is a blend of two or three. The different rums carry different bodies and flavours, so the white rum injects vibrance and tang, whilst the darker blends and somebody and richness. Okay, so this isn’t the craziest twist but if you’ve always enjoyed Daiquiris at swanky bars but nowhere else, then this might be why!

Ingredients
30ml white rum (e.g., Havana Club 3YO)
30ml Jamaican or demerara rum (e.g., Appleton 12YO)
20ml lime juice
20ml sugar syrup
Lime twist (garnish)

Method
The same as the original, simply shake everything except the lime with ice and strain into a pre-chilled cocktail glass!

Strawberry Daiquiri

Probably the most famous strawberry cocktail, there’s a reason that you might be more likely to find this than the original. If you use ripe, fresh strawberries then you create a more fruity and less tangy twist on the original that’s perfect for summertime. See how sweet your berries are before adding the syrup!

Ingredients
60ml rum (light ideally, e.g., Havana Club 3YO)
50g strawberries
20ml lime juice
15ml syrup
Strawberry or lime (optional garnish)

Method
Setting up the blender is the hardest thing about this cocktail. Simply add everything in with ice and double strain over the glass. Use crushed ice to make your blender’s job that bit easier. Lime or strawberry for garnish. Delish.

Coconut Daiquiri

If you’ve never tried this, then you’re in for a tropical treat. The rich and creamy coconut creates a silky mouthfeel and moreish texture, pairing deliciously with the classic Daiquiri elements. A little intensity, a little tang, a little sweetness, and a lot to love.

Ingredients
60ml white rum
30ml fresh lime juice
45ml coconut cream
15ml simple syrup

Method
Shake all your ingredients vigorously with ice for no less than 30 seconds and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Lime or coconut flakes would make the perfect garnish, and of course serving in a coconut shell would be the dream.

The Hemingway Daiquiri

The American novelist loved ordering Daiquiri during his Havana hotel stay in the 30s, but he did have feedback for the El Floridita bartender – ‘double the rum and lose the sugar’. Suffice to say, his version hasn’t taken off at all, but the evolved version has. Maraschino liqueur and grapefruit provide some of the lost sweetness as well as some fruity vibrance. 

 Ingredients
60ml white rum
20ml maraschino liqueur
20ml grapefruit juice
30ml lime juice
Lime or grapefruit (garnish)

Method
Yet again, add all ingredients to a cocktail shaker with some ice and shake well. Strain into a glass of crushed ice and voila, the Hemingway.

Cucumber and Basil Daiquiri

Step into the garden of Daiquiri delights with this fresh and herbaceous twist. The Basil Cucumber Daiquiri combines the crispness of cucumber with the aromatic charm of basil, resulting in a cocktail that's unparalleled in its refreshment and natural fragrance.

 Ingredients
60ml white rum
30ml fresh lime juice
60ml cucumber juice
10ml basil-infused simple syrup
Basil leaves and cucumber slice for garnish

Method
A regular syrup is a 1:1 ratio of water to sugar, so all you need to do is add a few basil leaves into the mix whilst it’s cooking to infuse that herby flavour. Remove them at the end! Once you’ve peeled the cucumber, blend everything with ice and strain (possibly double strain) over a chilled glass. Reinvigorating and unbelievably refreshing.

Spicy Daiquiri

This fiery and invigorating twist isn’t for everyone, but if you like it then you’ll love it. The spicy kick of jalapeño and the zesty zing of ginger creates a super lively cocktail that you certainly will not forget. The warmth and gentle spices in the rum will be brought to the fore, and the refreshing lime juice tames the whole mix down.

Ingredients
60ml white rum
30ml fresh lime juice
10ml ginger syrup
2-3 slices of jalapeño (adjust to your spice preference)
Jalapeño slice (garnish)

Method
Shake everything for a good old while to infuse the spices, and strain into a chilled glass – super simple to make, and exciting to taste. You could use Sriracha sauce instead for a slightly different spice profile – but go easy!

If you’ve got the taste for cocktail experimentations then check out our delicious Piña Colada twists here, from the Chocolada to the Caramelized Banana Colada!