Best Mixed Drinks and Cocktail Ideas: Barmalade® Mojito Edition

The History of The Mojito Cocktail

Mojitos are truly classic cocktails. This drink likely comes from Cuba. Unsurprisingly, mojitos are made using ingredients specific to Cuba, including rum, sugar, lime, and mint. The mixture is sometimes topped off with a little bit of club soda to create a bubbly, thirst-quenching effect. As with so many cocktails, the origins of the mojito have been lost to history. However, there are many theories about where this delicious drink comes from. One of the most credible involves sailors looking for gold off the coast of Cuba. While they didn’t strike it rich on their expedition, they may have invented the mojito! Here’s Some Mojito Trivia

• Mojitos most likely come from Cuba.
• Ernest Hemmingway really liked mojitos.
• Mojitos have been around for at least 450 years!
• The original mojito was likely used for medicinal purposes.
• The James Bond films contributed to the popularity of this drink.
• Slapping your mint leaves before adding them to a shaker helps your mojito taste fresher!

The Cuban Origin Story of the Mojito It is likely that the mojito was originally discovered by Sir Francis Drake around 500 years ago. In the 1500s, Sir Francis Drake sailed to Cuba, searching for gold. During the voyage, many sailors began suffering from the effects of scurvy. The South American locals in the region were known to have remedies for a range of diseases. So, Sir Francis Drake sent a small group of men ashore to look for help. The exploration party came back with some unique ingredients sourced from the islands and recommended by the indigenous people. They created a delicious and effective tonic using mint leaves, Aguardiente de Cana, and the juices from limes and sugar cane. Sure enough, it helped the sailors effectively treat scurvy. The cocktail was allegedly named Al Draque, in honor of Sir Francis Drake. So, while the mission to find gold didn’t go as planned, at least something marvelous came out of the trip! Other Potential Mojito Origins Another source claims that enslaved Africans were the ones who popularized the mojito. Apparently, they had many delicious variations of this beverage. Still, other sources claim that mojito comes from the Spanish word “Mojadito” (which means “a little wet”) and the Cuban lime-based seasoning known as mojo. Combining these words gives you a hybrid phrase that sounds a lot like “mojito”! Popularization of the Mojito by Bicardi No matter how this drink came to be or got its name, we can be confident that it became popular because of Bacardi. In the mid-1800s, the Bacardi company began spreading the popularity of the mojito to help with their marketing efforts. Ernest Hemingway personally enjoyed the drink and gave it his stamp of approval. Bacardi’s advertising campaigns and the popularity of the literary drink circles helped it become famous around the world. Over the next 50 years, Bacardi continued popularizing Mojitos. In popular culture, this is considered a high-baller drink. James Bond can be seen drinking one on the beach in the 2002 movie Die Another Day.