Pirates, lost centuries, two continents and a famous writer - the stuff of which legends are made...
Now, you may think that being a drinks writer is an easy life - a day that's nicely chilled and involves a drink here, a not so rushed tasting there and a few words typed while on the tube, on the way home.
Not only is the above description a total myth (I use the bus, not the tube), but we writers have our fair share of work-life balancing to juggle and also suffer from 'feature fear' - a common ailment which can freeze the writing hand of any 'journo'.
You see, we aim to please; we research, while perhaps drinking a little in the name of research; we write - yep, sounds simple, but oh no. In among that, we are shackled by the fear of suburbia's Mr Smith, dropping a bombshell by writing and saying: "Actually, drink 'x' wasn't discovered in 1586 - it was 1587." Equally as nightmare-inducing: "The magic ingredient is 'wheat', not 'barley'." One writer verses 57 million experts.
Imagine the joy, then, of receiving an assignment to write about mojito - a drink whose history is so muddled that it's great - safe ground here. Seems like there are so many versions of its history that no one can claim to hold the undisputed truth. I mean, to be honest with you, some of the facts aren't even close.
Take the name - is it inspired by either the Spanish/Cuban meaning of 'mojo' (a sauce) or the African for 'little spell', with most sensible money being on the latter.
Was it invented in Cuba the 1800s or inspired by British pirates of the 1500s? Three hundred years apart - not even close! Mind you, truth be known: both claimants are correct.
You see, back in the 1580s, good old Queen Elizabeth (the first of England, that is) was busy actively encouraging pirates and corsairs to plunder Spanish cities in the New World, to make sure that good-old Blighty got its fair share of the riches which had been discovered.
How to say:
mojito = mo-hee-toe
About Key limes
A citrus fruit, originally from Asia, small and round, with a unique bitter tartness which gives it a special taste. These fruits grow well only in limited zones across the world. It just so happens that The Florida Keys (an archipelago of about 1,700 islands), in southeast USA, are one of those special places.
Bacardi® superior
Originated in 1862, Bacardi® superior rum is the original, mixable, light-bodied rum, aged one - two years, in carefully selected oak barrels. After aging, the rums are blended and passed through a second charcoal filtration, to achieve maximum clarity and the characteristic Bacardi® smoothness.
These chaps were named the Queen's Pirates - and one such was Francis Drake. Yes, we have all heard of him, but a common misconception is that it was he who invented the predecessor to the mojito, rather than his namesake Richard Drake, a fellow 'Queen's Pirate'.
Richard concocted a drink which used hard liquor (an unrefined kind of rum) and mixed it with some sugar, lime and mint - a drink which put fire in the belly and was aptly named El Draque (The Dragon), after his boss - Francis Drake. I hope that you are keeping up with the Drakes and the Draques!
Queenie even granted Richard a licence to produce the liquor, as a reward for his 'pirating' services. It was El Draque who left a mark on the people of Havana, during some of Drake's skirmishes on the island of Cuba.
Fast-forward a few hundred years; back in Cuba, the sophistication of rum had improved considerably - much owing to the foundation of the Bacardi Company by one Don Facundo Bacardí Massó. Substituting the hard liquor for Bacardi® rum, the mojito was born. Mind you, for some reason, it took until 1940 for a chap called Frederick Villoch to proclaim that the mojito was born.
Wow, what a story - and then kinda disturbing that most people always say that the mojito is most famous for being writer Ernest Hemmingway's favourite drink. Well, frankly, I think that that part of the drink's history is actually the dullest - sorry Ernest.
Oh, and the 'muddle' - that's the name given to mixing the ingredients together, before adding soda.
An interesting tale - just how true it is, I'll leave for you to decide - but it's my version and I'm sticking to it.
By the way - I look forward to hearing from you Mr Smith, from suburbia - give it your best shot!
