Problematizing the Mojito

Muddling it up

For all of its gifts, the mojito is a frustrating drink. Short of adjusting the citrus source (substituting, say, kumquats for limes) or using mint-infused simple syrup rather than simply just muddling sugar and mint, there is not much you can really do with this drink. Granted, somewhere a househusband is muddling strawberries or blueberries with the mint much to the delight of his neighbors and fellow daddy-friends who have brought the kids over for a playdate-bbq-boozefest. I am not turning up my nose at such endeavors. If and when I start growing strawberries worthy of serious consumption, I will make all manner of simple drinks infused with that fruit.

But I want to mess with the mojito now, and I don't want to just throw some extra fruit into the mix. I have nothing from the garden to spice it up. So I decided to add a dash of bitters. Having purchased a small batch (one ounce) of Bittercube Jamaican #1 bitters (flavor profile: allspice, ginger, black pepper), I added a dash at the mixing stage and let it settle through the drink.

This addition subtly enhances the mojito.  The effect comes through mostly through the nose, which is immediately assaulted by the allspice and pepper. But then the bitters recede in favor of the rum and its friends. One adjustment I will try: add the bitters and don't stir. It curls through the mojito like cigar smoke and takes its time settling, making it an attractive addition right before stirring.

In truth, this is a corruption of the true mojito. My standard recipe is fairly traditional: muddle the juice of half a lime, a small pour of mint-infused syrup, and fresh peppermint; add rum (circa 2 oz.) and stir; add ice, splash that soda, stir again. Then go to flavor country.

The bitters doesn't tie the drink together, or balance the drink. Nor am I sure that it successfully adds complexity. In short, proper criticism will take more engagement.