Mojito

On a sweltering summer evening, nothing hits quite like this minty mojito cocktail recipe. Don’t over-muddle your mint, which can cause bitterness.

Pineapple adds sweetness and a tropical twist to this classic mojito. Make sure to choose a ripe one: It should be very fragrant, with no soft spots or bruises. Or use fresh precut pineapple.

Our
Mojito cocktail video gives you step-by-step instructions for mixing this classic drink

Skip the muddling and grab the blender to make this frozen riff on a mojito.

For this adaptation of a classic Cuban cocktail, you don't need a muddler. Tear the mint, then stir with lime juice, sugar, white rum, and soda water.

In our cold-weather version of the mojito we sub out white rum for rich, brooding blackstrap and mint for muddled rosemary.

Pineapple cups make a fun presentation for this frosty summer cocktail, but if you're short on time, just use regular cocktail glasses instead.

If you want a real taste of Cuba, you have to start with a mojito. Rum, lime juice, mint…you've got the drink of Hemingway in your hands. For a delicious spin on the classic, try this version. Sweet, tart, and bursting with fruity flavor, blackberries are an outstanding addition.

The Mojito was born at the La Bodeguita del Medio in Havana, Cuba, in the 1940s. Legend has it that Ernest Hemingway wrote “My Mojito in La Bodeguita,” which still can be read today, hanging on the wall. Others claim that this was a forgery, a marketing ploy of the restaurant owners to promote their mojito cocktail and bring in tourists after communism took over. Over the last decade, the Mojito has quietly become one of the most recognized drinks in the world. Today, people carelessly consume it regardless of the season or weather. But somewhere along the way, the mojito has been reconfigured as a short, stout, bittersweet rum hybrid of muddled lime wedges and pulverized mint. Then a friend of ours who went to film school in Cuba came back and pointed out that mojitos were supposed to be tall, light, and fizzy, clean and effervescent. We brought it back to its true form and labeled it the Havana-Style Mojito. Although it never made it onto our menu, it is the closest you can get to a true mojito without the luxury of Havana Club Cuban rum. It is a fantastic cocktail—but please don’t order it while there is snow on the ground.

The fading sun, an ocean breeze, a pitcher of mojitos waiting in the fridge. Open the door, fill the ice bucket, and let the party begin. Invented in Cuba and beloved by many, the rum-based mojito is an inherently festive drink. Friend and colleague cocktail specialist David Alan has created this refreshing watermelon mojito and thoughtfully devised a shortcut to reduce the workload for even the most laid-back party throwers. Preparing the base drink ahead makes it easy to crank out drinks quickly. Adding the club soda at the last minute ensures that all drinks retain the proper level of fizz. So before you set out for the beach, muddle the mint leaves, lime juice, sweetener, and rum in a large pitcher. Stow it in the refrigerator along with several bottles of soda water and a bowl of peeled, seeded, and chunk-up watermelon. Leave a dozen or so eight-ounce Collins glasses on the kitchen counter and when you arrive home with your friends—dazzled and thirsty from a day in the sun—chilly, refreshing mojitos are just moments away.

You can also make these in a pitcher and serve them as the evening’s party drink. They have the perfect balance of tart and sweet. Great in the summer.

The minty mojito is taken to a sparkling new level with this variation on a tropical themed drink. It is remarkably refreshing—an excellent opening act for an evening of fun and fine dining.

(Rum, Lime, Mint and Basil Cocktail)Garnishes: fresh mint and basil sprigs and lime slices