Hotel Nacional Special
COCKTAIL INGREDIENTS:
- 45 ml Blended Lightly Aged Rum
- 15 ml Apricot Liqueur
- 15 ml Rich Demerara Syrup
- 22,5 ml Fresh Lime Juice
- 3-4 Pineapple Cubes (2,5 cm)
GARNISH:
- Pineapple Spear
INSTRUCTIONS:
• Add the pineapple pieces, lime juice and syrup to the cocktail shaker.
• Muddle the fruit.
• Add rum, apricot liqueur and ice to the shaker.
• Shake until chilled.
• Double strain into a chilled cocktail glass.
• Garnish with a pineapple spear.
Cocktail author: cocktail appeared in 1930’s, Hotel Nacional de Cuba. This particular recipe has been adapted by The Smuggler’s Cove.
Steaming hot summer is the perfect time for tiki cocktails. Yet, sometimes, they have a reputation for being difficult to make at home, due to long list of hard to find ingredients. Hotel Nacional Special, contrary to this opinion, is a rather easy tiki to make, that maintains all the qualities that makes tikis so likable.
Freshly muddled pineapple is a must for this cocktail. I have tried using pineapple juice, which works, but the result is somewhat sweeter and lacks the fresh kick of whole fruit. Textbook tiki ingredients of Demerara syrup and blended rum, provide the deep dark molasses and caramel notes, pairing so well with the fresh fruit. Apricot liqueur adds the additional fruity dimension, increasing the complexity and making this drink just a touch more extravagant and tropical. A touch of lime juice brings, that so craved, summer freshness and balances out the sweeter ingredients, nicely finishing the cocktail.
All in all, Hotel Nacional Special, is a fantastic cocktail to start you on a journey of tiki.
(NOTE: If you do decide to use pineapple juice, than you might need to give it a couple of tries to find the right balance between pineapple juice, lime juice and syrup, so be patient.)