El Presidente cocktail recipe

The El Presidente cocktail has a deliciously storied past. Named the “Cubanized answer to the Manhattan” by cocktail historian, mixologist and drinks-pert David Wondrich, the El Presidente was said to have been envisioned in the mid-1910s by Constantino Ribalaigua in a little cafe in Havana. Refreshing and full of flavour, hello Mr President.

The cocktail was named after President Aurelio Mario Gabriel Francisco García Menocal *takes a breath*, the last president of Cuba before Castro’s revolution. Menocal was known as the “butcher” due to the missing finger he lost in a butcher shop (or so they say). His rule was during a time when many Americans chose Havana’s saloons as sanctuary from Prohibition. Whether served illegally during this period or legally after, the drink quickly found devoted and loyal subjects across the Americas, touted as the aristocrat of cocktails. Combining the caramel, toasty rum flavours, the orange brightness from curaçao, a dash of fruitiness from the grenadine and a good quality vermouth that enhances but doesn’t overwhelm, it’s not hard to see why.

Very few drinks have received the media frenzy El Presidente has – in this case, for not actually being consumed at all. In 1928, President Gerardo Machado welcomed his guest of honour, US President Calvin Coolidge, to an official state dinner in Havana, where Machado, of course, served up the El Presidente. Coolidge, being touted as the “President of the greatest Prohibition country in the world”, faced a dilemma of social etiquette versus temperance in line with his nation’s laws. In the end, after much speculation, the buttoned-down Coolidge was reported to have declined the President’s cocktail. Oh, to have been a fly on that wall.

This Cuban concoction, made with white rum, bianco vermouth, orange liqueur (usually curaçao) and grenadine, is a commanding cocktail to add to the top of your must-try list.

However, it must be said that it calls for a slightly more discerning eye for ingredients, or else it might taste a little less than noble. Our recipe creates a delicious and well-balanced version, but as the El Presidente has been often altered through the years to suit differing tastes, if you feel like tweaking the formula, go for gold.

Many recipes dictate a specific style of vermouth, but the OG was said to be Vermouth de Chambery. These days, Dolin, the surviving brand of this regional style, makes a “blanc” vermouth, one that’s white but only semi-dry. Noilly Prat is another solid option here. Looking for more body? Try a more richly flavoured white rum or a lightly aged rum. Orange fan? Dial up the curaçao for your perfect orangey version.