Ginger lime shrub daiquiri with cinnamon myrtle and ginger crisps

Ginger lime shrub daiquiri with cinnamon myrtle and ginger crisps is my pickle twist on the classic daiquiri cocktail recipe of lime, sugar and crisp white rum shaken with ice. In researching Daiquiri recipes, I stumbled on stories of the medicinally inclined rum-sugar-lime-water based precursors of the Mojito and the Daiquiri, below is a brief overview of some of the recipes. I have found Wayne Curtis’ (2007) wonderful book And a bottle of rum: A history of the new world in ten cocktails to be the most useful and fascinating source of information on the history of rum in general and grog and the Daiquiri in particular.

• El Draque – as noted by McLafferty (2016) and McClure (2016) contained aguardiente (unfinished rum), rum soaked chuchuhuasi tree bark, lime, mint and sugar, given as a medicinal cure to sick sailors near Havana by Sir Francis Drake in 1586.
• Ti’ Punch – rhum Agricole (made with sugar cane juice rather than molasses), lime and sugar cane syrup from 1887, national drink of Martinique.
• Sailor’s grog – described by Curtis (2007: 854-6) included rum, water, lime and sugar the recipe of which was ordered by Admiral Edward Vernon in 1740 that initially inadvertently and later intentionally helped to prevent scurvy due to limes high in vitamin C at first included to mask the flavour of the rum. Curtis (2007: 854-6) details that grog was nick-named along with Vernon after his grogram or oiled waterproof coat.
• Canchanchara – aguardiente (unfinished rum), lemon or lime, honey and water, drunk hot as an early morning restorative by Cuban revolutionaries in 19^th Century Cuba. Later versions include ice and are consumed cold.
• Mojito – as described by McLafferty (2016) drawing on Wondrich (2018), rum, lime, sugar cane juice, mint, drunk by Cuban farm workers and related to El Draque. McLafferty (2016) writes that later versions included ice, rich simple syrup and club soda in the later 1800’s in bars in Cuban cities including Havana.
• Daiquiri – rum, lime, sugar and importantly as Curtis (2007: 2321-2328) notes cooled water – ice – with which the daiquiri cocktail is shaken. Simon Difford (2019) explains that the creation of the Daiquiri is attributed to American engineer James Stockton Cox, named after the town of Daiquiri in Cuba, from 1909.

My own rum pickle daiquiri cocktail is a modern twist on the idea of including botanicals and the medicinal properties of drinks such as El Draque that used the bark of the chuchuhuasi tree which has anti-inflammatory properties and along with grog featured limes high in vitamin C. My own variation includes the Australian indigenous herb cinnamon myrtle and a shrub syrup drinking vinegar with ginger and lime, coconut vinegar, sugar and honey, along with rum. The introduction of quick pickled ingredients with their own medicinal properties allows for concocting a perfect sweet-sour balance which includes souring agents of both lime and coconut vinegar.

The shrub I have used here departs from the usual 1:1:1 shrub formula to increase flavour with cinnamon myrtle and ginger and reduce sugar while retaining a sour-sweet note with coconut vinegar, coconut sugar and raw organic honey. Cinnamon myrtle is an Australian indigenous ingredient with a flavour not unlike cinnamon, and with a history of use as a remedy for indigestion, heartburn and colic. Ginger also has medicinal uses as a treatment for nausea, motion sickness and loss of appetite. Coconut vinegar used in the shrub is beneficial to the gut due to the inclusion of the ‘mother’ and the cold process used to create the shrub. The ginger crisp adds texture and crunch.

This rum pickle daiquiri cocktail recipe is easy to prepare in advance and has low sugar although a beautiful balance of sweet-sour between the lime, ginger, sugar, honey, sweet cinnamon myrtle and coconut vinegar. A delicious pickle cocktail that reinvents the Daiquiri while building on the medicinal effects and botanical ingredients of its’ precursors.

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