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How to make the Hemingway Daiquiri, a less sweet twist on a classic

If it was good enough for Hemingway, it's good enough for us

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A daiquiri cocktail
Dan Baker / The Manual/Dan Baker

A handful of classic cocktails taste like summer in a glass. These include the crisp, simple Gin & Tonic, thirst-quenching Margarita, and boozy, flavorful Mint Julep. But, if we could only pick one summery cocktail to drink early and often, it would be the Daiquiri.

One of our favorites is the iconic, refreshing Daiquiri. This simple cocktail has white rum, fresh lime juice, and simple syrup. It’s tart, thirst-quenching, and perfect on a hot, humid, sunny day. It’s as easy to make as it is to drink.

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If you enjoy that classic cocktail, you’ll probably like some of its offshoots. And while we could spend an article writing about variations on the drink like Across The Pacific, Santa Marta, Royal Bermuda Yacht Club, and more, today it’s the Hemingway Daiquiri’s time to shine.

What is the Hemingway Daiquiri?

A daiquiri cocktail
Dan Baker / The Manual/Dan Baker

If you prefer less sweetness and more fresh citrus juice, this is the cocktail for you. This elevated take on the classic Daiquiri is made with white rum, maraschino liqueur, fresh lime juice, and fresh grapefruit juice. It removes the simple syrup from the original drink and adds maraschino liqueur and grapefruit juice.

The result is a sweet, tart, very refreshing version of the classic drink. You only need to change out a few ingredients to create a totally different flavor experience.

The Hemingway Daiquiri history

El Floridita
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It should come as no surprise to you that this drink is named for famed literary icon Ernest Hemingway. A devoted fan of the Daiquiri, the writer of ‘A Farewell to Arms’ and other classic novels, supposedly took a trip to Havana, Cuba’s El Floridita bar in the 1930s. While there, he asked a bartender to make a Daiquiri without any sugar and with more booze. The bartender created this version of the drink and named it after the writer.

What you need to make a Hemingway Daiquiri

  • 2 ounces of white rum
  • .5 ounces of maraschino liqueur
  • .5 ounces of freshly squeezed grapefruit juice
  • .75 ounces of freshly squeezed lime juice

The Hemingway Daiquiri recipe steps

  1. Add ice to a shaker.
  2. Pour in the white rum, maraschino liqueur, fresh lime juice, and fresh grapefruit juice into the shaker.
  3. Shake vigorously to combine.
  4. Strain into a chilled coupe glass.
  5. Garnish with a lime peel or lime wheel.

Bottom line

Daiquiri
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If this cocktail is good enough for a famous writer/rum drinker like Ernest Hemingway, it’s good enough for us. And while the author of ‘The Old Man and the Sea’ apparently ordered his with extra white rum and no simple syrup, the drink morphed into the rum, maraschino liqueur, lime juice, and grapefruit juice-based drink we know today. If you’re already a fan of the classic Daiquiri, why not try this amped-up, less-sweet version?

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Christopher Osburn
Christopher Osburn
Writer
Christopher Osburn is a food and drinks writer located in the Finger Lakes Region of New York. He's been writing professional
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