This jacked up mojito with a twist of bitters and Champagne is like everything you like about a mojito and nothing you don’t. Basically, it’s boozy, and tangy, and we’re super thankful to Audrey Saunders of NYC’s Pegu Club for making it up. Now, we’ll make it, too.
Audrey Saunders’ Old Cuban Cocktail
Ingredients
- 1.5 oz. aged rum (Saunders recommends Bacardi Añejo 8-Year)
- 1 oz. simple syrup
- ½ lime, juiced
- 2 dashes Angostura bitters
- 6 mint leaves
- 2 oz. Champagne
Let's go
- Make the simple syrup: in a small sauce pan, simmer 1 cup water with 1 cup sugar until it forms a syrup. Take off heat, cool, cover and keep in refrigerator for 2-3 weeks.
- Put the mint, lime, and simple syrup in a cocktail shaker and lightly muddle the mint. Add the ice, bitters, and rum, shake until cold, and strain into a low ball glass that each have a couple of ice cubes in them. (Double strain to remove mint and ice flecks, if you like.) Top with champagne, and garnish with a sprig of mint.
Audrey Saunders is owner of Pegu Club in NYC, a favorite FAT cocktail lounge.