The Mojito: It's All in the Muddler

John F. Kennedy is famous for a lot of things, though perhaps only one of them involving cigars. Just before he extended the trade embargo against Cuba in 1962, he first arranged to purchase thousands of Cuban cigars for his own personal stash. Politics aside, the man had good taste.

While we may have a somewhat drab vision of what life is like in a communist country like Cuba - food rationing, high unemployment, people parading around in olive military fatigues - isn't it ironic that so many symbols of The Good Life come from Cuba? Cigars, rum, salsa music: these are staples of Cuban culture that have filtered into the American consciousness. When we think cigars, rum, salsa we think sexy. And when you put them all together and add some mint and lime, you've got a wild night of Mojito drinking, cigar smoking and salsa dancing. Very sexy.

Let's start with the Mojito. Traditionally made with fresh spearmint leaves, lime, sugar cane juice, white rum and club soda, this Cuban cocktail is meant to be a clear rum cocktail whose delicate balance of slightly sweet (the sugar) and slightly sour (the lime) perfectly supports the spearmint while masking the booziness of the rum. Sounds easy enough, right?

Yet many times your bartender is rushed and won't take the time to properly prepare the Mojito. Here's the secret: it's all in the muddler. A few whole sprigs of spearmint should not be tossed into the Mojito glass as an afterthought; if you see your bartender do this, run for the door. The mint leaves must be muddled with tender loving care in order to break apart the fibers and release their refreshing flavor. Likewise, if your bartender starts pouring packaged lime juice into your Mojito glass, run screaming for the door. Packaged lime juice will almost certainly overwhelm this mint cocktail and give it a cloudy appearance. The lime wedges should be muddled just enough to liberate the fresh juice, and then added sparingly to the mojito glasses in order to preserve the crisp clarity of the cocktail.

Is your mouth watering, too? Get your Mojito glasses ready. Here's one recipe to quench your thirst:

1 teaspoon powdered sugar
Juice from 1 lime, to taste
4 mint leaves
1 sprig of mint
white rum (2 ounces)
2 ounces club soda

Place a lime wedge, peel side down, in a small bowl and gently prod the lime with a muddler to release the juice. Discard the lime and pour the juice into a tall mojito glass. Add the mint leaves and powdered sugar to the lime juice. Gently mash the mint into the juice and sugar with a muddler. Add ice (preferably crushed) then add the rum and stir. Top off with the club soda. Garnish with a mint sprig. Serve with a smile. Better yet, pull out your Mojito pitcher and all your Mojito barware and make a full batch.