IBA
Canchánchara – IBA
A sweet and citrus brandy cocktail ∙ Build ∙ 2 min ∙ 9.5% ABV ∙
The Canchánchara is a built Cuban drink of aguardiente, lime juice, honey and chilled water, served over cracked ice in an old-fashioned glass.
Ingredients
1
Servings
Garnish
Instructions for 1 serving
- Pre-chill a glass
- Mix Honey 15 ml and Chilled water 50 ml and Lime juice 15 ml and spread the mixture on the bottom and sides of the glass
- Add cracked ice, and then Aguardiente 60 ml
- Stir gently
- Garnish with a lime wedge
Tips
- Stir the honey into the lime juice before the chilled water goes in, or warm it slightly; honey dropped straight into cold liquid or onto ice clumps.
History
Canchánchara – IBA is the International Bartenders Association's official recipe for the Canchánchara, regarded as one of Cuba's oldest cocktails. It keeps the original aguardiente de caña, a raw sugarcane spirit, with honey and lime.
The drink is attributed to the mambises, the guerrilla fighters of the Ten Years' War (1868–1878) and the War of Independence (1895–1898), who mixed aguardiente with honey and native key lime as a restorative against cold, hunger and fatigue. It is closely associated with Trinidad in central Cuba, where it is still served in traditional clay cups called jícaras.