Old Cuban Highball
A refreshing, sour and bubbly cocktail ∙ Shake ∙ 3 min ∙ 12.5% ABV ∙
The Old Cuban Highball is a long Old Cuban: aged Caribbean rum, mint, lime and sugar syrup shaken, strained over ice and topped with dry sparkling wine.
Ingredients
1
Servings
Garnish
Instructions for 1 serving
- Pre-chill a glass
- Shake the first 4 ingredients with ice: Fresh mint leaves 6 pcsCaribbean aged rum 40 mlLime juice 20 mlSugar syrup 10 ml
- Fine strain into the ice-filled glass
- Top with Dry sparkling wine
- Garnish with a mint sprig
Tips
- Fine strain the shaken mix so no torn mint ends up in the glass, and add the sparkling wine last so it keeps its fizz.
History
The Old Cuban Highball is a long-format riff on Audrey Saunders' Old Cuban: shaken the same way, but strained over ice into a highball glass rather than up into a coupe. One reference traces this particular highball adaptation to a 2017 recipe served at a bar in Hamburg, Germany, though that detail rests on a single account rather than wider corroboration.
Saunders created the Old Cuban in the early 2000s for Bemelmans Bar at the Carlyle Hotel and later brought it to her own Pegu Club. It is often described as a sparkling, minty take on the Daiquiri crossed with a Mojito, with sparkling wine in place of soda water.
FAQ
What is in an Old Cuban cocktail?
Caribbean aged rum 40 ml, lime juice 20 ml, sugar syrup 10 ml and six mint leaves, shaken and fine-strained, then topped with 80 ml dry sparkling wine. The original Old Cuban is served up; this highball version goes over ice.
What is a Cuban highball?
It's the Old Cuban served long over ice in a highball glass instead of up in a coupe, for a lighter, fizzier drink.
What's the difference between a Mojito and an Old Cuban?
The rum and the topper. A Mojito uses light rum and soda water. The Old Cuban Highball uses Caribbean aged rum and is topped with dry sparkling wine, so the rum tastes deeper and the fizz comes from wine.
