Daiquiri chat

Any other lovers out there? I mean the kind made with real limes. No Rose's lime "juice" or blenders involved. So often I order one at a restaurant I figure can make a simple cocktail and I get a blank stare from the waiter like (s)he thinks I'm some kind of rube wanting a big frozen strawberry thing....or I get the rum and Rose's over ice (which isn't bad, but is not a daiquiri).

Is it really that hard? Are there any good restaurants (not bars) in Chicago that can make a decent daiquiri? Are you frustrated like I am? Maybe we can start an action commitee.

My wife makes a great daiquiri (2 oz rum; 1 oz fresh squeezed lime juice; 1/2 oz simple syrup). It really is a simple cocktail to make and tastes so much better than the frozen concoctions you usually see. Off the top of my head, I can' think of a restaurant that has it on the menu.

Darren72 wrote: I can' think of a restaurant that has it on the menu.

Yet any restaurant with a bartender has the ingredients on hand and they still can't get it right!

teatpuller wrote:Any other lovers out there? I mean the kind made with real limes.

I believe you have a kindred spirit over in The Violet Hour thread.

teatpuller wrote:Are there any good restaurants (not bars) in Chicago that can make a decent daiquiri?

From the sound of the post I linked to just above, it sounds like Toby (and likely any other bartender) at The Violet Hour would be thrilled to whip one up for you.

Hell, I do believe one of those would go down quite nicely after work today! I wonder if we have any limes in the fridge....

Brad Bolt and the other bartenders make a perfect daiquiri at Bar de Ville:

701 N. Damen Ave.
Chicago, IL 60611
312-929-2349

Since I believe you're looking for a restaurant and not a bar, try Carnivale or Frontera Grill. Any restaurant that you know stocks freshly squeezed lime juice and a decent selection of rums should be able to make a good daiquiri.

Carnivale
702 W. Fulton Ave.
(312) 850-3017

Frontera Grill
445 N. Clark St.
No point in calling, just don't go on Sunday or Monday

Hellodali wrote:Brad Bolt and the other bartenders make a perfect daiquiri at Bar de Ville:

701 N. Damen Ave.
Chicago, IL 60611
312-929-2349

It is indeed wonderful and I just posted about it on the Bar DeVille thread, where a couple other recipes were subsequently posted.

DeVille's version uses 1 ounce each of clear and darker rum. Since I couldn't remember exactly which rums they used, I started experimenting at my home and office bars. Depending on which rums you slot into the recipe, there are countless variations of this cocktail, and because different rums are so distinctive, it's almost like each variation is a completely separate cocktail.

At work yesterday I used 1 oz of Cruzan (some variety of clear) and 1 oz of Appleton Reserve. I really enjoyed that version. It delivered a quintessentially buttery note without too much of the barrel being preseent. When I got home, I made 2 more. In the first, I used 1 oz of Prichard's Crystal Rum and 1 oz of Pyrat X/O. This version, I didn't really care for. The Pyrat was way too overpowering. I thought this was ironic because when I drink the Pyrat straight, it always tastes a bit bland to me. Paired up with the other ingredients in the daiquiri, however, all I could taste was the barrel.

In the second home daiquiri, I just used 2 oz of the Prichard's Crystal. This version went down very easily (maybe even too easily) but it lacked the depth and complex afternotes that the darker rum delivered in the other versions.

So, I went through the liquor cabinet, stopped at Binny's and now have a few more rums to try in my daiquiris. Updates to follow.

=R=

ronnie_suburban wrote:my home and office bars.

what, no bar in the car?

ronnie_suburban wrote:my home and office bars.

Are you hiring?

Kennyz wrote:

ronnie_suburban wrote:my home and office bars.

what, no bar in the car?

Heh, if I could, I would.

Just mixed up another one that I'm really enjoying:

1 ounce Cruzan Aged Rum (clear)
1 ounce Barbancourt Haitian 4-year Rum (gold/amber)
3/4 ounce simple syrup
3/4 ounce fresh-squeezed lime juice

Shake over ice, strain into chilled glass, garnish with lime zest (spray into glass)

I really like the balance of the 2 rums in this rendition. There's a discernable rum note but it's extremely pleasant. So far, this is probably my favorite version of the ones I've made for myself.

=R=

geno55 wrote:

ronnie_suburban wrote:my home and office bars.

Are you hiring?

LOL, can you mix drinks?

=R=

2 more combinations to report on:

1 ounce Prichard's Crystal (clear)
1 ounce Cruzan Aged Rum (amber)
3/4 ounce simple syrup
3/4 ounce fresh-squeezed lime juice

Really liked this one, though it doesn't have as much of a pleasant, rummy bite as the Cruzan clear/Barbancourt 4 combo.

1 ounce Neisson Rhum (agricole blanc)
1 ounce Cruzan Aged Rum (gold/amber)
3/4 ounce simple syrup
3/4 ounce fresh-squeezed lime juice

Am not enjoying this one very much. The Rhum is almost Cachaça-like and very overpowering. It has a seriously grassy bite that just doesn't work for me.

=R=

I've got some Ronrico and Bacardi variants on-hand but I'm almost completely convinced that using them would be a waste of time and drinking capacity. I do have a few others, too. I hope to attempt at least one more combo tonight.

=R=

Ok, dumped that last one (though it pained me to do so) and made another one:

1 ounce Cruzan Aged Rum (clear)
1 ounce Gossling's Black Seal Bermuda (dark)
3/4 ounce simple syrup
3/4 ounce fresh-squeezed lime juice

The moment this came out of the shaker, it looked completely different than the other combos but the dark Gossling's doesn't overpower at all. In fact, it's delightful. On the palate, it's a bit sweeter and less aged than some of the other combinations but it really works in its own right. And there's a subtle, almost-smokey note that comes in at the very end. I'd almost feel wrong calling this a daiquiri, because it looks and tastes so different than the rest of them but it's still a very successful cocktail.

=R=

That sounds like a hell of an afternoon!