Martinique Swizzle

Name: Martinique Swizzle
Yield: 10
Cuisine: American

RECIPE: Adapted from Trader Vic’s Bartender’s Guide, 1947

Illustration: Matty Newton

July 23, 2021

Swizzle your way through summer with this “Trader Vic” Bergeron classic.

According to Martin Cate, owner of Smuggler’s Cove in San Francisco, when “Trader Vic” Bergeron first published the Martinique Swizzle recipe, the Martinique rum available in the U.S. at the time was largely rich and dark, and made from molasses (unlike the cane-based rhum agricole we find now). Use a rich demerara rum or a dark Jamaican rum such as Hamilton—or, Cate says, take the name literally and use an aged Martinique rhum agricole.

Ingredients

2 oz. dark rum
1⁄2 oz. fresh lemon juice
1⁄2 oz. simple syrup (1:1)
2 dashes Angostura bitters
1 dash absinthe

Tools:barspoon or pronged swizzle stick
Glass:Collins
Garnish:lime wedge, cinnamon stick

Preparation

Combine all of the ingredients in a Collins glass and stir to combine. Fill the glass halfway with crushed ice, then insert a barspoon or pronged swizzle stick in the center of the glass, rolling the handle between your palms to “swizzle” the mixture until chilled. Add more ice to fill the glass, then garnish.