Malecon (cocktail)
A cocktail with three distinct versions spanning nearly a century.
The Malecon cocktail takes its name from Havana’s El Malecón, the winding seaside promenade built atop the city’s seawall. The drink exists in at least three distinct forms: a pre-Prohibition Cuban recipe from 1915, an American reinterpretation from 1941, and a later version created in 2007.
The earliest known recipe appears in John Escalante’s 1915 Cuban bartending guide, *Manual Del Cantinero*. It combines equal parts Cognac and Chambéry vermouth (likely a blanc style, such as Dolin) as the base, with one dash each of gum syrup and Angostura bitters. It is garnished with a strawberry.
The 1941 version comes from Crosby Gaige’s *Cocktail Guide and Ladies’ Companion*. Gaige described the drink as meant to evoke “the leisure and luxury of Old Havana.” Its ingredients are 1.5 ounces of white rum, 1.5 ounces of Swedish Punsch, 1.5 ounces of dry gin, and a dash of apricot brandy.
The most recent version, called El Malecón, was created in 2007 by Erik Lorincz while he was bartending at the Connaught Bar in London. It calls for 50ml of Bacardi Superior white rum, 15ml of Smith Woodhouse 10-year port, 10ml of Don José Reserva Oloroso sherry, 30ml of lime juice, two bar spoons (10ml) of caster sugar, and three drops of Peychaud’s Bitters. Lorincz said the cocktail was inspired by a trip to Havana and was meant to capture the feelings the Malecón evoked in him: simplicity, joy, and life’s sweetness balanced by a touch of bitterness. He described wanting a drink that could be enjoyed at any time of day or night, equally at home in an elegant London bar or along the Malecón with music, laughter, and tobacco smoke. The recipe was his entry in the 2007 Bacardi Legacy rum cocktail contest and contributed to his selection in 2010 to lead the revived American Bar at the Savoy Hotel. The 1937 *Savoy Cocktail Book* includes the recipe for an earlier cocktail called the Havana.
The Havana cocktail, as found in the 1937 *Cafe Royal Cocktail Book*, *The Official Mixers Manual*, and the *Savoy Cocktail Book*, shares similarities with the 1941 Malecon: both use gin, Swedish Punsch, and apricot brandy, and both have names tied to Cuba. However, the Havana contains much more apricot brandy—making up half the drink—and no rum. The 1941 Malecon is less sweet and more Cuban in character, with less apricot brandy and the addition of white rum such as Havana Club.
- First recorded recipe
- 1915
- Origin
- Cuba
- Named after
- El Malecón, Havana
- Known variations
- 1915, 1941, 2007
- Key ingredients (1915)
- Cognac, Chambéry vermouth, gum syrup, Angostura bitters
- Key ingredients (1941)
- White rum, Swedish Punsch, dry gin, apricot brandy
- Key ingredients (2007)
- Bacardi Superior rum, port, oloroso sherry, lime juice, sugar, Peychaud's bitters
Lore & Background
The earliest known recipe for the Malecon cocktail appears in John Escalante's 1915 Cuban cocktail guide, Manual Del Cantinero. It called for equal parts Cognac and Chambéry vermouth (likely a blanc, such as Dolin) as the base, with one dash of gum syrup and one dash of Angostura bitters, garnished with a strawberry. This pre-prohibition version originated in Cuba itself.
In 1941, Crosby Gaige published a different version in his Cocktail Guide and Ladies' Companion, stating the drink was meant to evoke 'the leisure and luxury of Old Havana.' This recipe used 1.5 oz. white rum, 1.5 oz. Swedish Punsch, 1.5 oz. dry gin, and a dash of apricot brandy. The 1941 Malecon shares many ingredients with the earlier Havana cocktail but was made less sweet and more indicative of Cuba by lowering the apricot brandy and adding white rum.
Erik Lorincz created the most recent version, El Malecón cocktail, in 2007 when he bartended at the Connaught Bar in London. His recipe combined Bacardi Superior white rum, Smith Woodhouse 10-year port, Don José Reserva Oloroso sherry, lime juice, caster sugar, and Peychaud's Bitters. Lorincz said he was inspired after a trip to Havana, and that the cocktail represents the feelings the Malecón evoked in him: simplicity, joy, and life's sweetness balanced by a touch of bitterness.
Reader's Guide
The Malecon cocktail illustrates how a single name can cover multiple distinct recipes across different eras and cultural contexts. The 1915 version reflects pre-prohibition Cuban cocktail culture, using Cognac and vermouth in a style common to that period. The 1941 version, created by an American author, adapts the drink to evoke Cuba through rum and Swedish Punsch while retaining gin and apricot brandy from the earlier Havana cocktail. The 2007 version by Erik Lorincz represents a modern reinterpretation that won recognition in the Bacardi Legacy 2007 rum cocktail contest and contributed to Lorincz being chosen in 2010 to head the revitalized American Bar at the Savoy Hotel. Lorincz stated he wanted to create a drink that could be enjoyed at any time of day or night, at home in both an elegant London cocktail bar and along the Malecón in Havana. The cocktail's evolution shows how a drink can be reinvented while maintaining a connection to its namesake location.
Did You Know?
- The 1915 version from John Escalante's Manual Del Cantinero used Cognac and Chambéry vermouth, not rum.
- Erik Lorincz's 2007 version was his entry in the Bacardi Legacy 2007 rum cocktail contest.
- The 1941 Malecon shares ingredients with the Havana cocktail from the 1937 Savoy Cocktail Book but contains less apricot brandy and adds white rum.
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