Being a naval officer is frequently linked to alcohol consumption. This includes the time when early seafarers were given rum rations and the battle cry of the U.S. Naval Academy, “Anchors Aweigh” encouraged sailors to “drink to the foam.” In light of this, it should be no surprise that an American naval officer brought the immensely well-liked daiquiri cocktail to the country.
The Spanish-American War is said to have played a role in the creation of the daiquiri. When Jennings Stockton Cox, an American mining engineer, ran out of gin and had to entertain American guests in the Cuban hamlet of Daiquiri in 1898.
In an attempt to cool his guests down from the oppressively hot and muggy Cuban weather, Cox blended sugar, lime juice, and Bacardi rum, then stirred it with crushed ice and water. The community named their delicious cocktail after it, and the daiquiri shot to fame throughout Cuba.
The battleship USS Minnesota (BB-22) arrived at Guantanamo Bay eleven years later.
Lucius W. Johnson, the ship’s junior medical officer, was sent ashore to explore Spanish-American War battlefields by Captain Charles H. Harlow. The two navy officers met Cox in Daiquiri, where he served them his cocktail. Alcohol and citrus were a common combination among sailors to boost vitamin intake and ward off scurvy at sea.
Harlow and Johnson took to Cox’s drink because of its desired flavor. Johnson was so thrilled that he returned to his station in Washington, D.C., carrying a barrel of rum and the recipe.
Johnson presented Cox’s daiquiri to The Army and Navy Club on Farragut Square after his return to Washington, D.C. The drink was only taken off the menu during Prohibition, but it rapidly became a club staple.
Soon, the daiquiri gained national recognition and became a favorite beverage of John F. Kennedy and Ernest Hemingway. Its fame soon surpassed that on June 23, 2017, Johnson’s portrait was dedicated and exhibited in The Army and Navy Club’s aptly named Daiquiri Lounge in remembrance of his introduction of the daiquiri to the club and the country.
These days, the cocktail is a mainstay at pool and beach bars worldwide, including the esteemed Army and Navy Club.
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