Refreshing fruit cocktail from Jamaica with a strength of 16 degrees based on dark rum with citrus juices. The ease of preparation and the availability of ingredients helped Planter’s Punch to conquer the whole world.
Historical reference. The first punch recipes appeared around the XNUMXth century in India. From the Hindi language, the word “panch” is translated as “five”, because in those days it was a hot drink of five ingredients: rum (wine or brandy), sugar, lemon juice, loose tea and hot water. In fact – sweet tea with lemon and rum.
Thanks to the sailors of the British East India Company, punch came to England at the beginning of the XNUMXth century, and then spread throughout Europe and migrated across the Atlantic to the United States. Over time, the recipe has changed a lot, now instead of hot tea, many punches use cold fruit juices, which greatly improves the taste.
The first written reference to Planter’s Punch is in the New York Times in 1908. There are three versions of the appearance of the cocktail:
- The recipe was invented by businessman Fred Myers, who in 1879 presented the drink to the general public at a celebration in honor of the opening of his company in Jamaica.
- The cocktail was developed by the bartenders of the Planter’s Hotel, located in St. Louis. But apart from a similar name, this hypothesis no longer has evidence.
- There is a popular legend among Jamaicans that the refreshing fruit punch was invented by a caring planter to increase the productivity of slaves under the scorching sun. Sounds nice, but unbelievable.
At the moment, the Plantator Punch cocktail is included in the codification (section “Unforgettable”) of the International Bartenders Association (IBA).
Composition and proportions:
- dark rum – 45 ml;
- orange juice – 35 ml;
- pineapple juice – 35 ml;
- lemon juice – 20 ml;
- sugar syrup – 10 ml;
- pomegranate syrup Grenadine – 10 ml;
- Angostura bitter – 4-6 drops (optional).
Classic Planter’s Punch Recipe
1. Fill a highball glass with ice cubes.
2. Mix rum, juices, grenadine and sugar syrup in a shaker with ice. Remove the melted water from the glass.
3. Pour the mixture from the shaker through a strainer (strainer) into a glass.
4. Top with small crushed ice (crash) and Angostura.
5. Decorate the finished cocktail with an orange or pineapple slice. Drink through a straw.
