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Canchánchara recipe
Cuba's oldest cocktail: cane spirit, lime and honey.
A Canchánchara is 60 ml (56.4 g) Aguardiente / White Rum, 20 ml (20.6 g) Fresh Lime Juice and 15 ml (18 g) Honey, built and served in a rocks (old fashioned) glass. It pours to about 95 ml before ice, at roughly 25.3% ABV. Weighing the ingredients instead of measuring them is what keeps the balance identical from one round to the next.
- Glassrocks (old fashioned) glass
- Methodbuilt
- Pour volume95 ml
- Strength (est.)25.3% ABV
- Time2 min
Canchánchara ingredients — in millilitres and grams
Grams are what the PourPilot coaster actually targets. They are not the same as the millilitres: a spirit is lighter than water, a syrup is heavier, so 30 ml of one is never 30 g. The right-hand column is the density we use, in grams per millilitre.
| Ingredient | Volume | Weight | g/ml | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aguardiente / White Rum | 60 ml | 56.4 g | 0.94 | Weighed by the coaster |
| Fresh Lime Juice | 20 ml | 20.6 g | 1.03 | Weighed by the coaster |
| Honey | 15 ml | 18 g | 1.20 | Weighed by the coaster |
How to make a Canchánchara
- Set your rocks (old fashioned) glass on the scale (or on the PourPilot coaster) and zero it. Every measurement below is given in millilitres and in grams, so you can use either.
- Fill the rocks (old fashioned) glass with fresh ice.
- Build Aguardiente / White Rum, Fresh Lime Juice and Honey straight into the glass, weighing each pour.
- Stir once, briefly, to combine.
Canchánchara: the questions people actually ask
How strong is a Canchánchara?
Roughly 25.3% ABV as poured, before the ice dilutes it — typically another 15–25% water by the time you finish stirring or shaking. Spirit-forward. Sip it, do not sink it.
What glass should a Canchánchara be served in?
A rocks (old fashioned) glass. One large, clear cube melts slower than four small ones and keeps the drink from watering out.
Can I make a Canchánchara without a jigger?
Yes — that is what the gram column is for. Put the glass or tin on a kitchen scale, zero it, and pour to the weight. It is more accurate than a jigger because nothing is left clinging to the inside of the measure. The PourPilot coaster does the same thing without you having to watch a display: it lights up as you approach the target and tells you when to stop.
If you like the Canchánchara
Cuba Libre
White rum and cola with fresh lime. Deceptively simple.
Mojito
White rum, lime and mint, topped with soda over ice. Cuban classic.
Missionary's Downfall
A frozen tiki cooler of rum, pineapple, mint and honey.
Daiquiri
White rum, lime, sugar. The benchmark for balance.
Mai Tai
Trader Vic's original. Rum, orgeat, lime — no juice.
Hemingway Special
A grapefruit-and-maraschino daiquiri. Papa took his without sugar.