ClassicsSpring

Hotel Nacional

Wil P. Taylor, Hotel Nacional de Cuba, Havana, 1930s

The Hotel Nacional is white rum, pineapple, apricot liqueur and lime, shaken and served up. Pineapple and apricot make it tropical without being heavy, and the lime keeps it crisp. A Havana classic for spring.

  • GlassCoupe
  • MethodShaken
  • Ingredients5
Hotel Nacional

Ingredients

Making a batch?
Servings
No garnishGarnish
Total volume—

Directions

  1. Shake all ingredients with ice.
  2. Double strain into a chilled coupe.

ToolsJiggerShakerHawthorne strainerFine strainerCoupe glass

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History

The drink is named for the Hotel Nacional de Cuba, which opened in Havana in 1930, and it became the signature of the hotel bar. Two American bartenders claimed it: Wil P. Taylor of the Hotel Nacional and Eddie Woelke of the Casino Nacional. Charles H. Baker Jr.'s 1939 book The Gentleman's Companion named Taylor as its rightful originator.

Making a batch? Scale it for a crowd, add dilution water, and see how many bottles to buy.
Quick sizes
How are you making it? ⓘ Batching includes dilution water. Pre-batched cocktails need added water to replace the melt from stirring or shaking. We use Jeffrey Morgenthaler's standard: 18% for spirit-forward drinks, 25% for shaken.

What you'll need to buy

Based on 750ml bottles (25.4 oz), rounded up.

Bottle math, generally

750ml bottle25.4 oz
2 oz pours per bottle12 cocktails
1.5 oz pours per bottle16 cocktails
1 oz =29.6 ml
This recipe per 750ml of spirit—

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