El Draque Description

How to make the El Draque Cocktail Recipe

El Draque is widely regarded as the oldest known historical mixed drink, dating back to the late 1500s. Named after the English privateer Sir Francis Drake, this early cocktail was created in Havana, Cuba, as a medicinal remedy for sailors suffering from scurvy and dysentery. With a simple yet effective mix of aguardiente, lime, mint, sugar, and water, El Draque not only offered relief but also laid the foundation for what would become one of the most iconic cocktails of all time — the Mojito.

El Draque cocktail ingredients:

60 ml / 2 oz aguardiente (or substitute with light rum)
6–8 fresh mint leaves
1–2 teaspoons raw sugar (or sugar cane syrup)
15 ml / 0.5 oz fresh lime juice

Optional:

small piece of Chuchuhuasi bark (if available or for authenticity)
Crushed ice
Splash of water

El Draque recipe instructions:

Muddle the mint leaves and sugar gently in a glass to release the mint oils.
(Avoid shredding the leaves too much.)

Add the lime juice, aguardiente (or rum), and optional bark if using.
Stir to combine and dissolve the sugar.

Fill the glass with crushed ice.

Optionally, top with a splash of water to dilute slightly — historically it was medicinal and more water-based.

Garnish with a sprig of mint and (optional) a small stick of bark for visual authenticity.

El Draque Notes:

Chuchuhuasi is a South American medicinal bark used historically for its healing properties, but it’s hard to source and not essential.

Aguardiente is an unaged sugarcane spirit; if unavailable, white rum is the closest modern alternative.

This drink was originally made to fight scurvy and fever, so it was more functional than refined — but you can modernize it for taste.

El Draque history and origin:

El Draque dates back to the late 1500s and is named after the English privateer Sir Francis Drake, known for his raids on Spanish colonies in the Caribbean. During a stop in Havana, Cuba, his crew suffered from scurvy and dysentery — both common among sailors on long voyages.

To combat this, the locals offered a medicinal drink made with:

• Aguardiente (a rough, unaged cane spirit)

• Lime juice (rich in vitamin C, to prevent scurvy)

• Mint (for digestion and freshness)

• Sugar (for taste and energy)

• Water or Chuchuhuasi bark (a South American remedy for stomach and fever issues)

This mixture was called El Draque, in Drake’s honor.

Why is El Draque Considered the First Cocktail

While the word “cocktail” itself wasn’t coined until 1806, El Draque meets many of the characteristics of what we now define as a cocktail:

• A spirit base

• Herbs or botanicals (mint)

• Citrus juice (acid element)

• Sugar (sweetener)

• Water (to dilute or soften the alcohol)

This makes El Draque the earliest recorded example of mixing multiple ingredients — not just drinking spirits straight — for both health and enjoyment.

It’s considered the ancestor of the Mojito, which adds soda water and uses refined rum instead of aguardiente.