Jennings Cox
Encyclopedia
Jennings Cox, American
mining engineer who is said to have invented the drink known as the daiquiri
in the late nineteenth century. Cox was an American expatriate working in Cuba
. He worked for the Spanish-American Iron Company, situated near the village of Daiquirí
, about 4 miles east of Santiago de Cuba
.
It is said that the drink was invented when Cox ran out of gin while entertaining American guests. Wary about serving local rum straight up, Cox added limejuice and sugar to improve the rum’s taste. Consumption of the drink remained localized until 1909, when Admiral Lucius W. Johnson, a US Navy medical officer, tried Cox’s drink. Johnson subsequently introduced it to the Army and Navy Club in Washington DC, and drinkers of the daiquiri increased over the space of a few decades.http://www.wetwillies.com/facts.htm The source most frequently cited as verification of this story is a Miami Herald article from 1937.
The credit given to Cox remains disputed, with some sources stating that he was assisted by a Cuban engineer named Pagliuchi, or that the drink had already been a Cuban specialty.
Cox lived in Santiago de Cuba
. The writer and journalist Richard Harding Davis
wrote his novel Soldiers of Fortune (1897) while a guest at Cox's house (O’Toole, 79).
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
mining engineer who is said to have invented the drink known as the daiquiri
Daiquiri
Daiquiri is a family of cocktails whose main ingredients are rum, lime juice, and sugar or other sweetener. There are several versions, but those that gained international fame are the ones made in the El Floridita bar in Havana, Cuba....
in the late nineteenth century. Cox was an American expatriate working in Cuba
Cuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
. He worked for the Spanish-American Iron Company, situated near the village of Daiquirí
Daiquirí
Daiquirí is a small village, 14 miles east of Santiago de Cuba. It became a focal point of the United States invasion of Cuba in the Spanish-American War....
, about 4 miles east of Santiago de Cuba
Santiago de Cuba
Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city of Cuba and capital city of Santiago de Cuba Province in the south-eastern area of the island, some south-east of the Cuban capital of Havana....
.
It is said that the drink was invented when Cox ran out of gin while entertaining American guests. Wary about serving local rum straight up, Cox added limejuice and sugar to improve the rum’s taste. Consumption of the drink remained localized until 1909, when Admiral Lucius W. Johnson, a US Navy medical officer, tried Cox’s drink. Johnson subsequently introduced it to the Army and Navy Club in Washington DC, and drinkers of the daiquiri increased over the space of a few decades.http://www.wetwillies.com/facts.htm The source most frequently cited as verification of this story is a Miami Herald article from 1937.
The credit given to Cox remains disputed, with some sources stating that he was assisted by a Cuban engineer named Pagliuchi, or that the drink had already been a Cuban specialty.
Cox lived in Santiago de Cuba
Santiago de Cuba
Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city of Cuba and capital city of Santiago de Cuba Province in the south-eastern area of the island, some south-east of the Cuban capital of Havana....
. The writer and journalist Richard Harding Davis
Richard Harding Davis
Richard Harding Davis was a journalist and writer of fiction and drama, known foremost as the first American war correspondent to cover the Spanish-American War, the Second Boer War, and the First World War. His writing greatly assisted the political career of Theodore Roosevelt and he also played...
wrote his novel Soldiers of Fortune (1897) while a guest at Cox's house (O’Toole, 79).
Sources
- Wet Wellies: Daiquiri history
- G.J.A. O’Toole, The Spanish War: An American Epic 1898 (New York: W.W. Norton, 1989), 79.
- Daiquiri Story