The Tiger (a take on the Pegu Club's "Old Cuban" in Manhattan)

We were introduced to this drink by a friend of ours, Tiger Batlas. Tiger has a bubbly and refreshing personality (not unlike this drink!) and so we decided to rename the delicious cocktail in honor or Tiger's lovely personality and presence.

Tiger discovered this drink during a girls trip with friends to Manhattan at a bar called Bemelmans inside The Carlyle Hotel. Most internet cocktail recipes cite the Pegu Club as home for this drink. Wherever the origin, here are a few shots of our version below.

Note that we followed the recipe almost exactly, however included slightly less simple syrup (I don't like sweet drinks, but half an ounce of simple syrup is the perfect amount to soften the pucker from the lime just a bit and it helps to meld the flavors). Also - feel free to top this one off with prosecco vs. champagne. Pedro just happens to keep a keg of homemade champagne on hand, so it helps to minimize the expense of champagne cocktails like the Tiger.

Also, Pedro and I made a fun trip to a nearby thrift store, just before making these drinks, to pick up some old style coupe cocktail glasses for $.49 each. This drink doesn't taste the same without the right glass! (as recommended by the NYT :-) 

Tiger cocktail served in a chilled coupe glass

A few of the ingredients we used in our Tiger cocktail