A 1970s update on the 1930s variant known as the Mona Daiquiri, Don’s Special might more accurately be described as a Daiquiri twice removed. When Donn Beach first created the Mona, in 1934, he called on a base of 30-year-old Meyer’s Mona rum—for which the drink is named— and further amended the formula with the addition of both passionfruit and honey syrups. Following the discontinuation of Mona rum in 1946, Beach—true to his personal mantra that what one rum can’t do, several can—altered the recipe by calling on a blend of gold Jamaican and light Puerto Rican rums, resulting in Don’s Special Daiquiri.
In this version, Daniele Dalla Pola swaps honey syrup for agave nectar and makes the unorthodox addition of spiced rum for an extra kick.