Ingredients
The soda
- 1 bottleTing grapefruit soda
- about 300 ml
- very well chilled
- or another grapefruit soda
The spirit
- 50 mlCSR
- Cane Spirit Rothschild
- or 50 ml white rum
- or to taste
To serve
- plenty of ice cubes
- a wedge of lime
- a tall glass
- a slice of grapefruit, optional
Sometimes added
- a dash of Angostura bitters
- a splash of soda water
- a pinch of salt on the rim
- a few mint leaves
Directions
- Heat and alcohol together dehydrate quickly. Drink water alongside in a hot climate.
- Chill the Ting thoroughly beforehand. It must be properly cold, not merely cool. Put it in the fridge for several hours. Do not put it in the freezer to rush it.
- Fill a tall glass right up with ice. Use plenty of ice rather than a token amount. Pour the CSR over the ice first.
- Pour it down the side of the glass. That keeps more of the fizz in the drink.
- Squeeze in a fresh wedge of lime juice. Garnish with a slice of grapefruit if you like.
- Serve it immediately while it is cold and fizzy. It goes flat within about ten minutes.
- Keep the soda in the fridge until then. Adjust it to your own preference honestly. It is drunk at any time in hot weather.
Technique
- Grapefruit interacts with a considerable number of medicines, including certain statins and blood pressure drugs, and the effect can last many hours. Ting contains real grapefruit juice, so this applies to the soda as much as to juice. The atlas will not list the drugs involved — the list is long and revised — but anyone on regular medication should ask a pharmacist.
- The drink goes down very easily because the tartness masks the spirit almost completely. Measure the 50 ml rather than free pouring, particularly in heat, and drink water alongside.
- Fill the glass with ice rather than adding a few cubes. A full glass melts more slowly and waters the drink down less, which is counter-intuitive but true.
- Pour the soda down the side of the glass and stir gently or not at all. Hard stirring drives out the carbonation, and the drink is flat within ten minutes anyway.
- Make them one at a time. A jug loses its fizz before it reaches the glasses.
- CSR — Cane Spirit Rothschild — is distilled on Saint Kitts from local cane, and it outlasted the island’s sugar industry, whose last harvest was in 2005. That industry rested on enslaved African labour for centuries, and Sugar Mas, the carnival at which this drink is poured, has its roots in that history.
- Ting on ice with lime and no spirit is a genuinely good drink in its own right, and plenty of people order it that way by choice.
Substitutions
- White rum replaces CSR, which is how the drink is most often made in Jamaica and elsewhere in the Caribbean.
- Vodka replaces the cane spirit for a cleaner, more neutral version, though it loses the local character entirely.
- Any tart grapefruit soda replaces Ting if it is unavailable; look for one made with real juice rather than flavouring.
- Fresh pink grapefruit juice topped with soda water replaces the bottled soda and gives a sharper, less sweet drink.
- A dash of Angostura bitters adds an aromatic edge and is a common bar addition.
- The drink is entirely good without alcohol, as Ting over ice with lime.
Variations
- Ting with a Sting in Jamaica uses white rum and is the same drink under the same name.
- A version with dark rum is made by some, giving a heavier, more molasses-like drink.
- Adding a splash of soda water lengthens it and softens the sweetness.
- A salted rim, like a paloma, is a modern bar treatment that suits the grapefruit well.
- The Mexican paloma, tequila with grapefruit soda, is the same idea with a different spirit.
- Some Kittitian bars mix Ting with the island’s Brinley flavoured rums for a sweeter drink.
History
The signature Kittitian mix of Ting grapefruit soda with CSR, poured at beach bars and at the Sugar Mas carnival.
Frequently asked questions
What is Ting with Sting?
Ting with Sting is a cocktail from Saint Kitts and Nevis: grapefruit soda spiked with local cane spirit, served over ice. The signature Kittitian mix of Ting grapefruit soda with CSR, poured at beach bars and at the Sugar Mas carnival.
How long does Ting with Sting take to make?
Ting with Sting takes 2 minutes of preparation and none of cooking. The recipe makes serves 1. It is rated easy to make.
What can I substitute in Ting with Sting?
Yes, within limits. White rum replaces CSR, which is how the drink is most often made in Jamaica and elsewhere in the Caribbean. Vodka replaces the cane spirit for a cleaner, more neutral version, though it loses the local character entirely. Any tart grapefruit soda replaces Ting if it is unavailable; look for one made with real juice rather than flavouring. Fresh pink grapefruit juice topped with soda water replaces the bottled soda and gives a sharper, less sweet drink. A dash of Angostura bitters adds an aromatic edge and is a common bar addition. The drink is entirely good without alcohol, as Ting over ice with lime.
What is the most important thing to get right in Ting with Sting?
Chill the Ting thoroughly beforehand. It must be properly cold, not merely cool. Put it in the fridge for several hours. Do not put it in the freezer to rush it.
