I had a blast attending one of the regional qualifying events for the relaunched Worlds Best Mai Tai contest held last week at Tiki Tom’s. The event is relaunching after the organizers of the previous contest withdrew from organizing the event during COVID. I attended the last competition held in Kona in 2019, so this new event was of great interest.
The contest is sponsored by Myers’s rum and Bols liqueurs, a step up from when it used to be sponsored by Bacardi. As such, the event participants had to incorporate products from the sponsors, such as Bols Curacao, Myers’s Dark, and the underrated Myers’s Platinum – but weren’t limited to those product and many contestants infused ingredients and created custom rum blends. The finals for the Worlds Best Mai Tai will be held in Las Vegas at the Palms Casino on August 25 with the winner receiving $15,000.
There were several rounds during the qualifying event at Tiki Tom’s, plus a small selection of appetizers and Tiki Tom’s Mai Tais available for purchase. Though the Ultimate Mai Tai was not on the menu, the standard Mai Tai was pretty good even when served in a plastic cup. There were brand reps from Myers’s so we got to taste a selection of rums including their Signature Cask Collection (I found the Rye casks expression to be the best), plus pins and other swag.
There were a number of interesting Mai Tais made, and unlike the 2019 competition most of them actually did resemble Mai Tais. We had a soft spot for Kriss from Boo Loo Lounge who barely missed the podium by two points and finished third. The top two spots were Jenn Crider of Tiki Tom’s who did a spam-washed rum with maple orgeat, and mobile bartender Julie from Ravendark Cocktails who reacted with emotion after finishing first.
I’m really pleased to see this competition relaunching, with an even more elaborate program in line for 2026. View the recap video.
