Mai Tai Recipes

Table of Contents

  • The Original 1944 Mai Tai Recipe
  • Orange Curacao, Orgeat, and Rock Candy Syrup
  • “Juice from One Lime” = 1 Ounce
  • Traditional Mai Tai Garnish: Lime and Mint
  • The Ultimate Mai Tai Recipe
  • Mai Tai Variants from Trader Vic’s
  • Historical and Island Mai Tai Recipes
  • Modern Recipes and Riffs
  • Blue Mai Tais
  • Mai Tai Swizzle

The Original 1944 Mai Tai Recipe

We begin by describing the original recipe by Trader Vic, including the named components. Note that many of these are no longer available, so we’ve provided a simplified version and a discussion of the key ingredients.

The most iconic version of the cocktail is the Hawaiian or “Island-style” Mai Tai, using pineapple juice and a dark rum float. Those Mai Tais can be delicious and are covered below as well.

The Original Formula by Trader Vic Bergeron, 1944
2 ounces of 17-year old J. Wray & Nephew Jamaican Rum over shaved ice
½ ounce Holland DeKuyper Orange Curacao
½ ounce French Garnier Orgeat Syrup
¼ ounce Trader Vic’s Rock Candy Syrup
Add juice from one fresh Lime.

Simplified 1944 Mai Tai Recipe
2 oz / 60 ml Aged Rum
½ oz / 15 ml Orange Curacao liqueur
½ oz / 15 ml Orgeat syrup
¼ oz / 7½ ml Rock Candy/Rich Simple Syrup or Demerara Syrup
1 oz / 30 ml Lime juice

Rum(s) for a Mai Tai

The rum in good Mai Tais is typically aged and heavy, but that too could be based on your preference. Unlike many cocktails, the Mai Tai really lets the rum shine.

The original Mai Tai rum was from Jamaica, so that’s the country of origin for many Mai Tai rums you’ll find in bars and restaurants. Because Trader Vic’s started using rums from Martinique, you’ll often see Mai Tais made with Martinique Rhum, both traditional Molasses-based Rhum Industriel and also the more common Rhum Agricole made from Sugar Cane Juice. The International Bartenders Association’s recipe for a Mai Tai specifically calls for Martinique Rhum made from Molasses.

The Ultimate Mai Tai rum blend is a bold blend of mostly Jamaican rums and is a boozy 52% ABV. Simply use ½ oz each in a Mai Tai, or combine equal parts of Appleton Estate Rare Casks Aged 12 Years (“Appleton 12”), Smith & Cross Traditional Jamaica Rum, Planteray (Plantation) OFTD, and Planteray (Plantation) Xaymaca into a bottle and use 2 oz when preparing your Mai Tai.

But with so many quality rums on the market, we certainly encourage you to try different rums and styles. There’s no wrong answer when it comes to the Rum used in a Mai Tai, so use your favorite rum or style, or simply use what you have on hand.

Orange Curacao, Orgeat, and Rock Candy Syrup

Orgeat and Orange Curacao are the two ingredients that separate the Mai Tai from the Planter’s Punch or Daiquiri. Some recipes omit the sugar syrup in lieu of more Orgeat, and some may use more or less Lime juice to balance the sweetness.

If you adjust the amounts of the ingredients you’ll find there are a lot of combinations, depending on your palate.

Meanwhile, Rock Candy Syrup and the sugar to water ratio is a matter of some debate. During the 2000s craft cocktail revolution, “Rock Candy Syrup” is typically 2 parts sugar to 1 part water, and Simple Syrup is 1:1. However, it is unclear if that was the ratio used by Trader Vic in 1944 and today’s Trader Vic’s Rock Candy Syrup retail product is closer to 1:1.

Learn More: Rock Candy Syrup on Make & Drink YouTube.

“Juice from One Lime” = One Ounce

Compare bottled vs. fresh lime juice

Since the size of limes vary, the “juice of one lime” is an inexact measurement. Small limes might give you ¾ ounce or less, while large ones will give you more than 1 ½ ounces. I once had a lime give me more than two and a half ounces of juice!

So, juicing a large lime and using the “juice of one lime” might make your Mai Tais too tart.

We do have documentation on what Trader Vic considered the correct amount of lime juice in a Mai Tai, though. In his 1974 book Rum Cookery & Drinkery author Victor Bergeron noted on page 96 that “Juice of one average Lime = 1 ounce.” So, if you’re following Vic’s standard recipe 1 ounce of lime juice is the correct measurement. 

Some bartenders omit sugar syrup from the cocktail, and then bring the lime juice down to ¾ oz. 

In terms of which kind of Lime Juice to use, always use freshly squeezed Lime Juice. Someone told us that the organic bottled lime tasted just like fresh squeezed and we did a blind taste test. I didn’t even have to taste the fresh juice Mai Tai to know the bottled version was inferior.

Watch the video: Limes in a Mai Tai

Traditional Mai Tai Garnish: Lime and Mint

The traditional garnish for a Mai Tai at Trader Vic’s is one half of the spent lime shell along with a mint sprig. These are placed into the top of the drink after mixing (never before), and they look a bit like a little island and palm tree.

 

The Ultimate Mai Tai Recipe

This is the house Mai Tai at Ultimate Mai Tai Headquarters. First labeled as the “Ultimate Mai Tai” when it was served as a special menu addition at The Kon-Tiki in Oakland and currently available on the regular menu at Tiki Tom’s in Walnut Creek. This features our Ultimate Mai Tai Rum Blend with four heavy rums. Steve the Bartender calls this “a Mai Tai for Mai Tai lovers.”

Ultimate Mai Tai by Kevin Crossman 
1 oz Lime Juice
½ oz Orgeat (Latitude 29)
¼ oz Demerara Syrup (BG Reynolds or Liber)
½ oz Orange Curacao (Ferrand Dry Curacao or Clement Créole Shrubb)
½ oz Appleton 12 Rum
½ oz Smith & Cross Rum
½ oz Planteray (Plantation) OFTD Rum
½ oz Planteray (Plantation) Xaymaca Rum

Garnish with Mint Sprig and spent Lime shell

More info: The Ultimate Mai Tai

The first Ultimate Mai Tai with Four Rums, mid-2019

A riff on this cocktail is the Penultimate Mai Tai, a two-rum blend that came about via a challenge from Derek at the Make & Drink YouTube Channel.

The Penultimate Mai Tai by Kevin Crossman
1 oz Lime Juice
½ oz Latitude 29 Orgeat
¼ oz Demerara Syrup
½ oz Quality Orange Curacao
1½ oz Worthy Park 109 Jamaica Rum
½ oz Kuleana Rum Works Hawaiian Rum Agricole
Shake with ice and garnish with lime and mint.

Mai Tai Variants from Trader Vic’s

By the early 1970s, Trader Vic’s had added several cocktails to the menu that basically were variants of the Mai Tai that replaced the 2 oz of Jamaica-forward Mai Tai Rum with another spirit or ratio.

  • Menehune Juice – sub Light Puerto Rican rum. Garnish with Menehune figure.
  • Suffering Bastard – sub 3 oz rum (Light, Gold, Dark)
  • Pinky Gonzales – sub Tequila
  • Honi Honi – sub Bourbon
  • Rusky Tai (since 2016 rebranded to Vodka Tai) – sub Vodka

Modern Mai Tai Recipes Served at Trader Vic’s Locations

These notably include a squeeze of fresh lime juice on the top of the cocktail, adding important flavor and fragrance to the cocktail. Sometimes this spent quarter lime is dropped onto the top of the cocktail.

The Original Mai Tai (1944 Mai Tai)
Trader Vic’s Emeryville used the “1944 Mai Tai” nomenclature in the late 2010s but all Trader Vic’s locations now call this “The Original Mai Tai” for trademark reasons.
¾ oz Lime Juice
¼ oz Trader Vic’s Rock Candy Syrup
½ oz Trader Vic’s Orgeat
¾ oz Orange Curacao
2 oz Trader Vic’s Royal Amber Rum
Shake with crushed ice and pour into Mai Tai glass
Squeeze ¼ of a lime, then garnish with spent lime shell and mint sprig

Trader Vic’s Mai Tai
When the 1944 Mai Tai was added to the menu at Trader Vic’s Emeryville, this version stayed on the menu and priced $1.50-$2.00 less. It is made with Trader Vic’s Mai Tai concentrate and typically labeled “Our signature Mai Tai has been modified to perfection.”
½ oz Lemon Juice
¾ oz Mai Tai Concentrate
2 oz Trader Vic’s Royal Amber Rum
Shake with crushed ice and pour into Mai Tai glass
Squeeze ¼ of a lime, then garnish with spent lime shell, fruit stick, and mint sprig

San Francisco Mai Tai
Add a float of 151 rum, named after a customer in San Francisco who liked it this way. In year’s past, Lemon Hart 151 was used. Today, you often see a mix of Trader Vic’s 151 and Trader Vic’s Dark Rum being used.

Trader Vic’s Island-Tai Variants

Today, you’ll see the Maui Tai (with Pineapple), Mango Tai, and a Guava Tai on the menu at many Trader Vic’s restaurants. A Passion Tai is also sometimes seen. These fruity and lighter variants do actually show some restraint compared to many Island-style Mai Tais that are swimming in juice.

½ oz Lime Juice
1 oz Pineapple Juice / Mango Puree / Guava Puree / Passionfruit Puree
¾ oz Mai Tai Concentrate
1 oz Trader Vic’s Gold Rum
1 oz Trader Vic’s Light Rum
Garnish with spent lime shell and mint sprig

Historical and Island Mai Tai Recipes

The Island Mai Tai or Hawaiian Mai Tai is the iconic version of the cocktail, most likely the version that most people picture in their minds. Pineapple Juice and the Dark Rum Float were added to Mai Tais served in Hawaii starting in the early 1960s and soon became pervasive. That style is certainly the version that is most common in the islands today.

Some Pineapple and maybe some Orange Juice are okay in a Mai Tai, but when Amaretto replaces the Orgeat and especially when heaps of Roses Grenadine are added it is no longer really a Mai Tai. As such, we don’t include those recipes here.

1956 Mai Tai by Trader Vic Bergeron
1 ounce Lime Juice
¼ ounce Rock Candy Syrup
¼ ounce Curacao
¼ ounce Orgeat
1½ ounces Lightly Aged Puerto Rican Rum
¾ ounce Hamilton 114 rum (or Hamilton 1670 West Indies Blend or a combo)

Mix in 16 ounce tumbler glass with shaved ice. Drop half a spent lime shell in the glass. Stir and decorate with fresh mint. This was supposedly the recipe served at the Royal Hawaiian Hotel according to Trader Vic himself.

1958 Havana Trader Vic’s Mai Tai
In Mai Tai glass filled with shaved ice:
Juice of 1 Whole Lime (save shell)
1 ounce Mai Tai Mix
1 ounce Trader Vic’s 15 yr Jamaica Rum
1 ounce St. James Rym
Shake and decorate with Lime shell, fresh Mint, and Fruit stick.

Halekulani Mai Tai

House without a Key Mai Tai, Halekulani Hotel in Waikiki
1 ¼ oz Lime Juice
⅓ oz Orgeat
⅓ oz Rock Candy Syrup
⅓ oz Orange Curacao (Cointreau)
¾ oz Bacardi Select/Black Rum
¾ oz Bacardi Gold Rum
Float ½ oz Lemon Hart 151 Rum

One of favorite recipe variations. This looks like a typical Island Mai Tai but is closer to an original 1944 Mai Tai in terms of ingredients.

Royal Hawaiian Mai Tai, Royal Hawaiian Hotel, Waikiki

This is perhaps the quintessential Mai Tai in terms of appearance. The pineapple juice and dark rum float are iconic and are the key elements to the Mai Tai for most people.

Royal Hawaiian Mai Tai, circa 2022

This recipe dates to 1972 from the book Drinks of Hawaii. Note that this Mai Tai does not have the dark rum float most typically associated with Island Mai Tais and included when you order one at the location currently. Though, I suppose, you could hold back the Dark Jamaican rum and float it. The scant 1 oz each of Orange and Pineapple were designed by Jeff “Beachbum” Berry in his books, and seems like the right balance for the rest of the ingredients.

Royal Hawaiian Mai Tai (1972)
1 oz Orange Juice
1 oz unsweetened Pineapple Juice
½ oz Lime Juice
¼ oz Lemon Juice
¼ oz Orgeat
¼ oz Sugar Syrup
¼ oz Orange Curacao
1 oz Demerara Rum
1 oz Dark Jamaican Rum
1 oz Light Rum
Garnish with a Pineapple finger, Sugar Cane stick, Orchid, and Mint Sprig.

The current Mai Tai served at the Royal Hawaiian is considerably different. Learn more about the history of Royal Hawaiian Mai Tai recipes from the 1950s-present.

Island Mai Tai by Michael Thanos
1 oz Lime Juice
2 oz Pineapple Juice
½ oz Orgeat 
½ oz Orange Curacao
1½ oz  Gold or Amber Rum
½ oz Dark Rum

Combine all the ingredients, except the dark rum, in a tall glass or shaker filled with ice. Shake, then pour into a tall ice-filled glass. Add a float of dark rum. Garnish with pineapple, cherry and a paper parasol. Michael Thanos, Forbidden Island (San Jose Mercury News, March 28, 2014)

Golden Island Mai Tai by Jason Alexander
1½ oz Lime juice
½ oz Orange juice
½ oz BG Reynolds Orgeat
1 oz BG Reynolds Pineapple Molasses Syrup
2½ oz Stiggins Pineapple Rum
Zip with crushed ice and pour unstrained into your favorite mug

Jason is a noteworthy craft bar owner and mixologist who says he prefers an Island style Mai Tai to the 1944 original recipe (which he cheekily calls “pedestrian” to see if it will get a rise out of me). So, it’s not too surprising to see this “scandalous” variant that adds more juice and sweeter ingredients. (Instagram)

Chuck’s Original Steak House, Waikiki, Courtesy of Les Hong
1½ oz Sweet and Sour mix
1 to 1-½ oz Light Rum
¾ oz Orange Curacao
½ oz Falernum or Orgeat syrup
1 oz Dark Rum or Demerara Dark Rum

Garnishes: half of a fresh Lime, fresh Mint

Pour first 4 ingredients over crushed ice; stir. Top with the dark rum, garnish and serve. (Honolulu Star Bulletin, October 1, 1997)

Modern Recipes and Riffs

Internatonal Bartenders Association (IBA)
30 ml Amber Jamaican Rum
30 ml Martinique Molasses Rhum
15 ml Orange Curacao
15 ml Orgeat Syrup (Almond)
30 ml Fresh Lime Juice
7.5 ml Simple Syrup

Add all ingredients into a shaker with ice. Shake and pour into a double rocks glass or a highball glass. Garnish with pineapple spear, mint leaves, and lime peel. (IBA)

Mai Tai Planter’s Punch by Jason Alexander at Devil’s Reef, Tacoma WA
2 dashes Aromatic Bitters
1 dash Falernum
1 dash Grenadine
¾ oz Lime juice
½ oz Orgeat
¼ oz Don’s Spices No. 2
½ oz Ferrand Dry Curacao
1½ oz Planteray (Plantation) Xaymaca Rum
½ oz Planteray (Plantation) OFTD Rum

Flash blend for five seconds with a cup of pure single ice. Pour unstrained into a tall glass adding more pure single ice to fill and garnish with few springs of mint. (Instagram)

Mai Tai by Shannon Mustipher, Tiki: Modern Tropical Cockails
2 oz Aged Rum
½ oz Rhum Agricole Blanc
½ oz Orange Curacao
½ oz Orgeat
½ oz Lime Juice

Combine all ingredients in a shaker with cubed ice. Shake and dump into a double rocks glass. Garnish with a Mint Spring and the reserved Lime shell.

Recommended spirts: Hamilton 86 Demerara Rum, Pananubes Rum, Marie Brizard Orange Curacao.

The Reverend’s Tai by Matt Pietrek (Cocktail Wonk)
1 oz fresh squeezed lime juice
¼ oz Pierre Ferrand Dry Curacao (or perhaps Clément Créole Shrubb)
½ oz Orgeat (adjust to taste, depending on sweetness)
½ oz Planteray (Plantation) Rum O.F.T.D. Overproof
1½ oz Planteray (Plantation) Rum Stiggins’s Fancy

Shake with ice. Serve over fresh crushed ice in a double old fashioned glass. Garnish with spent lime shell and other festive Tiki staples, e.g. pineapple fronds, orchids, etc. (Cocktail Wonk Blog)

Tia Mia by Ivy Mix (via Lani Kai, New York City, circa 2010)
¾ oz Lime Juice
½ oz Orgeat
½ oz Orange Curacao
1 oz Jamaica Rum
1 oz Mezcal
Shake with ice and garnish with mint and lime wheel.

Molasses Mai Tai

Molasses Mai Tai by Kevin Crossman
1 oz Lime Juice
½ oz Orgeat
¼ oz Molasses Syrup
½ oz Orange Curacao
2 oz Aged Jamaican Rum (Appleton Reserve 8)

Combine all ingredients in a shaker with crushed ice. Shake and dump into double rocks glass and garnish with Mint Sprig and reserved Lime shell. Inspired by the Pampanito cocktail at Smuggler’s Cove, which features molasses syrup and originally used the same rum.

Molasses Syrup:
2 cups Granulated Sugar
2 Tbsp. Mild Molasses
1 cup Hot Water
Combine all ingredients and stir until sugar is fully dissolved. 

Banana Mai Tai by Kevin Crossman
1 oz Lime juice
½ oz Orgeat
½ oz Molasses Syrup
¾ oz Banana Liqueur
2 oz Ultimate Mai Tai Rum Blend (equal parts Appleton 12 Rum, Smith & Cross Rum, Planteray (Plantation) OFTD Rum,Planteray (Plantation) Xaymaca Rum)

Blue Mai Tais

Blue Hawai-Tai by Kevin Crossman
1 oz Lemon Juice
½ oz Orgeat
½ oz Simple Syrup
½ oz Blue Curacao
1 oz White Overproof Jamaican Rum
½ oz Aged White Rum

Blue Hawai-Tai

Combine all ingredients in a shaker with crushed ice. Shake and dump into a small snifter glass. Garnish with Mint and tropical fruit.

It’s like the Blue Hawaii and the Mai Tai had a baby. Featured in Issue 7 of Exotica Moderne.

Recommended spirits:

  • Any white Jamaican Overproof rum will do fine, including the widely available Wray & Nephew Overproof. For best results use a 100% pot-still rum such as Rum-Bar Overproof or Rum Fire.
  • For the white rum we recommend something with at least some pot-still component, such as Probitas, Denizen Aged White, Hamilton White Stache, Myers’s White, or Plantation 3 Star. If you prefer something even lighter, then a rum with at least a little age such as Cruzan is recommended.

If you like it a little less sweet you can try this adjusted version that omits the sugar syrup and adds lime juice.

Blue Mai Tai
½ oz Lime Juice
½ oz Lemon Juice
½ oz Orgeat (“heavy pour”)
½ oz Blue Curacao
1 oz White Overproof Jamaican Rum
½ oz Aged White Rum
Garnish with Mint

Don the Beachcomber’s Mai Tai Swizzle

The Mai Tai Swizzle is a Don the Beachcomber cocktail that dates the 1950s according the cocktail historian Jeff “Beachbum” Berry. Berry notes that he was told by Donn Beach’s widow that the Mai Tai Swizzle dates to 1933, but that “it was not one of his favorites.” This cocktail was not seen on documented Don the Beachcomber menus from the late 1930s (during the time when Trader Vic visited Don the Beachcomber) so the earlier date is difficult to validate and comes from a biased source.

Note the Mai Tai Swizzle is different than the Q.B. Cooler, another Don the Beachcomber cocktail that has been claimed to be a precursor to the Mai Tai.

The Mai Tai Swizzle by Don the Beachcomber

Mai Tai Swizzle by Don the Beachcomber
¾ oz Lime Juice
1 oz Grapefruit Juice
½ oz Cointreau
¼ oz Falernum
1 ½ oz Dark Jamaican Rum
1 oz Gold Cuban Rum
6 drops Pernod
1 dash Angostura Bitters
Shake well with a cup of crushed ice. Garnish with 4 Mint Sprigs.