Author: Kevin Crossman

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Champs-Élysées Cocktail with Green Chartreuse

Did a little exploring through some classic cocktail recipes from Faith Hingey‘s book Classic Cocktails Done Well last night. After trying a Gold Rush (always a favorite) and a Sazerac (just okay) I finished with the Champs-Élysées. Unfortunately the Green Chartreuse seemed a little overpowering, so that I couldn’t even really taste the Cognac.

Champs-Élysées
½ oz Lemon Juice
¼ oz Simple Syrup
½ oz Green Chartreuse
2 oz Cognac
1 dash Angostura Bitters
Stir with ice and strain

I was so lucky to find this 375 ml bottle of Chartreuse before it became allocated and impossible to find.

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Haitian Mai Tai

Among the spirits distilled from sugar cane juice, I generally prefer the Clairins from Haiti. They contain vegetal notes similar to Rhum Agricole from Martinique but they often lean towards olive or brine notes and not grassy notes. Clairins are batch / pot distilled and have a heavy body.

I’ve been a staunch proponent of the Saint Benevolence Rum Clairin for several years, which is an unaged expression at 50 ABV that’s full bodied and delicious. But for the Mai Tai tonight I decided to use Saint Benevolence’s expression aged “for a minimum of one year” and pair it in equal parts with a standout aged Haitian rhum, Barbancourt Réserve Spéciale 8. Barbancourt is a rhum from sugar cane juice but distilled in a column still, so it’s considerably lighter than clairins typicaly are.

Barbancourt is Haiti’s most recognizable distillery and brand, and is widely available in major liquor stores, Total Wine, etc. Whereas Saint Benevolence is an American brand that imports the spirits. The aged expression isn’t as commonly available but you can still pick it up at places like Bitters & Bottles.

Using aged rums brings this cocktail closer to the Mai Tai’s aged rum origin, and boy do these two rums pair well together. The heavy body of the Saint Benevolence is a perfect match for the Barbancourt’s oaky notes. One of the best Mai Tais I’ve made at home in a while.

The Mai Tai is a standard 1944 recipe using these ingredients.

1 oz Lime Juice
½ oz Orgeat (Latitude 29)
¼ oz Demerara Syrup (Liber & Co.)
½ oz Orange Curacao (Clement Creole Shrubb)
1 oz Rhum Barbancourt Réserve Spéciale 8
1 oz Saint Benevolence Rum Clairin Aged in New American Oak
Shake with crushed ice

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Cadillac Daiquiri

So many times we end up at a bar or restaurant that has a pretty good selection of cocktails but nothing really using rum. Such was the case on our San Diego trip where we ate at the hotel’s restaurant a couple times. The food was nominally Mexican, so of course they had a pretty nice selection of tequila and a variety of Margaritas on the menu.

The problem, of course, is that I don’t always love tequila. And I’ve learned that even if they have lime juice, simple syrup, and rum that asking for a Daiquiri will usually lead to disappointment. So, I asked for a rum-riff on one of the cocktails on their menu.

I ordered a Cadillac Margarita with the tequila replaced with their best rum, Myers’s Dark Jamaican Rum. This “Cadillac Daiquiri” was actually pretty good. The added complexity with Grand Mariner being used did make this into a pretty reasonable tropical cocktail.

Keep this in your back pocket when needed.

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Blue Caribbean (Revised)

A Blue Hawaiian riff I came up with a year ago and decided to revisit. This version has less Pineapple Juice and uses a lightly aged “gold” Jamaican rum rather than a dark one.

Enjoy!

Blue Caribbean
½ oz Lime Juice

1 oz Pineapple Juice

1½ oz Coconut Creme

½ oz Blue Curacao

1¾ oz Unaged Rhum Agricole

¼ oz Lightly Aged Jamaican Rum
Shake with crushed ice.

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Ready to Drink Cocktail Review: BTL SVC Scorpion

Took another shot at a ready to drink cocktail, and even made a fresh Scorpion to compare to. Ingredients are rum, brandy, orgeat, tropical gimme, fresh pineapple, orange, and lemon juice. So, this looks overall like the right list of ingredients.

Unfortunately this one had a weird and funny taste and wasn’t very good. Plenty boozy at 28% ABV.



Truth be told I do find the actual Scorpion to be too heavy on the citrus and leans too much on light rum.

Scorpion (Trader Vic’s)
2 oz Orange Juice
1½ oz Lemon Juice
½ oz Orgeat
2 oz Light Rum
1 oz Brandy
Flash blend with 8 oz crushed ice.

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Club 33 B-Rex Glass in White

We were the fortunate recipients of this glass from a neighbor who perhaps saw the counterpart color print glass in our house, designed by @artofbrex back in 2019 for Club 33’s tiki summer event.



We had the lucky opportunity to go to Club 33 at Disneyland during this event so we had to buy the glass set designed by our friend @brianrechenmacher on sale that summer. That was a fantastic experience: not often you have a three Mai Tai (yes, three!) lunch at Disneyland, which at the time was still “dry” other than in the members-only Club 33. The white version pays obvious homage to the classic Trader Vic’s Mai Tai glass design.

To celebrate I made a Smith & Cross Mai Tai, the rum that Brian used in Mai Tais made for me at several venues during his bartending days where he amazingly remembered that I loved that potent Jamaica Rum in a Mai Tai. It is fantastic but hardly subtle. Kind of like B-Rex himself! Cheers.

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Top 10 Mai Tais of 2022

The list includes commercial restaurants and bars, plus Mai Tais we had at home tiki bars and events. You can view the full list and additional details on our page:
Top 10 Mai Tais of 2022

10: The Rum House

Trader Nic’s Mai Tai, named after the head bartender, features Hamilton Jamaican Pot Still Black and unaged Rhum JM, plus a tiny float of OFTD.

9: Dealer’s Choice Mai Tai by Adrian Castañeda at The Kon-Tiki Room

Adrian used 1 oz of Worthy Park Kon-Tiki Single Barrel (aged 5 yrs, cask strength), along with ½ oz each of Worthy Park 109 and Uruapan Charandra Anejo.

8: Sunken Harbor Club

Everything they say is true! The famed Mai Tai created by Garret Richard for Sunken Harbor Club in Brooklyn is indeed a top-notch Mai Tai.

7: The Kon-Tiki Single Barrel Mai Tai

This version with Kon-Tiki’s special single barrel release from Worthy Park was totally fantastic.

6: Dr. Funk (original blend)

The original rum blend in the Dr. Funk Mai Tai featured two of our favorite rums, Appleton 12 and Smith & Cross.

5: Smuggler’s Cove with Appleton and Hamilton Rums

We thank bartender Steven Liles for indulging us with the custom order and for making a great Mai Tai.

4: Hale Pele

Who knew that a combination of inexpensive Jamaican rums like Coruba Dark and Wray & Nephew Overproof could be so flavorful and memorable?

3: Maunakea Mai Tai at Skull & Crown Trading Co.

Skull & Crown three Mai Tais on their menu but we prefer this traditional 1944 style Mai Tai made with Appleton 12, Clement Select Barrel, Smith & Cross Jamaican Rum.

2: Classic Mai Tai with Appleton and Hamilton Rums by Skipper Nate at Trader Sam’s

I found myself at the bar at Trader Sam’s on a slow afternoon and Skipper Nate totally willing to work with me to find the very best Mai Tai that could be made on the premises.

1: Birds of Paradise Lounge

This Mai Tai features a complex four rum blend of Appleton 12, Smith & Cross, Plantation Xaymaca, and Kō Hana Kea.

It seems impossible to believe that a party Mai Tai served in a plastic cup could be the best this year but when the Correy and Mariella Bravo make a Mai Tai their way you know it’s going to be Maita’i roa ae.

View the full write up for the Top 10 Mai Tais of 2022