Kevin Crossman – Page 114 – The Search for the Ultimate Mai Tai

August 26, 2022August 26, 2022

Mai Tai Day 2020 Virtual Toast

After the frenzy of 2019’s Mai Tai Day celebrating 75 years, 2020 was bound to be a more sedate affair. This was made even more so by indoor dining restrictions in summer 2020. So, the Mai Tai Day event was held in the parking lot in Trader Vic’s then current outdoor dining area.

The special glass in 2020 was a mason jar, quite fitting considering how to-go cocktails were packaged at Trader Vic’s during this period. It’s a wonderful variant of the seminal Trader Vic’s tapa design that’s graced glassware for years.

Drinks were available from the outside bar, and food could be ordered online. I thought my Mai Tai was quite tasty on this day, which was foggy and cool in the late morning when the event opened.

Later, there was a virtual toast with those attending in person being able to raise a glass with Mai Tai fans worldwide with Trader Vic’s CEO Rhett Rosen.

See you Sunday for the 2022 Mai Tai Day event and be sure to arrive early to see my seminar on the Hawaiian Mai Tai at 2 pm.

August 25, 2022August 25, 2022

75 Years of Mai Tai Roa Ae

In 2019, the Mai Tai celebrated its 75th anniversary. On a sunny Saturday in late August, Trader Vic’s flagship location in Emeryville held a special event to celebrate the occasion.

Every single square foot of public space was used at the restaurant, including all of the dining rooms, the outdoor patio, and the venerable Mai Tai lounge. Bands and DJs played, arts and craft vendors crammed into corners selling their wares, photo booths allowed guests to capture the moment, and a buffet provided an all-you-can-eat opportunity for hundreds of guests to sample some of the best food that Trader Vic’s offers.

And of course there were Mai Tais; eight variants in fact. Plus other Trader Vic’s cocktails, and long lines for thirsty patrons.

As the party reached its apex of capacity, Trader Vic’s granddaughter Eve Bergeron called the assembled masses together for a toast. And then she passed the microphone over to Forbidden Island and Conga Lounge tiki bar owner Michael Thanos.

Thanos was in his element. Like a country preacher, he told the story about how he lobbied to have the Mai Tai declared the official cocktail of Oakland. And then how the effort failed but at least the city did declare Mai Tai Day to be August 30. As he finished the story, he asked for glasses to be raised as he brought the assembled crowd to a fevered crescendo by proclaiming “Long live Trader Vic’s! Long live the Mai Tai!“

See you Sunday for the 2022 Mai Tai Day event and be sure to arrive early to see my seminar on the Hawaiian Mai Tai at 2 pm.

August 24, 2022August 24, 2022

Real Mai Tai Day 2018

This was the previous nomenclature used by Trader Vic’s Emeryville to designate the Mai Tai Day on August 30, to differentiate from “National Mai Tai Day” on June 30 (an unofficial cocktail holiday). Thankfully, many places are transitioning to the August date and this “real” name isn’t used anymore. Though I’m not sad to have two Mai Tai Days each year, if you know what I mean.

The 2018 event featured special Mai Tai glasses and DJ Otto Von Stroheim in the lounge. Practically quaint compared to the festivities since then. Similar celebrations were held at Trader Vic’s in 2016-2017, before I started doing the Mai Tai rabbit hole thing again.

See you Sunday for the 2022 Mai Tai Day event and be sure to arrive early to see my seminar on the Hawaiian Mai Tai at 2 pm.

August 23, 2022August 24, 2022

Jungle Bird (Modified)

A little light on the pineapple juice and a tad light on the Campari. Hamilton Pot Still Black Jamaican Rum, always.

August 22, 2022August 24, 2022

Mai Tai Myth: a 1944 Mai Tai Must be Made with Jamaican Rum

Leading up to Mai Tai Day (August 30), we are sharing five Mai Tai myths.

The original Mai Tai was made in 1944 by Trader Vic Bergeron with 17 year Jamaican rum from J. Wray & Nephew. Subsequent to that, the Trader Vic’s chain has used various Jamaican rums, rum blends that included Virgin Island rum, rums from Martinique, and currently are using Trader Vic’s Royal Amber rum distilled in Puerto Rico.

Nonetheless, some people think that a “1944 Mai Tai” must only include Jamaican rum.

The logic behind this seems a little twisted. The original Mai Tai had Jamaican rum, so it must only ever be made with Jamaican rum. As if today’s Myers’s or Coruba unaged blended rums with caramel color would be comparable to the original full pot-still rum aged for 17 years.

Additional perspectives indicate that the term “1944 Mai Tai” means the original recipe (thus, Jamaican rum). My perspective is that the term “1944 Mai Tai” is most typically meant to refer to a recipe featuring lime, curaçao, orgeat, sugar, and rum – in other words, NOT an Island Mai Tai. Some folks have said that this should be called a “Trader Vic’s Mai Tai” to mean this recipe using any kind of rum, and to those folks I remind them that Trader Vic’s themselves have recently had a 1944 Mai Tai on their menu using non-Jamaican rums.

If using rums made outside of Jamaica is good enough for Trader Vic’s, it should be good enough for you. The Mai Tai does not have a geographical origin, like the Ti Punch or Daiquiri, so use whatever rum is your favorite. I do love Jamaican rum, but you should use whatever rum you like. Then enjoy. Cheers.

Want to learn more? Check our website for additional historical notes and essays. Or join us in Emeryville at Trader Vic’s Mai Tai Day event on August 28 for a special seminar on the Hawaiian Mai Tai.

August 22, 2022August 22, 2022

Mai Tai Myth: The Mai Tai Created a Worldwide Rum Shortage

Leading up to Mai Tai Day (August 30), we are sharing five Mai Tai myths.

The original Mai Tai was made with a 17 year Jamaican rum from J. Wray & Nephew. This odd-aged release perhaps had something to do with barrels of rum sitting in warehouses during Prohibition and was available alongside Wray’s 15 and 20 year releases.

In the 1970 press release describing the origin of the Mai Tai, Trader Vic Bergeron states “The success of the Mai Tai and its acceptance soon caused the 17-year-old rum to become unavailable, so it was substituted with the same fine rum with 15 years aging.” This is where the myth originates, with people doing a shorthand to say that “rum” had a shortage due to the Mai Tai.

Firstly, Vic didn’t say that all rum ran short due to the Mai Tai, he said that one specific type of rum did. And even that is perhaps a tall-tale since Wray & Nephew certainly could have kept bottling a 17 year rum if they wanted to. There might have been a temporary gap in availability but if they could produce 15 year old rums for decades surely they could have figured out a way to keep some barrels in the warehouse for a couple additional years. But people like “round numbers” so that’s why you typically see 10, 12, 15, and 20 year old rums, but not 11, 13, and 17.

It is also unclear how many bottles Wray made of the 17 year. Perhaps Vic pulled a limited release rum?

There was not a “worldwide rum shortage” in the 1950s. It was a shortage of one specific rum that probably would have been discontinued whether or not it was used at Trader Vic’s service bar in 1944.

Want to learn more? Check our website for additional historical details. Or join us in Emeryville at Trader Vic’s Mai Tai Day event on August 28 for a special seminar on the Hawaiian Mai Tai.

August 21, 2022August 21, 2022

Wilfred’s Lounge in Napa Makes a Fine Little Saturday

Late summer seemed like a good time to venture up to Napa to check out the wine town including their very fine tiki bar and restaurant, Wilfred’s Lounge. They have a main entrance but the bar has open doors and you can order at the bar and drink there or take it upstairs to the deck or into the ship’s hull section.

We did a group dinner and given the size of the party we were seated on the patio. The restaurant isn’t large and so the patio is used as overflow and additional seating. While it’s not a dark immersive experience, there are worst places to hang out in the early evening given the cool breezes from the adjacent Napa River. And plenty of people watching.

The Hawaiian-inspired menu isn’t vast but we really liked the meal. I found my Kalua Pork to be just the right amount of greasy and and had a mild but very satisfying flavor. And we made sure to leave room for some ‘Ono Pie (don’t call it “Hula”) with coconut ice cream, macadamia nuts sprinkled on top with caramel, and cream. So good.

The cocktails remain on point. Their Mai Tai uses Jamaican and Martinique rums but these are not too challenging for the wine crowd and leaned a bit towards a lime cordial taste. The Doc’s Grog was quite fantastic. The strawberry cocktail called Maximum Aloha continues to impress, not sticky sweet like you’d expect but a tart leaning base to balance all the coconut banana whip on top. They have a very good rum collection and reasonable prices. As the menu says “call your spirit,” which I did (with please and thank you) for a Mai Tai with Denizen Vatted Rum.

Thanks to Doc Parks and the crew who did so well to service our group, even when it expanded mid-meal. Reservations are always helpful on a weekend, and Wilfred’s has a large collection of mugs and other merchandise for sale. I’m also a fan of the size/shape of their swizzle stick.