This recipe comes from a 1997 Honolulu Star-Bulletin article, and curiously doesn’t include any Pineapple Juice.
1990s Royal Hawaiian Mai Tai 5 oz Mai Tai Mix 1 oz White Rum 1 oz Myers’s Dark Rum Fill glass with ice, add mix and rums
Mai Tai Mix 10 oz Orange Juice 4 oz Orange Curacao 2 oz Orgeat 2 oz Rock Candy Syrup 2 oz Sour Lemon Combine all ingredients and add water to make 1 quart
This complex and large format Mai Tai Mix likely isn’t particularly approachable for the home bartender, though if a math wiz wants to scale this down for individual serving size we’ll gladly attribute your effort.
Update: our friend Cory Schoolland did the math and while the exact amounts for some of these are technically a bit higher or lower than indicated this is very close without having to measure in single milliliters.
Mai Tai Mix (single use) 1½ oz Orange Juice ⅔ oz Orange Curacao ⅓ oz Orgeat ⅓ oz Rock Candy Syrup ⅓ oz Sour Lemon Juice 1¾ oz Water
According to legend, the Rum Runner cocktail was originally developed when “Tiki John” Ebert improvised a new cocktail based on leftover ingredients at the Holiday Isle Resort in the Florida Keys in 1972.
And, strangely, looking at leftover bottles is also what led me to making this cocktail.
I was going through one of the main liquor cabinets at home and thought maybe it was time to take look at dumping stuff I’m no longer using or to finish up an almost empty bottle. This was the case with my beloved Giffard Banane du Brésil, almost empty (and with a spare bottle already at the ready). I look way in the back and saw a bottle of Blackberry Brandy. I’ve head this for years and it’s been so long I don’t even remember why I had it.
Banana and Blackberry… what could I make? Thankfully, I remembered these were the two cornerstone ingredients in a Rum Runner.
Rum Runner 1½ oz Lime Juice ⅞ oz Banana Liqueur (Giffard) ⅞ oz Blackberry Brandy (Hiram Walker) ⅝ oz Grenadine ¾ oz 151 Proof Puerto Rican Rum (Cruzan) Fill 5 cup blender half full with ice cubes and blend until smooth.
I blended until smooth and poured into a bamboo glass and it was a perfect pour right to the rim!
The above recipe is what’s on the souvenir cup pictured in the Total Tiki App and differs slightly from the listed recipe by using less grenadine. In actuality, this is too much ice for the amount of rum and liqueurs. Pretty flavorless and leans a little tart. So, I added about an ounce more of the Blackberry Brandy and it did improve the cocktail. The recipe on the cup doesn’t specify a type of rum and certainly a Demerara 151 likely would also improve this.
I’ve heard the Banana is lost in this and I must concur. Maybe I should have used artificial creme de banana instead of this good Giffard liqueur.
We enjoyed a trip up to the Napa Valley Museum Yountville to view the exhibition running now through through December 31, 2023. The collection is curated by Baby Doe & Otto von Stroheim of Tiki Oasis and it tells a chronological story of tiki in popular culture with an emphasis on venues from the Bay Area. Those venues include Trader Vic’s of course, but also The Lanai, Tiki Bob’s, and more. Each named venue features a nice chronology and plenty of historical details and artifacts.
The collection includes some large tikis, a tiki mug collection, and plenty of artwork. There’s an incredible tiki by Crazy Al (unfortunately not attributed in the museum) that has nods to the different carving styles from across the Pacific. And there’s a custom-built bar built by Woody Miler and used for events.
Overall, the exhibit is well worth the drive and modest entrance fee. We went first thing on Saturday and avoided the typical weekend traffic jams. A California Road Trip exhibit downstairs will also scratch the itch for fans of midcentury kitsch.
The exhibit also features a gift shop with a great selection of items from Trader Vic’s, McBiff, Heidiline, Tiki and Stitch, and more. The great looking event mug by Woody Miller that pays tribute to the Barney West tiki outside Trader Vic’s is only available at the ~monthly ticketed special event receptions: June 17, July 15, August 19, September 16, October 7, December 2. Check the website for event details and ticket links.
A wonderful evening at Trader Vic’s where Eve Bergeron welcomed authors Garret Richard and Ben Schaffer who discussed their new book Tropical Standard. The authors signed copies and held a Q&A about topics within the book. We thought Schaffer did a good job sort of leading the discussion points and throwing it to Richard for deep dives on various topics. Lots of smiling head nods when Richard noted “Lime, sugar, and spirit is nature’s alcohol delivery system.” A very tight and breezy hour or so.
Richard also discussed the approach for his Mai Tai recipe, noting that he uses ⅝ oz of Latitude 29 Orgeat (2:1 syrup) and two orange liqueurs to provide an ounce of sweet to balance the ounce of lime juice. He mentioned going to 2¼ oz of rum to deliver the equivalent of the booziness of mid-century rums.
The authors also brought Tommy’s Margarita creator Julio Bermejo to discuss his approach to that cocktail, procuring and using limes, and more. Bermejo’s adjustment to use a watered down Agave Syrup in lieu of Triple Sec in the Margarita reinforced some of the author’s ideas around Sugar Adjustment for preparing cocktails, and Bermejo is a charismatic speaker in his own right.
Three cocktails from the book were featured and prepared in the Cook Room where the book discussion was held. I heard only great things about Yacht Rock, which I did not try, but I did enjoy the two others.
From Dusk Till Dawn was quite delightful, featuring a delightful Blood Orange Syrup. The use of a Blood Orange Syrup allows the flavors of that fruit to be used but in a format that is sweet enough to work with the spirit and doesn’t water down the drink.
Pineapple Princess was a delicate cocktail that uses a Pineapple Syrup and milk washed rum. I thought this was great.
We thank the authors for signing the book and for bringing forth the ideas about preparing tropical cocktails using these different techniques.
From Dusk Till DawnPineapple PrincessMake and Drink Host Derek Doc Parks and Garret Richard
Appleton unveiled details of their forthcoming Appleton Estate 17 Year Old Legend Jamaica Rum release this week. The rum was developed by Appleton’s master blender Joy Spence using four rare distillates to replicate the formula for Wray & Nephew 17, the original rum that Trader Vic used in the Mai Tai. Issued at 49% ABV and aged in ex-Bourbon oak barrels, Legend replicates the original by being 100% pot still distillate.
Spence was quoted in a Forbes article about the release, saying “When I made the Mai Tai with this rum. I tell you, I was in heaven. I sat in my garden and I said this is most amazing Mai Tai ever.”
Appleton Estate
Due to the rarity of the distillate, only 1500 bottles will be available globally, never to be produced again. Legend will be available at select “premium retailers” starting in June 2023, in the United States, Jamaica, the United Kingdom, France, Italy, Czech Republic, Switzerland, Belgium, Netherlands, Luxembourg, Austria, Denmark, Singapore, Taiwan, South Korea, New Zealand, Japan, and Hong Kong. List price is $500 per bottle.
Their hyped May 17 announcement date coincided with the selling of a few bottles via Blockchain broker BlockBar, where the early adopters are guaranteed an NFT and a bottle. Or, they are now in a position to flip the rum to the highest bidder, with some bottles now well over $1000.
The Mad Scramble Starts in June
You’d think that with a $500 list price that maybe it would keep away some buyers. Heck, even Appleton’s $300-$400 Hearts releases are still found out there here or there. But given the hype it seems that Legend will be very difficult to obtain. We know a few famous venues and collectors who won’t be getting Legend even after they asked.
Personally, I’ll be traveling in the British Isles for the last two weeks in June. So, there’s nary a chance I’ll be able to jump on my favorite retailer’s customer email and snap this release up like I did with the Appleton Hearts release. The whole NFT thing left a bad taste in my mouth.
Maybe someone will take pity and offer me a tot or two.
2023’s most interesting cocktail book comes from Garret Richard (Sunken Harbor Club) and Ben Schaffer (The Dead Rabbit Drinks Manual). “Tropical drinks” are sometimes looked down upon by cocktail snobs and even tiki purists as being “lesser”, but the book describes how these juice-heavy cocktails can be elevated using modern techniques.
While each cocktail gets a photo, this is not a coffee table book full of pretty pictures. Instead, this will appeal to those looking to understand the methods of making great cocktails and also to learn how longstanding recipes can be improved. There are reimagined recipes for the Blue Hawaii, Ray’s Mistake, and many others.
The Mai Tai from Tropical Standard
Richard’s acclaimed Mai Tai recipe is included, without any need for significant reimagining. The authors state “It does not suffer from any defect in its conception”, yet acknowledges that today’s Mai Tai can’t exactly replicate one from 1944. The recipe is fairly complex, using two orange liqueurs, three rums, and a few drops of Salt Solution to heighten the flavors. The spent lime shell goes inside the cocktail, not on top. Check the book for the recipe but suffice to say that the Mai Tai is quite fantastic.
“New versions of this pivotal cocktail are constantly advanced and debated by bartenders world-wide. It is nigh on impossible to improve on a drink as iconic as the Mai Tai, but with its collection of small adjustments, rediscovered techniques, and precise flavor pairings, the Mai Tai you are about to make will banish all others from your heart.”
Other preparation techniques include ice and dilution, acid adjusting citrus, and even sugar adjusting. These are presented in an open way, not in one that talks down to the reader – which this lazy home bartender appreciates. There are many opportunities to reconsider long-held personal tendencies and to consider new approaches.
Tropical Standard is available today at fine booksellers everywhere.
I challenged Trader Vic’s Emeryville bartender Troy to make a Banana Cow, one of the Trader’s earliest cocktail hits. And boy did Troy make it great, perfectly blended and totally icy smooth to the last drop.
There are two printed recipes for the Banana Cow, which evolved to be more of a true cocktail by the 1970s.
Banana Cow (1946) 1 crushed, ripe Banana 2 level teaspoons bar Sugar 3 oz fresh whole Milk 1½ oz Puerto Rican Rum (Ron Merito, Boco Chica, or Brugal) Plenty of Cracked Ice “Put the mess into an electric mixer and mix the hell out of it. Pour into a large glass and have at it. No foolin’ this is a pip.” Trader Vic’s Book of Food & Drink (1946)
Banana Cow (1972) 1 whole Banana 1 tsp bar Sugar 1 dash Vanilla (Extract) 3 oz fresh Milk 1 oz Trader Vic’s light Puerto Rican rum 1 dash Angostura Bitters ½ scoop shaved ice Blend in electric mixer. Serve in Planter’s Punch glass. “The world’s finest, greatest, oh-so-good peachy hangover special. That’ll do it when nothing else will” Trader Vic’s Bartender’s Guide Revised (1972)
Later, Vic wrote in Trader Vic’s Rum Cookery & Drinkery (1974) about the cocktail, saying “The Banana Cow is the greatest hangover drink as far as I’m concerned. People are in a rut serving Bloody Marys, and they really kill you rather than cool you. But milk is good for you, and bananas are good for your stomach. Many is a morning I could count a lot of people waiting for me to open my doors for a Rum or Banana Cow to cool it, heal it, and cure it completely.”
