We’re pleased to return to Mai Tai Day at Trader Vic’s Emeryville to present a seminar called the Search for the Ultimate Mai Tai.
This will be an informative and humorous presentation describing the hunt for the ultimate Mai Tai. Topics include newly uncovered historical details, best and worst Mai Tais, and how to get the perfect Mai Tai at your local watering hole. Advice and lessons for the home bartender will be provided, including finding the perfect rum blend to impress your guests.
Tickets for Mai Tai Day are still available and the event includes other seminars, vendors, live music and DJs, and an art show. Plus plenty of Mai Tais, making this the best day of the year.
There’s been a lot of online hype for Holmes Cay’s new Réunion Island Rum Traditionnel – Single Origin Edition, a rum from a French island but made with molasses rather than sugar cane juice that’s commonly seen French rhums in U.S. markets. Because Trader Vic used a rum from French department Martinique in his “second adjusted Mai Tai formula” there’s been interest in what kind of rum was used back in the 1950s. Sleuthing by Martin Cate and Matt Pietrek indicates a molasses origin for Vic’s Martinique rum, and since molasses rum from Martinique is not available having one from a different French department is seen as the next best thing.
But is it the rum you want for a second adjusted formula Mai Tai?
Photo courtesy Derek from Make and Drink
No, no it isn’t.
Vic said that “Martinique rums are similar to dark Jamaica rums because they are dark and pungent in flavor and aroma” which is nothing like the Holmes Cay Traditionnel. While this rum does has industrial/solvent type notes but they’re very mild and nothing like Holmes Cay’s Réunion Island Grand Arôme Rum. It is fairly light in color and comes from a column still, so lighter in body than Jamaican rums.
So if you’re trying to replicate the second adjusted formula, this rum isn’t it; we suggest Worthy Park 109 as a readily available substitute that tastes like Vic described it.
But are you looking for a pretty interesting rum to make a great Mai Tai? Here we have better news, because Réunion Island Rum Traditionnel is fantastic in a Mai Tai. We paired it with Appleton 12 but it was honestly better on its own. There’s a rich character to the flavor of the Mai Tai but it is just mild enough that we think anyone would love it.
Réunion Island Rum Traditionnel is 46% ABV and retails for around $55, make it a splurge that’s worth it.
Mai Tai comparison
“Réunion Island Rum Traditionnel is fantastic in a Mai Tai”
We had a great time visiting Oculto 477 in Old Town San Diego. The reservation-only speakeasy is located inside the Tahona restaurant and adjacent to the El Campo Santo cemetery that dates to 1849. After checking in, you are provided with the rules of the speakeasy (two drink minimum, 90 mins max, no flash photography) and then brought into a confession booth of sorts where you must confess to one of the seven deadly sins and also how you sinned before entering.
Lorona cocktail
There’s a small bar and some loungy tables inside, plus one booth for a larger group which is where we were seated. The cocktail menu includes signature cocktails named after each deadly sin, plus other thematic cocktails such as the Graveyard Shift and 1849 Zombie. I went with Greed, a funky Negroni with rye whiskey and Jamaican rum. I can neither confirm nor deny what sin I confessed to, but I’ll confess that I loved Greed.
Greed
Everyone in our group seemed to enjoy the cocktails, and there are some great non-alcoholic options. Julie enjoyed the Lorona with ginger and carrot – plus a great presentation in a skull mug with a flower. Unlike the bar in Tahona that basically was nothing but agave spirts, Oculto includes a large variety of “brown spirits” as well.
The cocktail list includes a Dealer’s Choice option, an indication they’re interested in going off menu. Noticing pistachio orgeat on the menu, I took a chance and asked for a classic Mai Tai with Mexican rum. After confirming that pistachio orgeat was okay, they delivered a fantastic Mai Tai that used Dakabend Oaxacan Pot Still Rum. This was really great, and that heavy but sweet cane-juice rum was a fantastic choice by the bartender. One of the top 10 Mai Tais of the year so far.
Mai Tai with Mexican Rum
After exiting we asked the host what 477 means in the name, and she said it was the number of bodies in the cemetery! Quite a unique adventure in Old Town San Diego.
We skipped False Idol last year but prioritized visiting this time, making a reservation on Wednesday before Tiki Oasis. The bar was super crowded, but tables are given to those with reservations which helped. We’re aways impressed by the small but immersive bar that features great music and a ton of fish floats and an elaborate number of wall carvings by local legend Bosko Hrnjak.
The cocktail menu now comes in a gigantic book, which sets a lot of tone including a fictionalized backstory for the bar but also means you have to constantly leaf through the pages to make a decision. I haven’t been happy with the Mai Tais here in the past so went with a False Idol original called the Chunky Dunk, featuring banana and sherry, served up. It was fantastic, another banana drink that I simply love. Mrs. Mai Tai had the Pearl Diver, also very good and on par with the compelling one at Strong Water Anaheim that we had a couple months back.
Besides tiki classic and False Idol originals, there’s a portion of the menu called the reserve section where cocktails are prepared with premium spirts with a price to match. Against my better judgment I ordered the Reserve Mai Tai made with aged Rhum JM and Appleton 15 rum, and it was good but not really with the $32 price tag. Every other drink I’ve ever had a False Idol has been a home run but the Mai Tai remains sort of a scratch single, not bad but not as amazing as everything else. San Diego is not a good Mai Tai town.
We had a great time seeing folks from Tiki Oasis, plus tons of non-tiki people packing the place on a Wednesday evening. False Idol is located inside Craft & Commerce with a separate host station, reservations recommended.
Tiki Oasis weekend in San Diego kicked off in traditional style with a quick visit to the Bali Hai Restaurant on Shelter Island with DJ Ship Rex who’d never visited before. I’d only ever been for lunch or dinner and the mid-afternoon vibe was a lot more casual, with seating at the bar and in the rear portion of the lounge (no window seats, sadly), accompanied by live music.
Rex and I both wisely decided to keep things in moderation by avoiding the Bali Hai’s infamous “no juice” Mai Tai made with at least five ounces of rum! We watched the bartender prepare these and after tiny splashes of orgeat, sweet and sour mix, and curaçao a bit of ice is put into the glass. Then bottles of light and dark rum are positioned to pour into the glass. As Rex described it, “pour until full” meaning that there is tons of rum in the Bali Hai Mai Tai. Limit two per customer, as they say.
Goof Punch
We stuck with the pleasant and juicy Goof Punch that’s sort of an island style Mai Tai with lots of pineapple juice and a ton of flavor. As we exited the venue we attempted to take a selfie with Mr. Bali Hai but the sun was basically blinding but still a fun focal point. We stopped at Trader Mort’s liquor store on the way out and found many bottles of rum for sale including some overpriced items but also some deals, plus tiki mugs and other Trader Mort branded merch.
Shelter Island is still high on our list of destinations in San Diego and the beautiful views remain breathtaking.
Had to make time to swing by the Tommy Bahama Marlin Bar at the Fashion Valley mall while we were across the street at Tiki Oasis. This still impresses, it tastes like a Mai Tai and has plenty of rummy flavor thanks to the dark rum float.
The Marlin Bar has pretty good cocktails and I enjoyed some great sliders as well. There was even a couple playing live music during our visit.
Everyone is getting geared up for Mai Tai Day on August 30, including the Halekulani Hotel in Waikiki. This is the home of one of Waikiki’s best Mai Tais, made in a fashion very similar to the original Hawaiian Mai Tai that was introduced in 1953 by Trader Vic.
Earlier this year we covered the evolution of the cocktail based on published recipes that the Halekulani has made available over the years. The current version is pretty good and like that 1950s original Hawaiian Mai Tai it uses the sweeteners in equal portions, plus a dark rum alongside a lighter rum.
Every great Mai Tai needs a signature rum, and the Halekulani’s Mai Tai is no exception. The key ingredient here is the float of Lemon Hart 151 rum, which adds savory smoky notes to the cocktail along with the layer of color that tourists expect in Mai Tais in Waikiki. It is truly essential to the success of this cocktail, and mild low-proof dark rums simply don’t cut it. Other brands that are suitable for the float here would be Hamilton 151, Planteray OFTD, or any dark Guyana rum.
The recipe is not quite an original 1944, nor is it a “Tourist Tai” with tons of pineapple and OJ. The Halekuani Mai Tai is its own thing, and it is delicious.
Favorite memory at the Halekuani: relaxing in the shade to the sound of waves lapping on the shore, sipping an amazing Mai Tai that’s unlike any other on Waikiki.
Halekulani Mai Tai 1¼ oz Lime Juice ⅓ oz Orgeat ⅓ oz Rock Candy Syrup ⅓ oz Orange Curacao ¾ oz Bacardi Select/Black Rum ¾ oz Bacardi Gold Rum Combine ingredients over crushed ice Float ½ oz Lemon Hart 151 Rum Garnish with lime wheel, sugar cane stick, and vanda orchid
