It is October, so that means that it is Zombie season at Ultimate Mai Tai HQ.
Tonight we took a run at tweaking the Zombie (Simplified) recipe by Jeff “Beachbum” Berry in his book Beachbum Berry Remixed.
Zombie (Simplified)
¾ oz Lime Juice
1 oz White Grapefruit Juice
½ oz Cinnamon Syrup
½ oz 151 Proof Puerto Rican Rum
1 oz Dark Jamaican Rum
My tasting notes from the last time I made this indicated the cinnamon was too forward. I’ve also felt that Grenadine is an essential component to the Zombie, so I made an adjustment to the syrups. I used a fresh Ruby Grapefruit.
You know I prefer heavier rums, so I used my Ultimate Mai Tai rum blend instead (which is actually around the same ABV as the two rums above). For those new readers, the Ultimate Mai Tai rum blend is equal parts Appleton 12, Smith & Cross, Plantation Xaymaca, and Plantation OFTD.
Zombie (Simplified) – Adjusted
¾ oz Lime Juice
1 oz Rudy Grapefruit Juice
¼ oz Cinnamon Syrup
¼ oz Grenadine
1½ oz Ultimate Mai Tai rum blend
This wasn’t terrible but honestly tasted a little flat. Definitely missed the additional spice elements in the 1934 Zombie recipe.
Happy birthday to Oakland tikiphile Laura Murphy (aka Pearl) who’s birthday is today.
To celebrate, I made one of Laura’s original cocktails named Spring Until Yesterday. Quite tasty using some of my favorite rums from Jamaica, and flavors such as Coconut and Falernum that I didn’t realize worked so well together. Give it a try.
Spring Until Yesterday by Laura Murphy 1 oz Lime Juice 1 oz Coconut Creme ¾ oz Falernum 1 tsp Herbstura ¾ oz Rum Fire Overproof Jamaican Rum 1 oz Coruba Dark Rum Flash blend with ice, then pour into glass or mug. Garnish with freshly grated cinnamon and a bouquet of mint.
Herbstura: equal parts Herbsaint (or Pernod/Absinthe) and Angostura Bitters
Our new site page discusses the Mai Tai recipe from the Havana Trader Vic’s, circa 1958.
In addition to being an interesting historical artifact about a little known (and shortly lived) Trader Vic’s location, it is one of the earliest documented references for the use of a Rhum Agricole in a Mai Tai.
I had some Valencia oranges so was looking for a recipe only using OJ. Why not a Painkiller?
And why not experiment with the rum?
As has been well-documented (and well-litigated!) the Painkiller is supposed to be made with Pusser’s Navy-Style rum. They have a trademark on it, too.
There is nothing wrong with a Pusser’s Painkiller, and I prefer the higher percentage ABV of Pusser’s Gunpowder Proof for any of my Pussers-based cocktails. But since I had some extra OJ I thought I’d try giving the Gunpowder Proof a challenge but making one with Smith & Cross Jamaican Rum to compare to. Their ABVs are similar, but how about the taste?
Verdict: Everything is better with Jamaican rum!
It wasn’t even close; the Painkiller made with Smith & Cross was so much more flavorful and satisfying than the one made with Gunpowder Proof. I know I’m totally biased for Jamaican rum, but honestly I think anyone would prefer this.
Don’t Sue Me Painkiller 3 oz Pineapple Juice 1 oz Orange Juice 1 oz Coconut Creme 2½ oz Smith & Cross Jamaican Rum
Glassware by Trader Vic’s and B-Rex. I like this blue color on this style glass.
Made this simple cocktail to watch the San Francisco Giants clinch a playoff spot. I had oranges but no other citrus, which I guess is poetic considering that orange is the Giants’ main color.
1 oz Valencia Orange Juice ¾ oz Passionfruit Syrup (Liber & Co) 1½ oz Myers’s Platinum White rum Shake with ice and strain Buster Posey figure optional
There is no doubt this one goes down easy. It leans sweet, that’s for sure. Balanced cocktails can come by later.
Gatekeeping the Mai Tai is a new article from our friend Matt Pietrek on the Cocktail Wonk blog. It is definitely a good summary of what’s happening online these days, as our tiki community grows and as more newcomers start to explore exotic cocktails.
The Mai Tai is the defacto standard tiki cocktail, so of course is the bellwether for this discussion. Though, Pietrek is quite savvy by changing the narrative to another cocktail in the example:
Newcomer: Check out my Navy Grog! I didn’t have grapefruit juice, so I used pineapple juice. And I subbed cinnamon for honey syrup. Tiki Veteran: Sounds great, but it’s not a navy grog. The grapefruit and honey are core flavor elements of that recipe. Newcomer: Don’t be elitist. I like my Navy Grog the way I made it. Narrator: Off to the races we go!
It is a good example. Newcomers sometimes accuse veterans of being elitist and know-it-alls, and there’s no doubt the shoe sometimes fits. Yet, the particular example is indicative of a newly emerging point of view that the cocktail can be whatever you want it to be.
When it comes to tiki culture, I’m a “big tent” guy. Geeki Tiki mugs based on Star Wars? Love them. Disney inspiration? Totally up for it. But the line has to be drawn somewhere and cartoonish “clown tiki” is my personal line.
Same goes for cocktails. As Pietrek points out in his article, nobody would defend newcomers who make a Manhattan with orange juice or a Margarita without tequila. So why must a Mai Tai made with whatever you want be okay?
It isn’t okay.
If that makes me a snobby gatekeeper then I am totally okay with that.
I do like Pietrek’s example where the tiki veteran says “sounds great, but…” That’s an education the newcomer needs to hear (and quite a few bartenders, I might add). As long as it is said nicely.
Cocktail Wonk Matt Pietrek autographing my copy of Minimalist Tiki
Pietrek’s site is a wonderful resource that compliments his amazing book Minimalist Tiki. He concludes that leveraging permanent sources is key for intellectual discourse and not just merely ephemeral social media comments. That’s one of the reasons why we started this site; to document historical facts along with our opinions and recommendations.
I wanted to do a grog riff that used Bourbon and Jamaican Rum as the base, so I chose two popular spirits that are both a little boozy. Smith & Cross (57% ABV) is a wonderful Jamaican rum that leans a bit funky, and is used widely in high-quality bars and restaurants. Wild Turkey 101 is a bold and boozy Bourbon that won’t break the bank. With more than two ounces of higher proof spirits, this cocktail pays homage to boozy forbearers such as the Navy Grog.
The two spirits seemed like a good combo, but this cocktail went through a few iterations. Thanks to the members of the “South SF Bay Area Tiki Ohana” group on FB for input, especially @laurasmurphy who provided tasting notes and suggestions.
Everything here should be pretty readily available, which is one reason this is calling specifically for Ruby Grapefruit and not the more traditional but harder to find White Grapefruit.
Turkey Grog by Kevin Crossman ¾ oz Lime Juice ½ oz Ruby Grapefruit Juice ½ oz Honey Syrup (1:1) ½ oz Velvet Falernum ½ oz Don’s Spices #2 2 dashes Angostura Bitters ¾ oz Smith & Cross Jamaican Rum 1½ oz Wild Turkey 101 Bourbon Shake with ice, garnish with mint. Serve in glass of choice.
Don’s Spices #2: Equal parts Vanilla Syrup and Pimento Dram/Allspice Liqueur. If you have non-alcoholic Falernum syrup then drop the amount to ¼ oz.
