Category: Recipe

Posted on

Bloody Valentine Cocktails

We have Blood Oranges so I made two cocktails that featured this deep red juice. These were tonight’s Valentine’s Day cocktails, along with Pan-Asian take-out from a place Mrs. Mai Tai recommended.

First is a Painkiller, using Blood Orange Juice in place. I guess this is maybe more purple but it still seems like a nice way to increase the visual interest.

The second cocktail is a Mai Tai variant published by Brian Maxwell on the Shaker with Spirits blog call the Mai Bloody Valentine. It’s a very good Mai Tai riff that looks great and tasted just as good.

Mai Bloody Valentine by Brian Maxwell
1 oz Aged Jamaican Rum (Appleton 8)
1 oz Aged Multi Island Rum (Denizen 8)
½ oz Orgeat
½ oz Ginger Syrup
¾ oz Lime Juice
1 oz Blood Orange Juice
1 dash Angostura Bitters
Shake with Crushed ice.

Posted on

Sidewinder’s Fang

A much better cocktail and garnish than the same cocktail I tried making last week. This classic tropical cocktail is great if you have oranges but you really need to pair it with a bold rum. This time I used 2 ounces of the Hamilton Navy Strength 114 Proof rum, which is a mix of Demerara and Jamaican rums.

Sidewinder’s Fang
1½ oz Lime Juice
1½ oz Orange Juice
1½ oz Passion Fruit Syrup (Liquid Alchemist)
1 oz Dark Jamaican Rum
1 oz Demerara Rum
3 oz Club Soda
Shake with ice, then float the club soda. Garnish with orange peel snake.

Posted on

Ti Punch with Rhum JM VO

Quite good with a small slice of lime and a dash of BG Reynolds Demerara Syrup.

Rhum JM isn’t as “grassy” as some Martinique Agricoles can be, so is more to my taste. This one was pretty good, and I have enjoyed the VSOP and XO expressions as well.

The rum is a tasting from the Forbidden Island Kill Devil rum list.

Posted on

Assertive Mai Tai

Someone on Facebook described my “Ultimate Mai Tai” recipe as being “assertive.” I totally took the comment in the way it was intended, which is to say that the Ultimate Mai Tai rum blend for sure isn’t for mellow drinking. This is rum-forward, and contains a large component of high-ester Jamaican rum. Bold and rich, intended to be savored.

So, in a way, “assertive” is actually quite the compliment.



Ultimate Mai Tai by Kevin Crossman
1 oz Lime Juice
½ oz Orgeat (Latitude 29)
¼ oz Demerara Syrup (BG Reynolds)
½ oz Orange Curacao (Ferrand Dry Curacao)
½ oz Appleton 12 Rum
½ oz Smith & Cross Rum
½ oz Plantation OFTD Rum
½ oz Plantation Xaymaca Rum

For those who find this rum blend too boozy and too heavy, there are thankfully so many great options. Appleton 12 just by itself is our recommendation for a single-rum Mai Tai, which provides a more approachable yet still quite satisfying rum-forward Mai Tai.

If you have a favorite rum, try it in a Mai Tai and let us know what how it worked. We’re always looking to try new rums in a Mai Tai.

Posted on

Mello Pomelo

Played around with some Pomelo juice and using the Hemingway Daiquiri template I tweaked a few things. Quite refreshing, give it a try.

Mello Pomelo
1 oz Pomelo Juice
¼ oz Grenadine
½ tsp Don’s Spices #2 (Pimento Dram + Vanilla Syrup)
½ oz Cointreau
¼ oz Maraschino Liqueur
2 oz Aged White Rum (Denizen 3)

Posted on

Mai Tai Swizzle (Re-Revisited)

I took another run at the Don the Beachcomber Mai Tai Swizzle. Last time I said that I thought there was too much citrus, but I might think differently if the lighter Cuban style rum was replaced by a heavier Demerara rum. 

So that’s basically what I did. I replaced the blend of Dark Jamaican and Gold Cuban rums with my Ultimate Mai Tai rum blend which includes Jamaican and Demerara rums. This time the heavier rum balanced out the citrus, though I still think going a little heavier on the Falernum would be a plus.

Mai Tai Swizzle (Don the Beachcomber)
¾ oz Lime Juice
1 oz Grapefruit Juice
½ oz Cointreau
¼ oz Falernum
2½ oz Ultimate Mai Tai Rum Blend
6 Drops Pernod
1 Dash Angostura Bitters
Shake with crushed ice

Ultimate Mai Tai Rum Blend is equal parts Appleton 12, Smith & Cross, Plantation Xaymaca, and Plantation OFTD.