This tequila came recommended and I found it to be quite delightful in this cocktail. Affordable, too.
Aloha Friday and National Pina Colada Day
And look! The incredible Eye of the Tiki mug from Vantiki has arrived. There have been plenty of things to be bummed about in 2020, but this mug and the fine folks behind Tiki-Kon are not one of them. This two-sided mug turned out great, and Justin and Greg of Tiki-Kon have handled everything so professionally and with love, including getting these mugs out very quickly. I couldn’t be happier with the mug.
For National Pina Colada day I prepared two cocktails with Cruzan Rum as the base. Mine was a Pina Colada with a float of Pussers rum, whereas Mrs. Mai Tai enjoyed her Pina Colada in the Forbidden Island “Chamborlada” style with Chambord Liqueur. Delish.
Kali Mai Tai
I was gifted this from some fellow tikiphiles and it’s totally cool. It pays homage to the Indiana Jones franchise including the Mara-glyphics from the Indiana Jones Adventure attraction at Disneyland. Who’s that holding the cocktail? Why that’s Mola Ram from Temple of Doom, the priest who would performs human sacrifices for the goddess Kali. In the movie people were forced to drink the Blood of Kali Ma, a potion that brainwashed people to make the devout followers. If only getting more Instagram followers was so easy.
The pin is really large and the glyphics on the front have the recipe for the 1944 Mai Tai. On the back of the card, there’s a recipe for the Kali Mai Tai, a twist on the original recipe feature Asian rum, Blood Orange Juice, and Blood Orange Cordial.
The back of the pin features a decoder wheel so you can translate the recipe and the secret message (which I won’t spoil in the post). The decoder is great, though I found that using the Disneyland App was faster: go to Adventureland and choose the Indiana Jones ride and there is a glyphics decoder.
As for the cocktail, it is wonderful. Especially if you pair it with appropriate glassware such this one from Last Rites in San Francisco. I liked the tangy blood orange twist on the Mai Tai. I used the Liber and Co. Blood Orange Cordial. Give it a try!
The pin is available from @junglecruiserusso. So well done.
- Purchase: Kali Mai Tai pin on Etsy
Painkiller Modified
Made a Painkiller with a modified juice ratio. I really love the Valencia Orange Juice and thought that maybe adding more orange to a Painkiller would improve it. But it probably came out a little less good.
1 oz Coco Real Coconut Creme
2 oz Pineapple Juice
2 oz Valencia OJ
2 oz Pusser’s Rum
Glassware by B-Rex.
Juneteenth Cocktail
Trying to learn more about this event and future national holiday. I didn’t have strawberries but wanted to make a red drink.
1 oz Lemon Juice
1/2 oz Liber & Co. Blood Orange Cordial
1/2 oz Simple Syrup
1/2 oz Cherry Heering
1 oz Light Rum (I used Denizen White)
1 oz Saint Benevolence Rum Clairin from Haiti
Shake with cubes and top with soda.
Singapore Sling
I don’t have Benedictine, so I have been using the 1937 Don the Beachcomber recipe. I have felt this lacked complexity so I have been thinking of things to add to it. This time I tried a bit of Passionfruit Syrup. It was maybe a little better but still something is lacking. But I do like the heavy cherry taste and the gin makes it refreshing.
Singapore Sling
½ oz Lemon Juice
1 oz Cherry Heering
1 oz Dry Gin
¼ oz Passionfruit Syrup
Shake with ice cubes add 1 ½ oz Soda and pour into tall glass.
Glassware by The Kon-Tiki.
Monkey Business
This cocktail was created by Laura Murphy and I liked it when she and Woody Miller finished their Kon Tiki Expedition Rum List back in January.
Laura posted the recipe yesterday, in tribute to her mother who passed away a year ago. Her mom had helped with the testing and Laura’s post includes the recipe written out in her mother’s handwriting. Truly heartbreaking. Hang in there, Laura.
This cocktail needs to get out there, so here’s the recipe. I tried it with both the Giffard and Tempus Fugit Banana Liqueurs and I’d say that maybe the Giffard had a slightly more banana taste. But otherwise these were very close, and both were delicious.
Monkey Business by Laura Murphy
¾ oz Lemon Juice
½ oz Falernum
¼ Dry Curacao
1 oz Banana Liqueur
½ oz Hamilton Pot Still Black rum
1 oz Plantation 5 yr Rum
2 dashes Forbidden Bitters
Ideally, garnish with banana wedge and dehydrated lemon wheel.
This is a really good cocktail. Give it a try, and raise a glass.
