Made this for a potluck at work.
- Pineapple
- Red Onions
- Bell Pepper
- Lime Juice (1 oz)
- Seasoning (Cilantro etc)
Paranubes Anejo Aguardiente de Caña
I received a gift card to Bitters & Bottles and picked up this aged cane spirit from Mexico.
Such interesting flavors. You can taste the Olive-like cane juice source in this rum, but the spiced aging notes from new American oak barrels gives this a bit of a Scotch-like taste. You can definitely savor this spirit, bottled at 53.8% ABV.
1958 Royal Hawaiian Mai Tai
In 1958, a news story published in the Memphis Commercial Appeal provided a Mai Tai recipe that was attributed as coming from a bartender at the Royal Hawaiian.
1 oz Lemon Juice
½ oz Fresh Lime Juice
⅓ oz Rock Candy Syrup
⅓ oz Orgeat
⅓ oz Orange Curacao
1 oz Light Puerto Rican Rum (Cruzan Aged)
1 oz Dark Jamaican Rum (Hamilton Florida Rum Society blend)
Decorate the glass with a stalk of Sugar Cane, a sprig or two of Mint, and a Pineapple stick or two.
The ⅓ ounce measures for the Rock Candy, Orgeat, and Orange Curacao are most likely due to those ingredients being batched so that the bartender can more easily measure 1 ounce of sweetener.
In practice, this cocktail is significantly too tart. Most 1944 style Mai Tais feature an equal or slightly more sweeteners compared to the citrus. Adding additional sugar made this taste better to me, but didn’t taste as rummy as I like. Only using 1 oz of citrus would have been better.
The glass was a limited edition release from our friends at Skull & Crown Trading Company, the best tiki bar between San Francisco and Tokyo. We’re going to be visiting O’ahu in June and will be making a pilgrimage to Skull & Crown where we expect to have a properly balanced Mai Tai like we did back in 2019.
New Site Feature: The (De)Evolution of the Hawaiian Mai Tai
An important piece of cocktail journalism is launching this week with my article in the latest issue of Exotica Moderne, available today at the Tiki Caliente weekend event in Palm Springs.
The article describes how the Hawaiian Mai Tai evolved from 1953 to present day and also explodes several myths.
- The Royal Hawaiian Mai Tai was born with Pineapple Juice in 1953.
- Nobody knew the ingredients for a Mai Tai, so they made due with whatever they had.
- Trader Vic kept the recipe for a Mai Tai secret until 1970.
All of the above are not true.
Just this week I saw two fresh articles that stated that Trader Vic himself added pineapple juice when he brought the Mai Tai to Hawaii in 1953. This is clearly not correct based on my research, and the Royal Hawaiian isn’t documented to have added pineapple juice until 1972!
So, we’ll be doing our best to get the word out about this. As a starting point, you can catch my appearance on the Pod Tiki Podcast episode from last week.
Read the Article Online
Since the article was submitted for print publication, we’ve uncovered additional details on the history of this iconic cocktail. Those added items are now included on the version of the article now available on this website:
Experience the Presentation at Tiki Kon
We’ll have even more historical details and context in my presentation at Tiki Kon in July. Come join us if you’re attending and weekend passes for Tiki Kon are still available.
I’m always on the hunt for more historical details. Leave a comment or send me a message if you have any details or breadcrumbs for us to follow.
Exotica Moderne Issue 15
The new issue featuring cover art by Shag is launching tomorrow at Tiki Caliente. If you’re attending, be sure to pick up a copy! The issue ia now available for mail order as per the usual release process via www.houseoftabu.com.
Issue 15 is maybe the best one yet, featuring some great articles about Shag’s Palm Springs house, the tiki revival, Modernism Week, Frankie’s Tiki Room, plus the usual great content from regular contributors Tiki with Ray and Tiki Lindy. The issue also includes great music reviews and original cocktails from the likes of Marie King and Rory Snyder. Plus a great *centerfold* in this issue that is not to be missed. And so much more.
You can also read my article about the (De)Evolution of the Hawaiian Mai Tai, which I think is an important piece of cocktail journalism. Having the article published in Exotica Moderne adds to the legitimacy and value of the research and we are grateful to Ken Holewczynski for providing space in the issue as well as his design/layout expertise to bring the text to life.
Don’t miss Issue 15 of Exotica Moderne.
Chartreuse Swizzle
I’m not normally a big fan of cocktails with pineapple juice but this one is pretty damn good. Tart but still refreshing, and easy to drink.
Chartreuse Swizzle by Marcovaldo Dionysos
1 oz Pineapple juice
¾ oz Lime juice
½ oz Falernum
1½ oz Green Chartreuse
Add all ingredients to a Collins glass and fill with crushed ice. Swizzle the mixture with a barspoon until frost appears on the outside of the glass. Top with more crushed ice and garnish with mint sprig and nutmeg.
I gave this a heavy pour of the John D. Taylor Velvet Falernum but if I was going to make it over I’d either use a full ounce or use a non-alcoholic Falernum syrup.
The Cure for a Case of the Mondays: Dr. Funk
Was pleased to take a trip to downtown San Jose to meet up with Stephen Curran and his wife Heidi at Dr. Funk. It was their first time to visit Dr. Funk and though food isn’t served on Mondays, we had a great time. I’ve been watching Stephen’s many appearances on the Tiki with Ray YouTube show and we briefly met at the Aloha OA event a few weeks ago. It’s always nice to meet new tiki people and learn about their lives and travels. We’ll be seeing the Curran’s at Tiki Kon in July and made plans to check out their home bar near Tacoma in the days thereafter.
Mondays aren’t the busiest nights at Dr. Funk so there was plenty of space to stretch out and our service was quite fast. Even more importantly, the drinks were really great once again. I revisited two favorites, the Planters Punch and the Mai Tai – and man that Mai Tai was next level last night. I mean, so great. Stephen and Heidi recommended the nearby Hotel De Anza for out-of-towners, just one block away.
It looks like the city of San Jose is going to permanently close San Pedro St. to cars between Santa Clara and St. John St, which bodes well for Dr. Funk and all the other cool restaurants and bars on the street. Party in the streets this summer! We continue to enjoy fairly easy trips to downtown, even at commute time. And the parking garage across the street is fantastic.
