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Mia Cravatta

This is a very tasty Mai Tai riff from Nathan Robinson (@maitaioneon) who is constantly posting interesting recipes. This one uses Blood Orange Juice, timely since they are in season. Give it a try if you have the ingredients.

MIA CRAVATTA
1 oz Light rum
1 oz Rhum agricole blanc
.5 oz Campari
.5 oz Orgeat
1 oz Blood orange juice
.5 oz Lime juice
Shake with ice.
Recipe by Nathan Robinson, based on Alex Sansone

I didn’t have Campari so I used Aperol instead (which is fine since I like it sweeter anyway). For the rums I used Denizen 3 and Clement Premiere Canne.

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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.

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Caribbean Daiquiri

There was a debate online this week about how to label a cocktail made with Rum, Lime, and Sugar. Could it be called a “Daiquiri” even if it wasn’t made with the Cuban Rum that it was originally conceived with?

There is no question the classic Daiquiri is made with lighter rums in the style common in Cuba. But in most restaurants and bars you’d be lucky to get a Daiquiri served up rather than on the rocks or blended, so being picky about the specific country of origin for the rum seems like maybe not the most important detail. I think that there are plenty of “white” rums that are unaged or lightly aged that are fabulous in a Daiquiri.

But I also think that aged rums can also be lovely in this cocktail. This extra large one was made with Chairman’s Reserve and Appleton Estate Reserve 8 rums, both of which are a blend of column and pot still distillates and both with more age than the typical “iight” rum. It is delicious and still light enough to feel too heavy.

What do you call this? There isn’t really a label, except “Daiquiri with Chairman’s Reserve and Appleton 8”. Or maybe just call it a Caribbean Daiquiri.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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Stroh Mai Tai

Called a rite of passage by some, Stroh Spiced Rum from Austria is a rum that everyone should try at least once. Maybe not more than once, thanks to its deeply sweet butterscotch flavor. But you need to try it.

The Mai Tai was made with 1 oz of Stroh along with an ounce of Rum-Bar Gold from Jamaica. There aren’t many rums that can overpower a funky Jamaican rum, but Stroh did it, not in a good way.

One and done.