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New Logo and Website Header by B-Rex

Today is the day for the official unveiling of the new Search for the Ultimate Mai Tai logo designed by B-Rex . I have been thinking about logos for some time and landed on B-Rex for a couple reasons. I’ve been a fan of his stylized Mai Tai pins and his art designs for some time. Plus, he is the only illustrator and artist who’ve served me an amazing Mai Tai many times as part of his other gig as a craft cocktail bartender. Brian was very easy to work with so if you are looking for something custom then I provide my highest recommendation.

In addition to the logo/social media icon, Brian also did the new header gracing UltimateMaiTai.com. Depending on which device you’re on you might not see the full header, but in any case it perfectly captures the fun of the search for the ultimate Mai Tai. It’s rum, it’s fresh lime, and there’s plenty of tiki elements, just like the real search.

Be sure to check out the B-Rex store for apparel, prints, pins, stickers, glassware and barware, masks, and more. www.brianrechenmacher.com 

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Kai Mai Tai

I was inspired to make this tonight, handy since I have blood oranges. The recipes comes from the Kai Mai Tai Pin. If you love Indiana Jones and you love a good Mai Tai riff, then you’ll love the pin. The recipe is available with the pin and I can assure you it is worth the hype.

The mug is from Woody Miller and fits in great with the scary theme. Glassware by Last Rites in San Francisco.

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“After Work Mai Tai”

The main professional conference I go to is virtual this spring, so I’m watching a MS Ignite webinar with a worldwide audience during my early evening. At the in-person conference there would be an opening night happy hour on the Expo floor, so no guilt in having a Mai Tai while I watch.

The rum is Papa’s Pilar Blonde which works nicely in a Mai Tai. There’s a bit of Lemon Hart as a float, just because it looks nice (and tastes nice).

 

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Painkiller Experiment

I’m always in the mood for a good recipe shootout/taste test, and Friday night seems like a great time for Painkillers.

I like a Painkiller from time to time, and Mrs. Mai Tai enjoys them frequently along with other coconut-forward cocktails. We both love the Tiki Tiki Tiki Tiki Tiki Rum at Trader Sam’s which is basically a Painkiller.

Most recipes I’ve seen call for 4 oz of Pineapple Juice, but neither of us thought it should be that much forward with the Pineapple Juice, so we didn’t attempt that one. Instead, I made three variants with different ratios of Pineapple and Orange Juice.

All Painkillers feature the following:
1½ oz Hamilton 86 Demerara Rum
1 oz Lemon Hart 1804 Demerara Rum
1 oz Coconut Creme (Coco Real)

Version 1: left
3 oz Pineapple Juice
1 oz Orange Juice
Notice the froth on top

Version 2: center
1½ oz Pineapple Juice
1½ oz Orange Juice

Version 3: right
1 oz Pineapple Juice
2 oz Orange Juice



Verdict:
I was quite sure I wouldn’t like the first version with the most Pineapple Juice but it actually was my favorite. Meanwhile, Mrs. Mai Tai preferred the version with a higher amount of Orange Juice. So, I guess I’ll have both recipes on hand.

Ultimate Painkiller
1½ oz Hamilton 86 Demerara Rum
1 oz Lemon Hart 1804 Demerara Rum
1 oz Coconut Creme (Coco Real)
3 oz Pineapple Juice
1 oz Orange Juice

Mrs Mai Tai’s Painkiller
1½ oz Hamilton 86 Demerara Rum
1 oz Lemon Hart 1804 Demerara Rum
1 oz Coconut Creme (Coco Real)
1 oz Pineapple Juice
2 oz Orange Juice

Glassware by The Kon-Tiki in Oakland

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Grapefruit Mai Tai

Had some extra Grapefruit juice so I decided to see if replacing the Lime juice in a Mai Tai would make a difference.

1 oz Grapefruit Juice
½ oz Orgeat (Latitude 29)
¼ oz Demerara Syrup (BG Reynolds)
½ oz Orange Curacao (Clement Creole Shrubb)
½ oz Wray & Nephew Overproof
¼ oz White Martinique Rhum
2 oz Spanish-style rum blend

The crazy mix of rums is because I’ve been pouring a lot of rums from Spanish-speaking countries into an “infinity bottle” after sampling them for the Forbidden Island rum list. You know the types of rum – solera aged, added sugar, column still mostly. Not really my favorite style of rum, so I’ve been putting them in a bottle and using them as generic lightly-aged column still rum (which means, my friends, that I’m still actually drink all 100 of those rums). Additionally, I did also recently add a bit of very grassy Martinique rhum to the infinity bottle. It actually gave this rum a bit of needed kick. The Wray Overproof was added specifically for this cocktail to just amp things up a bit.

Overall, this isn’t bad at all. You can definitely taste a lack of the brightness that Lime juice normally provides, and I’m sure I’d pick correctly in a blind taste test. But it doesn’t taste bad.

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Pipeline Cocktail at Trader Vic’s

The Pipeline is a new limited time cocktail this week at Trader Vic’s Emeryville . Mrs. Mai Tai and I were planning to visit Vic’s after her COVID shot on Friday but couldn’t make it since the lines were so long. So, I got some to-go cocktails from Vic’s today and enjoyed the cool but sunny and clear Bay Area weather on the drive up to Emeryville.

I joked with Julie that the “meal” option for Trader Vic’s would be their utterly decadent peanut butter spread and crackers, but that’s exactly what I did. Three orders of peanut butter and crackers is more than a meal for some and gave us enough food to order Trader Vic’s cocktails.  (note: I dearly miss the Aloha Bowl that was a staple during the initial take-out period and if anyone is listening at Vic’s – please bring it back!). The peanut butter spread at Trader Vic’s so maybe our favorite thing there – besides Mai Tais.

Pipeline is made with Overproof and Spiced Rums, Pineapple Juice, Citrus, and a bit of Blue Curacao and is the signature cocktail at the Abu Dhabi Trader Vic’s.  The initial taste was unexpected and a little bit of a funny taste. Definitely not made for craft cocktail connoisseurs. But second and third hit? Well, I definitely enjoyed it. I also (surprise!) had a Mai Tai that was plenty good. Mrs. Mai Tai had the Banana Batida which hits the coconut and banana notes that she loves. I tasted this and it’s great.

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Makai in Santa Cruz

Finally made it over to Santa Cruz’s newest tiki bar and restaurant. Mrs. Mai Tai and I took a drive and ended up in Santa Cruz. Makai is on the wharf and in addition to online orders has two dining modes in person. We chose the take-out window and the very well-spaced picnic tables nearby. Ordering is efficient and the staff member working the window was very nice, but all alcohol is only canned/bottled. So, no Makai cocktails are available.

I had the Spam Musubi and it was truly fantastic. Freshly grilled and topped with sauce, this was the best I’ve ever had. I also enjoyed the Ahi Sliders which were also very good. Julie said her Corn Chowder was very good also. I’ve heard that cocktails are not the strong-suit at this restaurant, but the food most certainly seems to be a strength.

Makai is also currently offering table service for outside seating in their covered parklet out front and also around back in the sun. I was told the full menu is available from this mode, including cocktails. It is a bummer that cocktails aren’t available from the to-go window, but we did lessen our seating time and personal interaction with this mode and so that was the right decision for us right now.

We’re looking forward to returning when infection rates go down.