Kamala-palooza at Forbidden Island

Forbidden Island brought together tikiphiles with members of the City of Alameda Democratic Club for a fundraiser and social. Raffle tickets were available for prizes donated by local businesses and tiki mugs donated by some of the local Ohana. Plus a silent auction for some tiki related items and a bit of Kamala swag including lawn signs and hats.

As with Forbidden Island’s Ukraine fundraiser from 2022, the team had two featured cocktails for the event.

The Kamalatai featured rums from Jamaica, India, and Oakland (“in case anyone needs reminding of her roots”) and was really well done, featuring Hamilton Pot Still, Amrut, and Wright & Brown rums. I’d love to see this punchier rum blend stick on the menu, it was that much better than the standard FI Mai Tai. Added to the list of top Mai Tais of the year.

Out of a Coconut Tree featured Jamaica rum, coconut water, pineapple, and honey. This leaned a little light but I thought it was really great. They don’t all have to be complex spice bombs.

The patio area was quite full during the evening, and the FI crew did a good job keeping up with demand. Thanks to Michael, Justin, Sara, and Jarrod for fab service.

Kamala Mai Tai

Re-remembering the family background of presumptive Democratic nominee Vice-President Kamala Harris made me think of making a tribute recipe for this Oakland native based on the Mai Tai, Oakland’s most famous cocktail. Harris’ parents are from Jamaica and India, so the rum ratios for a Mai Tai naturally fell into place.

Kamala Mai Tai by Kevin Crossman
1 oz Lime Juice
½ oz Orgeat
¼ oz Demerara Syrup
½ oz Orange Curacao
1 oz Oakland Rum (Wright & Brown)
½ oz Indian Rum (Amrut Two Indies)
½ oz Jamaica Rum (Worthy Park 109)

This was a really good Mai Tai, with the Jamaica rum presenting itself up front and a long finish with the barrel notes from the aged Wright & Brown from Oakland. I know most folks don’t have this rum, but if you want it to be authentic it has to come from Oakland.

Amrut Two Indies Rum from India

Amrut Two Indies is a rum produced in Bengaluru India and made with distillate from both India as well as the West Indies (Jamaica, Guyana, Barbados). The light style of rum has some mild spice notes on the finish after an initial burst of astringency. The rum isn’t really anything special when sampled neat, though the ABV is a bit higher than you’d expect at a precise 42.8%. This is not a heavy rum, so could appeal to those new to spirits or even some crossover whiskey drinkers.

Given the middling review of the rum when tasting it neat, I did not have high expectations for this rum in a Mai Tai where I usually like my rums to be bolder and boozier. But I’m here to tell you that Amrut Two Indies is fantastic in a Mai Tai.

Amrut has some bright and citrusy notes that paired so well with fresh lime and my custom blend of Clement and DeKuyper orange liqueurs. The Mai Tai was a pleasure from beginning to end and the mild aging notes certainly came through in the cocktail. Not every rum needs to be a sipper and I was impressed with Amrut Two Indies as a mixing rum.

West and East Indies, get it?