A tiki drink sits comfortably in your hand, a furious visage of a tiki carved carefully into the ceramic; it looks a bit like if Bane found a penguin in an darkly-lit alley and they became friends. The mug is so frosted that even your most careful grasp could slip and leave your gloriously-crafted mug of rum perfection shattered and glistening on the floor.*

Circa present day, KP is posting again, in small part due to a recent visit to Portland that led me, quite precariously, to the darkened halls of Pépé Le Moko and The Monkey Hut, where I learned not only that I had forgotten how delicious bad 80’s cocktails were, but how much I had forgotten about how hifalutin you could be about quality, seasonal citrus.

I subtly mentioned to both respectable gentleman (Jeff and Craig) that I had been working on gin-based tiki drinks, and their eyes lit up like an flickering, rum-filled lightbulb on the verge of exploding.

And so, I present the first cocktail (and post) on Kaiser Penguin in over four years.

The Nomad*

• 2oz Anchor junipero gin
• 1/2oz Bols genever gin
• 1/2oz Hayman’s old tom gin
• 1/4oz Krogstad aquavit
• 1oz lime
• 1/2oz white grapefruit
• 2t lemon
• 1/2oz cinnamon syrup
• 1/4oz falernum
• 1/4oz demerara syrup
• 1/4oz orgeat (note: I have an upcoming recipe for the best orgeat ever.)
• grapefruit peel for garnish

Does this drink look like it has too many ingredients? Yes. But it somehow musters the intensity to be complex, refreshing, and leaves you digging for clues.

KP Question

• What’s your favorite gin-based tiki drink?
• And more importantly, the first (3) people who post an original gin-based tiki drink will receive a bottle of my new Orgeat in the mail.

Important Notes for Those Involved:

• Thank you Jeffrey for letting me basically take over your bar.
• Thank you Craig, for being perfectly pompous and a great host. And fuck, that Corn and Oil was the best I’ve ever had.
• Hele Pele has the best Hawaiian bread I have ever tasted, irrespective of the Zombie I ordered after having 10 cocktails at Pépé Le Moko.

*Paul Clarke, sir. It was great to completely randomly see you at Death and Co.
*Quite the long story best saved for friends, but here is my puppy.

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The post Finding Tiki Drinks Boring? Try Gin. first appeared on Kaiser Penguin.

From there, I discovered simple, but exciting new things. For example, gin was actually good in things other than a Long Island Iced Tea and whiskey was aggressively delicious. And as I’m sure any cocktail geek would say, the adventures that followed involved the unwavering desire to research and acquire every possible spirit, bitter, and syrup on the planet. Though at the end of the day, there is always Tecate or Old German in a can.

KP Question

• What does your Drink Pyramid look like?

The post Food Plate? Try the new Drink Pyramid. first appeared on Kaiser Penguin.

The Problem

You sit idly on your chateau’s balcony, surveying the work of your master gardner, Rondingus Brungo, former 3rd-level Druid and failed adventurer. A gin and tonic rests on the granite balustrade with a pool of water slicking the surface underneath; the glass is beaded with a carpet of droplets and you can see the ice slowly melting as if the rays of the sun were focused on your glass like the Eye of Sauron. And your drink is getting more warm and watery by the second.

The Goal

Create a gin and tonic that will maintain a specific temperature (20°F) and dilution (0%) thoughout the time of consumption (20 min).

Possible Solutions

We are actually tackling two problems here: temperature and dilution. The chart below shows the temperature and dilution of a gin and tonic at an ambient temperature of 70F over the course of 20 minutes. For Chart #1 (and all other tests), we used the following recipe:

Gin and Tonic Test #1

• 2.5oz Tanqueray gin (41.3% abv)
• 4oz Fever Tree tonic water @ 37°F
• 1t lime juice
• 4 1oz tivolo ice cubes @ -8°F

For the purpose of these tests, we used an 8oz rocks glass with a diameter of 3″, a height of 3.5″, and a thickness of 1/8″. Add ice cubes, gin, and tonic. Stir for 2 seconds.

Chart #1 – Normal Gin and Tonic

(note: If you hover over each point on the graph, you will see the exact temperature in Farenheit.)

You can see that the optimal time to start consuming your gin and tonic is at the 3-minute mark, and though the drink continues to get colder, your ice cubes are constantly adding water to your gin and tonic. Where this is good when you’re stirring a martini, in a highball, your soda is already providing enough dilution.

The Solution

Dry Ice.

Dry ice is the solid form of carbon dioxide and is really fricken cold: -78.5°F It’s been around in commercial form since 1925 and can be used to preserve food and lab samples, make ice cream, create a fog machine, and even carbonate drinks and fruits. It’s relatively easy to obtain from ice cream shops and mostly safe, unless you’re an idiot. You can handle it without gloves, but not for more than a few seconds, unless you want a real druid to cast Winter’s Embrace on your hands.

Idea #1 – Add dry ice instead of normal ice cubes.

First off, whether this worked or not, we knew it would be fun. Dry ice sublimates much faster in liquid, so you’ll get a pleasant foggy miasma as the dry ice bubbles away in your drink. Inspired by the photography in Modernist Cuisine, this experiment lent itself best to capturing, so that’s the picture at the top of the post.

Chart #2 – Chilled with Dry Ice

Though the temperature drops steadily over time, it never gets close to reaching 20°F – and we put a lot of dry ice in there. Interestingly, the dry ice sublimates faster than the ice cubes melted. It looks like, at least, we solved the dilution problem. Dave Arnold from Cooking Issues is noted for saying that there is no chilling without dilution. Well, we’ve proven that hypothesis wrong, but at the cost of slow chilling. So how do we achieve a colder gin and tonic, faster? By adding dilution back into the mix.

Idea #2 – Make ice cubes out of gin and tonic

What if we were able to create ultra-cold gin and tonic ice cubes, so that when they melted, the didn’t dilute the drink, but just added more gin and tonic to it? The key is that dry ice is cold enough to freeze gin, at least when it’s in a solution with tonic. At 62.5% (by volume) of gin, the ice cubes should freeze at -42°F, which dry ice is readily able to handle.

How to Make Gin and Tonic Ice Cubes

Using the same ratio of 2.5 parts gin to 4 parts tonic, combine 5oz of gin, 8oz of tonic, and 2t lime juice and pour into a tivolo tray. This should make 13 1oz cubes, leaving two holes for you to fill however you like. Put the tray inside an insulated container that has at least 5lb of dry ice in it and freeze for 1 hour. These cubes will not be easy to remove from the tray, and I recommend using a towel or cutting glove.

Chart #3 – Chilled with Gin and Tonic Ice Cubes

The temperature dropped quickly, eventually reaching 18.7F and staying that way well past the 20 minute mark. After several tests, 3 gin and tonic ice cubes seemed ideal; any more and the drink nearly froze solid.

So we’ve done it! A gin and tonic that quickly gets to 20°F, never dilutes, and stays cold for at least 20 minutes. Huzzah!

On a parting note, our friend, Dom, who was around when these tests were being run, offered the following piece of advice: “I can’t believe you need fucking three graphs to make a gin and tonic.”

KP Questions

1. What’s your ideal gin to tonic ratio?
2. What are your favorite gin and tonic brands?

The post Everlasting Gin and Tonic first appeared on Kaiser Penguin.

I couldn’t think of another two gentlemen I’d rather be crouched in a dark corner with than Jeffrey Morgenthaler and Camper English. I’m also confident no one has ever typed that sentence in the history of the human race…

Winning a popularity contest against Morgenblogger is a moot but amusing challenge, but if you’re so inclined, go vote for Kaiser Penguin!

And yes, they have an annoying sign-up page before you can vote. As incentive, if you do go vote, comment and say you did and I’ll give away a bottle of Falernum JWray, made in a rotovap. With which you could make the following recipe:

Rotovapped Falernum and Ting

• 2oz 120 proof falernum-“infused” JWray
• 4oz Ting

Combine in a tall glass, drink quickly, repeat vigorously.

The post Kaiser Penguin Nominated by Saveur for Best Cocktail Blog of 2011 first appeared on Kaiser Penguin.

This series on cheater ingredients started off with grapefruit. Cinnamon is another tool in our veritable MacGyver toolkit for fixing cocktails and one that, unsurprisingly, matches very well with grapefruit. Leafing through one of my treasured reference cookbooks which might as well just be a nerdy spreadsheet of ingredient pairings, I looked for cinnamon. Cilantro was close by and got me a little turned on… cilantro pairs well with pork belly, sriracha, kewpie mayo, cumin, orange, lime, etc. Ok, but what about cinnamon? Hell, it pretty much goes with everything. Dark chocolate, duck, allspice, apple, gin, brandy, rum, any citrus, tripe, fluke, bacon – I’ll stop while I’m ahead.

There are many kinds of cinnamon, and their lusty progeny has been described much better than I could ever do. Canela is your friend, and your local Mexican grocer should carry it. And if you live in the middle of no where like I do, Penzey’s has loads of it. Though they call it Ceylon; nomenclature nerds. Or just completely ignore all our cocktail pomplication and use Cassia, the stuff that you’ll find in any grocery store.

Syrup, which is more often than not the delivery method for cinnamon is simple to make, but its use is often confined to the realm of tiki. But as an ingredient its sights are set so much wider. You think St. Germain is bartenders’ ketchup? Give this sultry rabbit’s foot a try.

What goes with Cinnamon Syrup?

• Ting
• lime
• orange
• pimento dram
• Fernet
• Strega
• Chartreuse
• Carpano Antica
• absinthe

Cinnamaldehyde

• 1 1/2oz rye whiskey (Bulleit’s new rye works nicely, or Rittenhouse Bonded)
• 1t maraschino liqueur
• 8 drops Herbsaint
• 1/2oz lemon
• 1/4oz grapefruit juice
• 1/2oz cinnamon syrup
• 1 dash Bitter Truth aromatic bitters
• grapefruit twist and brandied cherry, for garnish

Shake with ice chipped from the beard of a Robold and donate to a stubby glass. Garnish, offer to a guest, and say “Put your hand in the box” in your best Bene Gesserit voice.

Source: Rick, Kaiser Penguin

KP Question

• What’s your favorite cinnamon syrup drink?

The post Cheater Ingredient – Cinnamon Syrup first appeared on Kaiser Penguin.

Thought the Chartreuse Swizzle couldn’t be improved?

The Pineapple Juice

Make your own pineapple juice! Canned pineapple juice is a horrific, Reaver-like abomination not worthy of even your tipsiest patron. Bottled, “high-quality” pineapple juice is not much better. Do you use bottled lemon juice? Exactly. The creamy tang and brightness of fresh pineapple juice is incomparable.

Simply skin, core, and cut up a pineapple – don’t worry about getting every last eye or bit of core; you’ll be straining it and the nasty bits aren’t really that bitter. Use a juicer of some variety and strain. From my tests, pineapple juice should stay fresh if kept sealed in the refrigerator for at least two days. (Full credit goes to Tiare of A Mountain of Crushed Ice for convincing me of my ill-begotten ways when I used to use canned pineapple juice.)

The JWray

Two years ago, casting cocktailian spells alongside the white wizard, Chris Stanley, we tossed a newt’s foot into our Chartreuse Swizzle in the form of 1/4oz of Wray and Nephew overproof rum. It was like we just cast Nailed-to-the-Sky on our potion – pure genius. I’ve not made it without JWray since.

The Glass

Use at least a 16oz glass for this drink. You want way more crushed ice than you think you need. Your Chartreuse Swizle should be as cold as Stan Jones’ lifeless corpse.

The Garnishes

The aroma of mint and nutmeg should herald each sip like a blaring rendition of “Heat of the Moment,” by Asia. You’re not going to be drinking what’s scattered on the ice at the top of the drink, so don’t hold back – go ahead and grate 1/8th of a whole nutmeg on top.

And the mint? Find the hugest sprig (or several) you can, and jam them deep into the glass. Put it right next to your straw so each time you pause to inhale from sucking the drink down you get a nose-strike of mint. Hell, wind it up your straw if you can. And don’t forget to delicately spank it ahead of time to release some of the oils.

Improved Chartreuse Swizzle

• 1 1/2oz green Chartreuse
• 1/4oz Wray and Nephew overproof rum
• 3/4oz lime juice
• 1oz pineapple juice
• 1/2oz falernum
• nutmeg and mint, for garnish

Swizzle all but the garnishes with the delicate force of a ballerina ice giant. Garnish like you’re an herb goddess.

KP Question

• How many Chartreuse Swizzles did you consume this year?

The post Improved Chartreuse Swizzle first appeared on Kaiser Penguin.

What do you like to drink when you don’t feel like mixing a classic cocktail?

Or when you’re not adventurous enough to brave the Arctic scapes and rum-soaked lands of the tiki god? Or perhaps when you just don’t feel like writing your blog.

I’m talking about the swill that you wouldn’t dare tell Paul Clarke you were drinking, but you’re sure Jeffrey Morgenthaler would drink down like a fine woman.

Without embarrassment, I present the a list of my favorite non-cocktails:

• Tecate – Usually accompanied by a shot of rye whiskey, painfully expensive rum, Fernet, or Chartreuse. Sip both, but make sure to put that Tecate in the freezer for a few minutes too, as you surely want to minimize any actual taste it might produce. Other good choices are Natty Boh and Old German.
• Fernet – Put it in a flask, put it in a glass, but please please, don’t put it in your … Or make a Fernet Old Fashioned – yes, it’s a cocktail, but it’s as delicious as shitty American Chinese food.
• Dolin Blanc – with an ice cube.
• Squirt and Gin – or any grapefruit soda for that matter. Pour out (or drink down) about 1/4 of the can, fill with a nice dry gin, and stir with a chopstick. Make sure to get all the foamy pleasure in your beard when it fizzes up out of the hole.

KP Question

• What is your guilty pleasure?

The post What’s Your Guilty Pleasure? first appeared on Kaiser Penguin.

Has this ever happened to you?

You’ve got friends coming over for cocktails. People like Rick, who will judge you harshly for any lapses in ingredient availability. Then suddenly it hits you: “Oh fiddlesticks!” you think. “I forgot to start falernum two days ago!” Your friends won’t be able to have any Jet Pilots, and you’ll have to deal with their withering stares of shame and disgust for the rest of the evening. You’ll know they’ll be talking about your hosting fail behind your back for weeks.

What a faux pas!

This doesn’t have to be you!

Recently Dave Arnold, over at Cooking Issues, discovered a new method for producing infused liquor: using nitrogen cavitation to produce simple and quick liquor infusions using an iSi whipped cream maker. A technique used in biomedical research, Nitrogen cavitation uses nitrogen bubbles to fracture cell membranes while preserving the precious (and delicious) organelles inside. In the case of infusing liquor, the cells are broken down by the nitrogen bubbles to release the flavor you want to impart to your base spirit.

While this may not sound exciting on its own, the real money shot of nitrogen cavitation is that you can infuse flavor into any liquor in around a minute and a half. A process that normally takes days or weeks—like falernum—can literally be accomplished in five minutes, from start to finish.

The Method

For approximately 8oz of infused spirit, the basic process goes like this:

• Measure out whatever flavoring agents you want to infuse (this works with fresh herbs, spices, fruits, etc.).
  • 12 grams of any dried spice seems to be a good number.
  • 1/3c fruit appears to be a good number.
• Finely slice, chop, or crush flavoring agents to maximize surface area.
• Add flavoring agents to the chamber of an iSi
• Add 8oz of liquor to infuse into the chamber (this can be anything, I’ve tried bourbon, various rums, & vodka).
• Seal the iSi whipper, as you would if making whipped cream.
• Charge the whipper with one N₂O cartridge.
• Gently swirl the contents of the iSi whipper for 1 minute.
• Let the whipper stand for 30 seconds.
• Gently vent the gas by depressing the dispensing lever on the iSi whipper
  • If you get some liquid spewed out at this point, you are applying too much pressure.
• Open the iSi whipper and strain the contents through a cheese cloth or paper towel lining a mesh strainer.
• Let the mixture stand for five minutes.
• Consume.

That’s it. Seriously awesome infused liquor in 6.5 minutes!

This process is magical.

Note: With a 1 pint iSi whipper, you can make up to 16oz of infusion, but Dave Arnold recommends using two N₂O chargers for any amount over 8oz, so I’ve written the recipe for this smaller amount.

Note: The five minutes of sitting is a rough estimate. When I made a bunch of infusions the other night, I noticed that the flavor took about five minutes to develop. For instance, a batch of date-infused bourbon tasted like Old Rip van Winkle 10 Year until we let it sit for five minutes; then date magic! I asked Dave Arnold about this and he hadn’t seen this problem, so I suspect it might be that because I (unlike every other iSi whipper owner) went for the cheap, half-pint whipper and that I can’t vent all the nitrogen before bourbon starts shooting out of my whipper’s nozzle (the infusion fizzes like beer when I filter it). So the “sit for five minutes” step might be optional if you are infusing 8oz of liquid in a one pint whipper.

An Application

As I suggested at the beginning of this post, you can use this (admittedly gear-driven) method to bail yourself out with last second infusions, especially for common tiki ingredients like falernum (I’m not sure if pimento dram would work using this method or not, given the long, slow nature of that infusion is part of p-dram’s magic). While Rick has previously posted another last-minute falernum substitute, using nitrogen cavitation is not only quicker but also doesn’t suffer the lack of high-proof rum (which is really an important component in the falernum experience, especially if you, like me, drink it straight). As such, I’ve adapted Rick’s falernum recipe to use this new technique.

Five Minute Falernum

As with slow falernum infusion, feel free to experiment with spice blends. This is more of a base-line, good falernum recipe.

Step 1: Nitrogen Bubbled Deliciousness

• 8oz rum (Wray and Nephew Overproof or El Dorado 151 if you’ve got it, but any good white rum will work)
• 50 cloves
• 1T whole allspice
• 1 nutmeg
• 8 limes, zested (Make sure to get as little pith as possible, nitrogen cavitation seems to really go for the bitter flavor in pith)
• 1/2c thinly sliced ginger coins (I used a mandolin to slice it paper thin)

Crush the nutmeg, allspice, and cloves with a mortar & pestle (or in a bag using a hammer (or whatever)). Heat these crushed spices in a skillet over medium heat for 5 minutes or until fragrant. Cool the spices. Add spices, rum, ginger, and zest to the chamber of an iSi cream whipper. Seal the whipper and charge with N₂O. Swirl the contents of the whipper for 1 minute. Let rest for 30 seconds. Vent the nitrogen gas by depressing the lever on the iSi whipper. Strain the rum through a cheesecloth.

Step 2: Sugar Syrup FTW

• 2c sugar
• 1c water

Make a simple syrup by heating the sugar and water over medium-low until the sugar dissolves. Let the syrup cool. Add the cooled syrup to the infused rum. Falernum! (alternately, you could add around 1.5c pre-made 2:1 simple syrup to the infused rum).

That’s it!

I know, right? Nitrogen cavitation feels like cheating.

Other Applications

What else can you do with nitrogen cavitation, you ask?

I’ve discovered that adapting Rick’s falernum was no fluke. Most liqueur recipes can be immediately adapted to an iSi whipper, just by scaling down the recipe. So you can use it to experiment with different combinations of base spirit and different ratios for a specific fruit liqueur you are working on (I’m making different batches of creme de banane at the moment).

Additionally, you can make very small batches of different weird flavor combinations for infused spirits without having the time and cost overhead of infusing an entire bottle for several days. With that in mind, I’ve been experimenting with some interesting flavor combinations: long pepper infused tequila, date infused bourbon, and star anise infused rum, so far. The process is so quick, and the overhead is so low (you can even make half a recipe (4oz of spirit) with a single N20 cartridge, if you want), there’s no reason to not make that sichuan peppercorn, bonito infused gin you’ve always wanted!

The prospect of making to-order infused liquor is also an exciting one. The other night, my wife and I had friends over and all the cocktails were made from ingredients we infused a la minute. We made some long pepper bloody marys and palomas, date bourbon old-fashioneds, and some Saigon Mules (see below). The event was a lot of fun and the cocktails were absolutely amazing.

Finally, given that you can translate traditional methods to this new method, once you have a recipe you like that works with nitrogen cavitation, you can scale it up and make it the old fashioned way to have a whole bottle.

Now, I have to get back to work figuring out how to infuse roast pork bones into rye whiskey.

Here’s a recipe for star anise infused rum and a really great cocktail to make with it:

Star Anise Infused Rum

• 12 g star anise, lightly crushed
• 7oz white rum (I used Ron Matusalem Platino)
• 1oz Wray & Nephew Overproof Rum

Add the star anise and the rums to the chamber of an iSi whipper. Seal the whipper and charge with N₂O. Swirl the contents of the whipper for 1 minute. Let rest for 30 seconds. Vent the nitrogen gas by depressing the lever on the iSi whipper. Strain the rum through a cheesecloth.

Saigon Mule

• 2oz Star Anise Infused Rum (see above)
• Juice of ½ of a lime
• Ginger beer to fill (Blenheim’s #5 Hot, if you’ve got it)

Build over ice in a tall glass; delicately stir.

KP Question

• What flavor infusions are you thinking of, now that you’ve read this post?

About the Author

Andrew Pilsch is a rhetorician, cocktail enthusiast, and kitchen mad scientist.

The post 5-Minute Falernum first appeared on Kaiser Penguin.

Drinking rum is the paragon of happiness.

This sugar-blessed potion comes in a prismatic spray of variety that has prompted more grail-like quests to hunt down rare bottles than than any other spirit. There are over 175 different rums available in the U.S. alone, and that’s ignoring all the bubblegum and foie gras-flavored (yes please) demons.

But what if you could only afford to have a handful of different brands in your regular stock?

How to Pick?

• Ask people who know a lot about rum, namely: Ed Hamilton, Matt Robold, Martin Cate, Wayne Curtis, Jeff Berry, Blair Reynolds, Tiare Olsen, Craig Hermann, and Gabe Szaszko. (ok, we all know Gabe doesn’t know anything about rum…)
• Choose rums that are “reasonably” easy to obtain.
• Don’t spend more than $50 (or very close) on each.

After culling the horde of rums available, our team of experts has compiled a list of 10 rums that are essential for the pursuit of good cocktail making. And though what lies below is one of the best representations of sexy rum I’ve ever seen, you’ll surely find something amiss. So don’t hesitate to simply skip the rest of this post and go flame me in the comments. Cheers!

10 Rums Everyone Should Have

1. Lemonhart 151
2. Smith and Cross
3. Zacapa 23
4. Appleton V/X (or Extra
5. Rhum Clement VSOP
6. El Dorado 15
7. Rhum Neisson Blanc
8. El Dorado 3
9. Rhum Barbancourt 8
10. Wray and Nephew Overproof

Three overproof rums made the list (though admittedly, I bumped JWray up a bit, as I’m not sure how anyone could live without it). But beyond that, this is the best of what rum has to offer. Even so, a few categories were left behind: a really rich dark Jamaican, a spiced, and though not necessarily a category, blackstrap.

Honorable Mention

• Coruba
• Cruzan Blackstrap
• Kracken (or Old New Orleans Spiced)

I urge you to try the following monstrosity. It is surely proof that if you keep adding ingredients to a tiki drink, it only gets better. Or maybe you don’t believe me and think I just created this in my mind realizing no one would be able to make it…

The Blowlamp

• 1oz Appleton Extra
• 1oz Kraken
• 1/2oz Wray and Nephew overproof
• 1/4oz Fernet Branca
• 1oz Dolin Blanc
• 1oz grapefruit juice
• 1/2oz lime juice
• 1/2oz vanilla syrup
• 1 dash Angostura bitters
• 8 drops Herbsaint Legendre
• grapefruit twist, for garnish

Shake with crushed ice, grab your scepter, and donate to a glass by casting Nailed to the Sky.

Rick from Kaiser Penguin

The Experts’ Data

KP Question

• What are the 10 rums you couldn’t live without?

The post 10 Rums Everyone Should Have first appeared on Kaiser Penguin.

Beachcomber’s Gold appears in three separate incarnations in Remixed, this version being a complete departure from the previous with only the light rum and Angostura bitters in each.

Donn was a tinkerer, rarely willing to call a recipe his “final” version. And as a Gnomish artisan, he excelled, but he wasn’t without failure…

Beachcomber’s Gold (Waikiki)

• 1oz light Puerto Rican Rum (Brugal White)
• 1/2oz gold Jamaican Rum (Appleton V/X)
• 3/4oz passion fruit juice
• 1/3oz lime juice
• 1/2oz honey mix
• 2 dashes Angostora bitters

Blend with 6oz crushed ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

The above version is a big mess of tart and stupid with no hint of the rum it contains. Determined that I’d followed the recipe to a T good enough for those big gold chains, I set out to modify it.

Notes:

1. The foam that the passion fruit juice generates is awesome when blended, so I wouldn’t recommend shaking this one. If you put it in a tall glass (unlike in the photo), the head will stick to the sides of the glass for a long while.
2. Straining is called for in the original, but if you blend it for a few more seconds, you can just ignore that step. You’ll have plenty of tiny ice shards that dissolve as you finish the drink.
3. The rum really needs to be beefed up – at least so you can taste it.
4. Using quality honey is paramount. Find several you like and try each in this and other honey drinks, and for Tiki’s sake, don’t buy that bee spit in the plastic bear.

Beachcomber’s Gold (modified)

• 2oz gold Jamaican rum (Appleton V/X)
• 1/2oz light Puerto Rican rum (Brugal white)
• 1oz passion fruit juice
• 3/4oz lime juice
• 1 1/4oz honey mix
• 2 dashes Angostura bitters
• 8 drops absinthe

Spin it right round in a blender with 8oz of crushed ice for about 5 seconds and pour into a narrow glass.

Rick from Kaiser Penguin

KP Question

• Do you blend or shake your tiki drinks?

This post is part of the series, “Remixed: From Astro to Zadar” featuring recipes, brand recommendations, tips, and quirky knowledge to help you navigate the quintessential tiki tome, Beachbum Berry Remixed.

The post Remixed: Beachcomber’s Gold (Waikiki) first appeared on Kaiser Penguin.