Tiki Drink Party

Sidewinder's Fang

The 1960s classic drink first appeared at the Lanai restaurant in San Mateo, California, but this groovy version is served at a New York City bar called Painkiller.

• 1/2 ounce lime juice
• 1 ounce orange juice
• 1 ounce passion fruit syrup
• 1 ounce Coruba (Jamaican rum)
• 1 ounce Demerara rum
• Club soda
• Orange spiral

Shake juices, syrup and rums with a piece of cracked ice; strain into a hurricane glass over cubed ice. Top with soda and garnish with the orange spiral.

Dan Roberts[+]

Fog Cutter

A tart and tangy Trader Vic classic made over by Thatch Tiki Bar, Portland, Oregon.

• 2 ounces light rum
• 1 ounce pisco
• 1/2 ounce gin
• 1 ounce orange juice
• 2 ounces lemon juice
• 1/2 ounce orgeat
• 1 ounce sherry
• Lemon wheel for garnish

In a hurricane glass or tiki mug, stir rum, pisco, gin, juices and orgeat together with ice. Hold a spoon above the drink, rounded side up. Gently pour sherry over it, so sherry “floats” on top of drink. Garnish with the lemon wheel.

Dan Roberts[+]

Kaieteur Swizzle

A “swizzle” is a drink style dating to the 1800s Caribbean. The original swizzle technique used a long, sturdy twig held between palms rubbed together to gyrate the stick and mix the drink. Modern bartenders, such as those at Smuggler’s Cove in San Francisco (who came up with this version), are more likely to use a long spoon for stirring.

• 2 ounces Demerara rum (El Dorado 5 Year, 8 Year or 12 Year)
• 1/2 ounce grade A amber maple syrup
• 1/2 ounce fresh lime juice
• 1/2 ounce velvet falernum
• 2 dashes Angostura bitters
• Grated nutmeg
• Mint sprig

Combine the first five ingredients in a collins glass, fill with crushed ice and swizzle with a bar spoon until a frost forms on the outside of the glass. Top with a pinch of fresh grated nutmeg, and garnish with the mint sprig.

Dan Roberts[+]

Kon-Tiki Mai-Tai

Mai Tai is Tahitian for “the very best.” One sip, and you’ll agree this version of the 1962 classic—also made by Painkiller in New York City—is worthy of its celebrated name.

• 1 ounce dark
• Jamaican rum
• 1 ounce light Puerto
• Rican rum
• 1/2 ounce fresh lime juice
• 1/2 ounce fresh orange juice
• 3/4 ounce honey
• 1/4 ounce ginger syrup
• 4 dashes Pernod
• Dash Angostura bitters
• Mint sprig for garnish

Build into a double old-fashioned glass. Fill with crushed ice and garnish with the sprig of mint.

Dan Roberts[+]

Broadway Baby

A thoroughly modern tiki drink from Thatch Tiki Bar in Portland and an original creation of Blair Reynolds, aka “Trader Tiki.” The drink uses Deco Ginger Rum, made by a local Portland distiller, but another spiced rum can be substituted.

• 1/2 ounce lime juice
• 1/2ounce orange juice
• 1 1/2ounces Deco
• Ginger Rum
• Dash Angostura bitters
• 1/2 ounce vanilla syrup
• 2 cherries for garnish

In a cocktail shaker, combine the juices, rum, bitters, syrup and ice. Shake vigorously and strain into a martini glass. Garnish with the cherries.

Get the Party Started

Set the scene for the ultimate tiki blowout with these easy ideas.

• Consider drinks as decor—use fresh fruit, tiny paper umbrellas and bold swizzle sticks to garnish drinks. Look for tiki mugs and drink bowls at flea markets, or buy them online at aisletiki.com or tikifarm.com.
• Dim the lamps and string up colorful Christmas lights. Outdoors, tiki lanterns or Japanese paper lanterns will add that extra glow.
• Exotic flowers are always tiki. This is not the time for restrained blooms—the bolder, the better! Try flower-patterned dresses, Hawaiian shirts, leis, hibiscus blooms to adorn hair, and flower-bedecked drinks.
• Bamboo and thatch panels dress up outdoor or larger spaces. Look for them at home-supply stores or online sources like tropicaltikis.com.
• Think beachy: palm fronds, a surfboard propped in a corner (or made into an impromptu bar surface), a handful of seashells piled in a glass bowl.

Stock Your Bar

If you want to make tiki your thing, make sure your bar is stocked with these key ingredients.

Rum: For most home bartenders, a light rum, a dark Jamaican rum and a gold rum will do the trick. However, author and tiki expert Jeff “Beachbum” Berry recommends three other rums for the tiki canon: A smoky, woody Demerara-style rum; a Frenchstyle agricole rum; and spiced rum (though most tiki purists make their own).

Orgeat: Pronounced “or-zat,” this almond syrup is a critical ingredient for the Mai Tai, the Scorpion and other tiki drinks.

Falernum: A flavored syrup that originated in Barbados, it usually contains a mix of ginger, lime and a hint of almond. Tiki-philes recommend Trader Tiki’s version of this island sweetener.

Grenadine: Skip the neon-pink stuff; look for pomegranate juice in the list of ingredients. Bitters: Angostura is the classic workhorse of bitters, an aromatic mix of spices great for a wide range of drinks, and relatively easy to find. ‘Elemakule Tiki Bitters from Bittermens feature cinnamon and allspice flavors that fit well with tropical drinks.

Fresh Juices: Make your own whenever you can. Across the board, bartenders say fresh squeezed citrus (lemon, lime, grapefruit) and tropical juices make all the difference in tiki drinks and other cocktails.

Syrups, bitters and other tiki supplies are available online from Cocktail Kingdom, cocktailkingdom.com; Trader Tiki’s, tradertiki.com; The Boston Shaker, thebostonshaker.com; and KegWorks, kegworks.com.

How to Light Your Drink on Fire

(Or, better known as: How to light a drink on fire without bodily injury.)

Martin Cate, owner of Smuggler’s Cove in San Francisco, offers these instructions for serving up a drink with a dramatic flame in the center. His secret: lemon extract. “It gives you a nice yellow flame,” he explains. Overproof rum yields a less visible blue flame.

Step 1: Slice a lime in half. Scoop the fruit out of each half to create two hollow lime shells. (You’ll need one shell for each drink, or a few to float in a punch bowl.)

Step 2: Cut plain white bread into 1-inch squares and toast them to create croutons.

Step 3: Soak the croutons in pure lemon extract, which is 168 proof, for a few minutes. You can also use orange extract.

Step 4: Carefully remove one lemon extract-soaked crouton and place it in the lime shell. Float the shell in the center of the drink. Use an extra-long match or grill lighter to set it on fire.

Step 5: For a “fireworks show,” dash a little cinnamon on top of the fire; it will sizzle and spark. However, Martin warns this should not be attempted under a low thatched roof (a lesson he learned the hard way?). A high ceiling or outdoor environment is best.

Step 6: When the crouton smells like burned toast, the show’s over. That’s your cue to (carefully) grab the lime shell with metal tongs and douse the flames in a glass of water.