Tiki Buys #11: Mugs & Mixes & More

Ginza Jigger, 1 oz and 2 oz (Urban Bar)

Attractive and functional, this stainless steel jigger boasts a mirror finish as well as 1 oz and 2 oz bowls that include interior demarcations for 1/2 oz, 3/4 oz and 1-1/2 oz.

Coconut Cup

Made from a real coconut, this is my favourite Tiki cup! They are preserved and lacquered for a smooth, shiny finish and have a real coconut base. Each cup holds approximately 8 ounces and is hand-wash only.

The Scorpion (1972 Trader Vic's) Cocktail Recipe

The Classic 1972 Trader Vic version of the venerable Scorpion

The Scorpion is a cocktail consisting of rum, cognac, orgeat, fresh lemon juice, and fresh orange juice.


Who Created the Scorpion?

According to cocktail legend, the Scorpion Bowl had its beginnings back in the 1930s at a little bar in Honolulu called The Hut, where some storied, unnamed barkeep poured rum, citrus, orgeat syrup, and brandy over ice, garnished with an Orange, and dubbed it “Scorpion.”. There are probably more recipes for this drink in cocktail books than any other drink in history. It was adapted by Trader Vic, but even he published at least three completely different recipes in different editions of his cocktail book -- and none of them are the recipe that is actually used in his namesake restaurant chain! The bonafide original Scorpion, as served in Trader Vic's restaurant in Oakland, was a remarkably complex blend of some fifteen ingredients. The recipes in the "Common Recipes" section are listed with the year the recipe was published.

Below is the Trader Vic's Classic 1972 version.

Ingredients:

    2 oz Orange Juice

    1½ oz Lemon Juice

    ½ oz Orgeat Syrup

    2 oz Light Puerto Rican Rum

    1 oz Brandy

Multiplied by about four, and you have youselves the Scorpion Bowl, a large-format cocktail.

Directions:

Blend ingredients with a scoop of shaved ice at high speed for five seconds. Pour into cocktail glass. Add more ice to fill. Garnish with a gardenia.
Similar Cocktails

My Notes: 

A delicious citrus forward Tiki-sipper without the overt sweetness sometimes common to Tiki cocktails.
CHEERS~Dr.Cyclops
From “Trader Vic’s Bartender’s Guide,” by Victor Bergeron, 1972

Dr.Cyclops' Tiki-Cinema: White Zombie (1932)

Mai Tai (Classic Tiki Drink) Recipe

Mai Tai (LCBO friendly version of) Trader Vic's Classic Recipe

           Ingredients:

                  1 oz. Freshly squeezed Lime juice

                  1 oz. Orgeat

                  1/2 oz.Triple Sec*

                  2 oz Dark Jamaican Rum

                  Fill Glass with ice and shake

                  Garnish: drop lime shell in glass as garnish, mint sprig

*Original 1944 recipe calls for Orange Curacao which isn't available in Ontario,by substituting Triple sec it raises the sweetness which is why i upped the lime juice.
Blue Curacao can be substituted for Triple Sec (gives the drink a weird greenish hue)

CHEERS~Doc Cyclops
Mai Tai History

The Original Zombie (1934) Recipe

Don the Beachcomber's Zombie (1934)

The original version, the one that started it all, as served at Don the Beachcomber's famed Hollywood restaurant. This was the drink that made Don's reputation and secured his place in cocktail history.

Ingredients:

3/4 oz. Fresh Lime Juice
1/2 oz. Don's Mix*
1/2 oz. Falernum
1 1/2 oz. Gold Puerto Rican Rum
1 1/2 oz. Aged Jamaican Rum
1 oz. 151-proof Lemon Hart Demerara Rum
1 Dash. Angostura Bitters
6 drops. (1/8 tsp.) Pernod
1 tsp. Grenadine
6 oz. (3/4 cup) Crushed Ice

Directions:

Put everything in a blender. Blend at high speed for no more than 5 seconds. Pour into a chimney glass. Add ice cubes to fill. Garnish with a mint sprig.
*Don's Mix was one of the Beachcomber's secret ingredients. It's made by combining 2 parts grapefruit juice with 1 part cinnamon syrup. It is also available for purchase from B.G. Reynolds' syrups.

My Notes:

I have tested this and it is the 'Real Deal' .No Faux-Zombie tastes like this Evil Behemoth.
 WORD Of WARNING
Though it is Alcohol Heavy it is masked by the spices and juices so I recommend that you have 2 or 3 Drinks max.

CHEERS~Doc Cyclops

Source:

Jeff Berry
Beachbum Berry's Sippin' SafariClub Tiki Press/SLG Publishing, 2007