Tiki Bar Era

1940-1970

In the 1930s mixing drinks using tropical flavors was a foreign concept in America. All of a sudden tropical-themed bars with carved wooden statues and tacky string lights pouring Cuban rum under a palm tree were all the craze. The first tiki bar popped up in 1933 opened by Ernest “Donn Beach” Grant in California (“Tiki Pop Culture”). Donn had traveled to several Polynesian and Caribbean islands throughout his life and combined his vast knowledge of all the tropical cultures he was exposed to and opened the first tiki bar Donn the Beachcomber. It was titled as a Polynesian-themed restaurant, but was definitely an Americanized take on a bunch of tropical cultures. A man named Victor “Trader Vic” Bergeon was inspired by Donn the Beachcomber and opened his own tiki bar in 1937 called Trader Vic’s. Tiki bars took off during a time when people could not travel to the Carribeans and craved to be on a tropical getaway. These bars created an exotic escape from reality to a faux tropical paradise that people were so infatuated with at the time. Tiki bars also sparked a new innovative era of cocktail mixing. The cocktails during this time were complex, exotic, and used high-quality ingredients. Rum became the prime spirit in cocktails mixed with fresh fruit juices such as pineapple and guava.

Moscow Mule

The history of the Moscow Mule and copper mug go hand-in-hand with each other. Sophie Berezinski was a Russian who worked at her father’s copper factory, Moscow Copper Co. Sophie designed the original copper mug, but could not sell the mugs in Russia (“Moscow Mule”). In 1941, she traveled to America in hopes of selling her precious copper mugs. Fate would come its way when she stepped into the Cock n’ Bull pub in Santa Monica, California at just the right time. Smirnoff Vodka owner, John Martin, and Cock n’ Bull owner, Jack Morgan just so happened to be there and were also in similar situations. Martin was struggling to get Americans interested in vodka, while Morgan was trying to launch his own brand of ginger beer. The trio worked together to create a cocktail that combined all three failing products and thus the Moscow Mule was created. Following the creation, Martin launched a Smirnoff marketing campaign that involved celebrities holding a Smirnoff Vodka bottle in one hand and a copper mug Moscow Mule in the other (Cervin). Not only was the Moscow Mule a huge hit after this, but several copper mugs were ordered as a result.

Recipe

Glass: Copper Mug Tools: Stirrer

2 oz. Vodka 1/2 oz. Lime Juice 4 oz. Ginger Beer 1 Lime Wheel 1 Mint Sprig

1. Pour vodka, lime juice, and ginger beer into a mug 2. Add ice and stir 3. Garnish with a lime wheel and mint sprig

Old-Fashion Tip:

A good, spicy ginger beer is recommended in order to enhance the proper balance of flavors. You can buy Jack Morgan’s original Cock n’ Bull Ginger Beer used in the first Moscow Mule online or at selected grocery stores.

Mai Tai

The Mai Tai was the most popular cocktail of the tiki movement and it supposedly became so popular that it depleted the world’s supply of rum in the 1940s and 1950s (Pardilla). Victor “Trader Vic” Bergeon invented the drink at his own Trader Vic’s Bar, a Polynesian-themed restaurant, in 1940 to mix with a 17-year-old bottle of J. Wray and Nephew Jamaican rum. Trader Vic presented his new creation to his friends visiting from Tahiti and when they tried it, one of them exclaimed in Tahitian, “Maita’i roa a’e,” which translates to “out of this world! The best!” This inspired Trader Vic to give the new cocktail its name “Mai Tai.” In 1953, Trader Vic was hired by Matson Steamship Lines, a shipping company that has been credited with making Hawaii a tourist destination, to be in charge of the cocktail menus at their Royal Hawaiian and Moana Surfrider Hotels. This is the point where the original Mai Tai recipe gets lost with bottled juices and mixers. In order to make Trader Vic’s cocktail more tourist-friendly, pineapple, orange, and other juices were added to sweeten up the drink. This created neon-colored and artificially flavored cocktails.

Recipe

Glass: Double Rocks Tools: Shaker

1 1/2 oz. White Rum 3/4 oz. Orange Curaçao 3/4 oz. Lime Juice 1/2 oz. Orgeat 1/2 oz. Dark Rum 1 Lime Wheel 1 Mint Sprig

1. Pour white rum, curaçao, lime juice, and orgeat into a shaker with ice and shake lightly 2. Pour into a glass 3. Float dark rum on top 4. Garnish with a lime wheel and mint sprig

Old-Fashion Tip:

Orgeat syrup is a non-alcoholic almond syrup used to sweeten cocktails. The nutty flavor is essentially what makes up a Mai Tai, but can be hard to come by. Worst case scenario you can substitute it with simple syrup.

Rum Runner

The Rum Runner was created at the Holiday Isle Tiki Bar in Islamorada, Florida in the 1950s (“Rum Runner”). The concoction was created by bartender John “Tiki John” Ebert who was challenged to concoct a new cocktail with the excess rum and liqueurs that were not used. The Tiki bar needed to make room for a new shipment that was arriving soon and did not want to waste perfectly good alcohol. The Rum Runner’s cocktail got its name from a group of people called the “Rum Runners” who inhabited the Florida Keys during prohibition. The Rum Runners helped smuggle all kinds of alcohol into the United States overseas, but primarily rum from Bimini in the Bahamas (“Rum Runners”). Rum-running was the term applied when alcohol was being smuggled over water, while bootlegging was applied when it was over land. Captain Bill McCoy was the most notorious rum runner who created the tactic of transferring contraband to smaller boats 3 miles offshore, which was outside of the legal territory of the United States. This 3-mile limit was known as the “Rum Line” and the vessels that lined up for McCoy were known as “Rum Row.”

Recipe

Glass: Hurricane Tools: Shaker, Strainer, Skewer

1 oz. White Rum 1 oz. Navy-Strength Rum 1 oz. Banana Liqueur 1/2 oz. Blackberry Liqueur 2 oz. Pineapple Juice 1 oz. Lime Juice 1/2 oz. Grenadine 1 Brandied Cherry 1 Pineapple Wedge

1. Pour white rum, navy-strength rum, banana liqueur, blackberry liqueur, pineapple juice, lime juice, and grenadine into a shaker with ice and shake well

2. Strain into a glass filled with ice 4. Garnish with a skewered brandied cherry and a pineapple wedge

Piña Colada

The Piña Colada comes from San Juan, Puerto Rico and has been claimed to be first concocted by head bartender Ramon “Monchito” Marrero at the Caribe Hilton Beachcomber Bar in 1954 (Difford). Marrero wanted to make a drink out of the newly available Coco Lóópez coconut cream and concoct a drink that captured the true essence of Puerto Rico. The cocktail originally was not intended to be alcoholic and was just supposed to be a refreshing drink served as a milkshake at snack bars (Davis). The invention of the all-purpose blender and Puerto Rican rum changed the Piña Colada for good. In Spanish, Piña Colada directly translates to “strained pineapple,” which was a nod to the freshly pressed and strained pineapple juice that was originally made for the drink (Difford). In 1978, the Piña Colada was declared the official cocktail of Puerto Rico.

Recipe

Glass: Hurricane Tools: Blender

2 oz. White Rum 1 oz. Coconut Cream 1 oz. Heavy Cream 6 oz. Pineapple Juice 1/2 Cup Crushed Ice 1 Maraschino Cherry 1 Pineapple Wedge

1. Add white rum, coconut cream, heavy cream, pineapple juice, and ice in a blender 2. Blend for about 15 seconds until smooth 3. Pour into a glass 4. Garnish with a maraschino cherry and pineapple wedge

Blue Hawaii

The Blue Hawaii is among the line of notorious Tiki bar drinks and is the most famous drink associated with Hawaii. It was created in 1957 at what was then known as Honolulu’s Kaiser Hawaiian Village, but is now named the Hilton Hawaiian Village Waikiki Resort (“Blue Hawaii”). The drink was designed by the legendary bartender Harry Yee when a sales representative of the Dutch distiller Bols asked him to create a drink featuring their brand of Blue Curaçao. The Blue Hawaii was named after a 1937 Bing Crosby song written for the Paramount Pictures film “Waikiki Wedding” (Lackovich). In 1961, the film “Blue Hawaii” starring Elvis Presley was released and was only indirectly named after the cocktail and created a pop-culture association with the drink. However, do not get the Blue Hawaii confused with the Blue Hawaiian. Both are electric blue Tiki bar cocktail staples that utilize blue curaçao, but they use slightly different ingredients. It is unclear how the Blue Hawaiian came about, but it is likely that a bartender was getting experimental with a Piña Colada recipe.

Recipe

Glass: Hurricane Tools: Shaker, Strainer

3/4 oz. Vodka 3/4 oz. White Rum 1/2 oz. Blue Curaçao 3 oz. Pineapple Juice 1 oz. Sweet and Sour Mix 1 Pineapple Wedge 1 Cocktail Umbrella

1. Add vodka, white rum, blue curaçao, pineapple juice, and sweet-and-sour mix into a shaker with ice and shake well 2. Strain into a glass over ice 3. Garnish with a pineapple wedge and a cocktail umbrella

Old-Fashion Tip:

Make a Blue Hawaiian! Mix 1 oz. white rum, 1 oz. cream of coconut, 1 oz. blue curaçao, 3 oz. pineapple juice, and 1 cup of ice in a blender. Blend for 15 seconds and pour into a hurricane glass. Don’t get it mixed up!