Soul Clench (Death & Co. Recipe)

 

This grape and grapefruit spirit cocktail has everything but juice. There's pisco and vermouth for the main notes, but accents of elderflower and spice from St-Germain and falernum. 

There is also an unusual ingredient known as Combier Pamplemousse Rose Liqueur. This is made from the juice and peel of grapefruit steeped in cognac--and it's lovely. I knocked it off with the peel of one grapefruit and one ounce of its juice infused into 2 oz. of vodka and one oz. of cognac for about twelve hours. A lovely taste and very brilliant, but I only made enough for two drinks. 

• 2 oz. pisco (Capel used)
• 3/4 oz. Dolin dry vermouth
• 1/2 oz. Combier Pamplemousse Rose Liqueur (homemade used: see above)
• 1/2 oz. oz. St-Germain
• 1/4 oz. falernum (homemade used)
• 1 grapefruit twist garnish

Combine liquid ingredients in a mixing glass full of ice. Stir and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Twist the grapefruit peel over the glass and drop it in. 

Bahama Whammy (Original Recipe)

I'm riffing on the Bahama Mamma, that rum drink with all the tropical fruit and a few rums to boot. This time I'm leaving rum out and going with fruity whiskies. MurLarkey orange and banana whiskies are not fake flavors: they are made by soaking dried oranges and bananas in barrels of white whiskey so the flavors are all natural. 

That really helps when you are going for fresh squeezed fruit juice and coconut puree that makes you feel like you are on a beach somewhere where the fruit is growing on nearby trees. The drink is also more authentically fresh without having the fake red color of a Bahama Mamma. 

I still have a soft spot in my heart for that Jimmy Buffet-style of boat drink cocktail, but this is healthier and local and all organic when it comes to MurLarkey products. They call it "farm to flask" and I'll admit that it still tastes like unicorns and rainbows. 

• 1 oz. MurLarkey orange whiskey
• 1 oz. MurLarkey banana whiskey
• .5 oz. lime juice
• .5 oz. lemon juice
• 1 oz. pineapple juice
• 1 oz. orange juice
• .5 oz. cream of coconut
• .5 oz. falernum
• lemon and lime wheels as garnishes

Combine liquid ingredients in a shaker with ice. Shake and strain into a chilled pilsner. Garnish with the fruit wheels. 

 

Rum Runner

I feel a bit perplexed that in all these years this is the first Rum Runner I've made for this blog. Still, I've neglected the drink in this post by not using rum. Sure, there is some rum in the falernum I made, but MurLarkey banana whiskey is the core ingredient with its rum-like flavor. And it is fine that I didn't use rum in a Rum Runner. This cocktail is named after Prohibition smugglers, who mainly didn't smuggle rum and were more known for moonshine or Canadian whiskey runs instead. 

The one consistent thing in all Rum Runner recipes is blackbery brandy, which I made using real blackberries in my simple syrup and adding cognac. With falernum and the craft banana whiskey that MurLarkey is known for, this turned into a real hand-crafted drink. I added a hibiscus flower as a garnish to make it especially pretty.

• 1 1/2 oz. gold rum (2 oz. MurLarkey banana whiskey used)
• 1/2 oz. blackberry brandy
• 4 oz. orange juice
• dash falernum or grenadine (1/2 oz. homemade falernum for the rum flavor)
• orange slice garnish

Combine all liquid ingredients in a shaker or blender with cracked ice. Shake or blend briefly and pour into an oversized wine goblet. Garnish with the orange slice. 

London Dock Cooler

I might be just an alcoholic, but I'm not a big fan of hot drinks. They cook off a lot of the alcohol and get you feeling flushed, which is the point on cold days. I'm just saying I like feeling refreshed and tipsy from my drinks and hot drinks don't do that. 

That's why I'm all in on this summer version of the London Dock. It has all the same ingredients without the spice float on top. Falernum is the stand-in for cinnamon and nutmeg and the like. And it really works! I like it better than the hot version, even. More like a Sangria than a punch, which is why it works so well for patio sipping.

• 1 1/2 oz. Jamaican rum (George Bowman's used)
• 3 oz. Claret or dry red wine (Poppy Cabernet used)
•  1/2 oz. falernum
• 1/2 oz. kirschwasser
• orange twist garnish

Combine all ingredients in a shaker with ice. Shake and strain into a highball glass full of fresh ice. Twist orange peel over the glass and drop it in. 

 

Yama Blanca (Death & Co. Recipe)

 

Tequila and Dolin blanc go great together. The sweet, white vermouth spaces out the spiciness of the tequila and adds softer wine notes. A little heat from jalapenos and equatorial spices from falernum make for a very complete, full-bodied cocktail that will please rum and tequila lovers alike.

• 1 1/2 oz. reposado tequila (El Jimador reposado used)
• 1/2 oz. jalapeno-infused blanco tequila (jalapeno-infused Sauza blanco used)
• 3/4 oz. Dolin blanc
• 1/4 oz. falernum. 

Stir all ingredients over ice and strain them into a coupe. 

Rodeo Drive Rammer

 

This is a fun, and a little silly, drink to salute the crazy that is part of driving in Los Angles. Really, this is a cocktail that is part deluxe, part gaudy, and all American--just like Beverly Hills itself.

Here is a  punch drink with the usual rum. falernum and orange juice: but it's not stereotypically American enough until you add peach liqueur and bourbon. In fact this drink flips the tables with bourbon being the base spirit in a punch, which I like. I happened to have a dash left of Evan Williams peach bourbon, which worked for the peach brandy that was specified in the recipe. 

Go ahead and make this one if you are in the mood for day drinking, just don't get behind the wheel.

• 1 1/2 oz. bourbon (Ancient Age used)
• 1/2 oz. Jamaican rum (George Bowman used)
• 1/2 oz. curacao (triple sec used)
• 1/2 oz. peach brandy (Evan Williams peach used)
• 3 oz. orange juice
• 1 tsp. falernum or orgeat (homemade falernum used)
• pineapple slice and cherry garnishes
• club soda

 Combine all liquid ingredients except for soda in a shaker or blender. Shake or blend and pour into a Hurricane glass. Top with soda and garnish with fruit.

 

Moonraker

 

This cocktail can't be named after anything but the Roger More as Bond film of the 70s, and that makes me wonder. There is nothing about this cocktail that strays from classic ingredients, so the association with a movie that is notable for being far-fetched and space-age doesn't pan. Perhaps it was only a product of its time, like all cocktails, and the fact that it may be trying to riff on the Moonlight--the first drink I made with Laird's Applejack 86. 

But this drink is a much more advanced design compared to the apple brandy Sour that the Moonlight was once upon a time. It is blended to a thick slush with rum and falernum thrown in for heat and spice and served in a globe-shaped glass with an apple slice. 

For this recipe, I'm proud to show off my homemade falernum in a new bottle with a vintage label. I'm also excited to have used Mt. Defiance light rum for the first time. This rum is richly flavored and yet blends well with other spirits. It's the perfect Daiquiri rum when you want more than a lime juice Sour drink--you want it to taste like the Caribbean. Falernum, a spiced rum and juice spirit normally associated with the Caribbean as well, is a shorthand here for apple pie spice. Altogether, this cocktail tastes familiar--and very good--despite its disparate parts. It looks even better. 

• 1 1/2 oz. applejack (Laird's 86 used)
• 3/4 oz. light rum (Mt. Defiance used)
• 1/2 oz. lime juice
• 1/2 oz. orgeat or falernum (homemade falernum used)
• apple slice garnish

Combine liquid ingredients with cracked ice in a blender and blend until smooth. Pour into a chilled squall glass (large stemless wine glass pictured). Garnish with the apple slice. 

Ju-Ju

 

Just a little bit of magic and a banana--not harmful magic, no not Hoodoo, and just a normal banana--and you have this bewitching frozen cocktail from Haiti. All the flavors blend nicely, giving off an overall tropical bouquet. Southern Comfort (replaced here with Bird Dog peach whiskey) is peach liqueur (not a whiskey). Here it reads as sweetness and something from the subtropic world. Just as Southern Comfort provides escapism in America's northern climes, so it lends exoticism to a tiki cocktail.

Banana adds richness here. You almost don't notice the flavor or the pulp of the fruit due to blending and the fact that there's no fat, as you have in smoothies with yogurt or cream. Instead, it too is an exotic texture and scent that augments the fresh pressed cane juice rum from Barbancourt. This spirit is golden in color and has a whiff of burnt molasses that finishes more like caramel.

• 1 oz. Haitian rum (Barbancourt 4-year blend used)
• 1 oz. Southern Comfort (Bird Dog peach whiskey used)
• 1 oz. orange juice
• 1/2 oz. lime juice
• 1 tsp. falernum or orgeat syrup (homemade falernum and a tsp. brown sugar syrup used)
• 1/2 ripe banana sliced

Combine all ingredients in a blender with plenty of ice. Blend until smooth and pour into a chilled Collins glass. Garnish at will with umbrella or swizzle stick.

Piscadera Bay

Piscadera Bay is is a beautiful waterway on the island of Curacao. Indeed, I'm sad I didn't have curacao for this cocktail (except for the blue stuff) so I used triple sec. I'm not sure how the ingredients of this cocktail correspond with an island among the Dutch Antilles, but the main thing about the Piscadera Bay is that it is loaded with spices.

Take a spicy rum (Jamaican if you have it) but make sure it is aged and funky. I'll use my Guyana navy rum, Pussers. Add sweet cherry liqueur, clove-heavy Angostura bitters, and cinnamon and ginger of falernum. Then only cut that with a half ounce of lime juice. There's no protecting you from the richness of this cocktail that might overwhelm the senses--and it does in the sense that you can close your eyes and imagine yourself at a beachside tiki hut--but it's all part of the experience. 

Thankfully a few things help balance the entire drink. That Cherry Herring has a way of tasting exotic and not at all like cherry when used in such a small amount. The sweetnes balances the lime juice considerably. My homemade falernum is a touch on the sweet side as well because I made it with brown sugar. This also helps tame the bitterness and tartness and center the drink closer to baking spices. Think gingerbread cookies and citrus zest!

• 1 1/2 oz. Jamaican rum (Pussers Navy Rum used)
• 1/2 oz. curacao (triple sec used)
  
• 1/2 oz. falernum (homemade batch used)
• 1/2 oz. lime juice
• 1 tsp. Cherry Brandy (Cherry Herring used)
• dash Angostura bitters
• orange slice
• maraschino cherry

Combine all liquid  ingredients in a shaker with ice. Shake and pour into a chilled Old Fashioned glass. Garnish with fruit

 

Bitch's Itch

 

There's a lot going on in this tropical drink. There's dark rum and cacao. Then there's fresh spices grated under your nose. Other spices show up in the liquors themselves, such as the anise and allspice in Falernum. Then there's just a hint of cinnamon from Murlarkey cinnamon whiskey. 

This tiki cocktail probably got the most favorable response of all the ones I made last weekend. It is also stupefying. The float of 151-proof rum seems a little unnecessary, but maybe it is to reassure veteran tiki drinkers that there is some alcoholic kick in there under all the spice and fruit flavor. 

• 2 oz. 86-proof demerara rum (Pusser's navy rum used)
• 1/2 oz. white creme de cacao
• 1/2 oz. triple sec
• 1 oz. lime juice
• 1/2 oz. falernum
• 1/4 oz. MurLarkey cinnamon whiskey (optional)
  
• 1/2 tsp. 151-proof rum
  
• cinnamon stick
• whole nutmeg 
• orange slice

Combine liquid ingredients in a shaker or blender with ice. Shake or blend and pour into a chilled Collins glass. Float 151 on top and grate cinnamon and nutmeg over the drink. Garnish with the orange slice.

Morning Dip

 

In keeping with the "Morning" series of strong cocktails with orange juice, this tropical treat is on the spicy side. In this case it is rum and a little bit of juice. The rest is in the liqueurs: maraschino like the Morning Cocktail with falernum in place of the Pernod for spiciness. 

My falernum recipe has a little star anise, cinnamon, allspice and ginger; it's completely tropical tasting. I used brown sugar in this batch, so it is extra rich with molasses sweetness. Pusser's navy rum will have to do for the very specific Puerto Rico gold that the recipe specifies. The difference between Guyana and Puerto Rico is kinda large, but I'm over it. This old recipe I'm using dates from a time where Puerto Rico was the only place you could get rum from in the U.S., and the "gold" lable really means that it is supposed to have more of an aged flavor. Pusser's accomplishes this and then some. 

• 1 1/2 oz. Puerto Rican gold rum (Pussar's used)
• 1 tsp. maraschino liqueur  
• 1 tsp. orange juice
• 1 tsp. sugar or falernum (homemade falernum used)

Combine all ingredients in a shaker with ice. Shake and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. 

Hanley Special

You don't find tangerine juice cocktails on every menu, and there's a reason for that. You pretty much have to juice tangerines: there's not canned substitute, and if you find it, it is probably sweetened nectar, not the natural fruit juice itself.

Tangarine tastes noticeably different from orange juice. It is tropical tasting, and in a drink like this with Falernum and so much tangarine, it can totally disguise itself as tropical ambrosia. 

With falernum being a spice driver here, the gin option is flexible. The vodka is doing the work in terms of alcohol, but you can choose the gin botanicals that suit your tastes. Here a dry gin is appropriate, but might come through as too much juniper for a tropical cocktail.  Vitae's Old Tom gin is probably as good a choice as any, with a touch of sweetness and a sugar (i.e. rum) base to give the drink a Caribbean feel.

• 2 oz. vodka (Smirnoff 57 used)
• 1 oz. gin (Vitae old Tom used)
• 2/3 cup tangerine juice
• falernum to taste 

Combine all ingredients in a shaker with crushed ice. Shake and pour into a chilled Old Fashioned glass. 

Poolabanga Sling

A tropical Sling, very much like the Singapore Sling, is a fizzy and fruity cocktail that is easy to drink on a hot day. The substitution of aged rum and falernum made me want to put it in a tiki mug--and that's a good impulse. Slings aren't especially pretty in clear glasses, the Herring and lime juice tend to make them look a little brown. The glass itself, then becomes the decoration. Just be sure to pick a large glass because a lot of tiki mugs don't have room to top with soda.

• 1 1/2 oz. aged rum (Vitae Barrel Aged used)
• 2 oz. orange juice
• 1/2 oz. lime juice
• 1/2 oz. falernum (homemade used)
• tsp. cherry brandy (Herring used)
• club soda
• mint sprigs

Combine all ingredients except soda and mint in a blender with ice. Flash blend and pour into a highball or tiki mug. Top with soda and garnish with mint.

Barranquilla Buck

A Buck is a fizzy short drink, often made with rum. This cocktail is exactly that and a typical serving you might find in Barranquilla, Columbia. The exception however is that this particular cocktail was made with Vitae Platinum Rum, not a Colombian offering.

It is light, a little dry, but the falernum helps with balance. You really taste the rum, which is a good thing. It should be a little rustic tasting, like most South American rum cocktails. Not fussy, and easy to make and drink.

• 1 1/2 oz. light rum (Vitae Platinum Rum used)
• 1/2 oz. falernum 
• 1 oz. lemon juice
• club soda
• orange slice

Combine all ingredients except soda and orange slice in a shaker with ice. Shake and pour into a chilled Old Fashioned glass. Top with soda and stir. Garnish with the orange slice.

Pino Frio

This long frozen drink really screams Caribbean vacation. It is easy to make with a blender and only a little more of a hassle if you are just using crushed ice and crushed pineapple.

I'm using Vitae's Platinum rum again because it is so flavorful, you can drink it by itself. This cocktail really depends on an interesting rum because it doesn't have much else except pineapple going on. And that is to its credit. It is easy to overdo a tropical drink to the point that it ceases to be refreshing in hot weather--which is kinda the point of tropical drinks. Here falernum serves as the sweetener, so you don't get a sugar rush in the summer sun.

• 1 1/2 oz. light rum (Vitae Platinum used)
• 1 oz. pineapple juice
• 1/2 oz. lemon juice
• 2 pineapple slices cubed
• dash falernum (homemade falernum used) 
• mint sprig garnish

Combine pineapple and liquid ingredients in a blender with ice. Blend until smooth and pour into a chilled Collins glass. Garnish with the mint sprig. 

Captain's Grog (Smuggler's Cove Recipe)

There's a lot going on in the Captain's grog, the signature drink from the Captain's Inn at Long Beach, CA. It is really rich, a little sweet, and loaded with intense flavors. On the sweet side, there's maple syrup, falernum, and black rum. There's spice from the vanilla and almond extract, and a ton of citrus with lime juice, grapefruit juice, and dry curacao. I've used Vitae's Virginia hearty orange spirit with a rum base to substitute for the curacao.

Curiously, there an ounce of sparkling water thrown in, which is odd for a blended drink. I believe it is to help in the blending of the ingredients rather than to add fizziness. That all gets wiped out when you blend. But the sparkling water could help with spacing out the extracts and sugars. It also seemed to help create a smooth blend with a consistency in the size of the ice chunks.

• 1/2 oz. lime juice
• 1/2 oz. grapefruit juice
• 1/2 oz. maple syrup
• 3 drops vanilla extract
• 3 drops almond extract
• 1 oz. sparkling water
• 1/2 oz. falernum (homemade falernum used)
• 1/2 oz. dry curacao (Vitae orange liqueur used)
• 3/4 oz. black blended rum
• 3/4 oz. blended light rum
• 3/4 oz. blended aged rum

Combine all ingredients in a blender with ice. Blend and open gate strain into a double Old Fashioned glass. Garnish with swizzle sticks, umbrellas and fruit as you like. 

Tradewinds (Smuggler's Cove Recipe)

This is a 1970s tiki cocktail that the famous mixologist Beachbum Berry adapted. It certainly is tropical with coconut cream and falernum. Apricot liqueur also makes the drink sweet and complex. You can put this in a tiki mug or a Collins glass, or substitute dry gin for the rum.

• 1 oz. black blended rum
• 1 oz. blended lightly aged rum
• 1 oz. apricot liqueur
• 1 1/2 oz. coconut cream
• 1 oz. lemon juice
• lemon wedge

Combine all ingredients in a blender with ice. Flash blend and pour into a Collins glass or tiki mug. Garnish with a lemon wedge speared by an umbrella that's turned inside out as if it was blown open by the wind.

Xanadu (Non-Alcoholic)

Xanadu or Shengdu is the mythical realm in China where Kublai Kahn supposedly created a pleasure palace and stored untold treasures. One could supposedly receive enlightenment by entering there. This is such a good name for a non-alcoholic tiki cocktial.

Key to this drink is awesome falernum, which adds spice as well as sweetness. Guava nectar is also that bit of tropical fruit that is hard to identify and exotic when you taste it. This is a blended drink, and as such, it is entirely possible to combine acids and cream as long as you are careful when adding ingredients to the blender.

• 2 oz. guava nectar
• 2 oz. lime juice
• 1 oz. falernum
• 1 oz. half-and-half

Combine all ingredients except half-and-half in a blender with ice and blend to crush ice. Add half-and-half and blend until smooth. Pour into a chilled champagne flute.

Ocho Rios (Revisited)

I wanted to return to the Ocho Rios because I didn't have falernum the first time I made it. I wanted to try it as it was intended and not bastardized and dumbed down like so many tiki drinks often are over time. My own falernum is key here, as is guava nectar. I recommend blending all ingredients except the cream first, then adding the cream and blending again to combine.

• 2 oz. dark rum (Lyon rum used)
• 1 oz. guava nectar
• 1 oz. lime juice
• 1 tsp. falernum
• 1 oz. half-and-half

Combine all ingredients in a blender with ice and blend on mix until smooth. Pour into a wine glass.

Trade Winds

Another unlikely tiki cocktail, the Trade Winds gets its sweetness from falernum and Slivovica, Croatian plum brandy. The flavors are super floral and spicy. You notice the tropical spices of falernum and funky pot still flavors from Pusser's (which is made in a wooden still, if you can believe it.) You get the feeling that the Trade Winds is going for a world-wide cocktail with European, Asian, Pacific and Caribbean ingredients.

• 2 oz. gold rum (Pusser's Navy rum used)
• 1 oz. Slivovica or slivowitz
• 1 oz. lime juice
• 1/2 oz. falernum

Combine all ingredients with ice in a shaker. Shake and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.