Tiki Cocktails

Summer Sipping on the Titan Cocktail

August 29, 2019 by Natalie 195 Comments

Summer isn’t over yet! The temperatures are continuing to rise around here. It has been so humid that I am now convinced I live in South Florida because it randomly rains every day now. Even when it’s not in the forecast. Even when the sun is shining. So, what’s a girl to do when it’s too hot and humid to deal? Make a delicious and boozy crushed ice beverage. Very excited to be partnering with my friends over at THE HOUSE OF ANGOSTURA® to bring you a brand new recipe, The Titan Cocktail, to keep you cool until the end of summer.

THE HOUSE OF ANGOSTURA, THE HOUSE OF ANGOSTURA, based in Trinidad, has been blending bitters fornearly 200 years and producing fine rums for 130 years, mastering the art of ageing and blending. Using a secret recipe, closely guarded to this day, ANGOSTURA®aromatic bitters is recognized as the world’s first and best-selling cocktail bitters. It is an essential ingredient for contemporary cocktails as well as the classics. With just a few dashes, ANGOSTURA aromatic bitters transforms summery mixed drinks into beloved warm-weather cocktails, from spritzes to tiki inventions, to frozen cocktails and beyond.

The Titan Cocktail was inspired by one of my favorite tiki classics, The Saturn Cocktail. Most tikidrinks are rum based but what makes the Saturn special is that it is made with gin. This cocktail is rich and sweet just like most tiki concoctions, but the gin gives it the drinkability of a refreshing Tom Collins. I went a step further and, instead of gin, I used mezcal. I named it Titan after Saturn’s largest moon.

The Titan

1 1/2 oz. mezcal

1/2 oz. lime juice

1/2 oz. orange juice

1/2 oz. passion fruit syrup*

1/4 oz. orgeat*

1/4 oz. falernum

Float of ANGOSTURA aromatic bitters

lime twist and cherry, for garnish

*Passion Fruit Syrup

1 part 100% passion fruit puree, frozen and preferably Goya

1 part rich simple syrup (2:1 demerara sugar and water)

Make your rich simple syrup ahead of time. Combine the sugar and water in a small saucepan and stir over heat until the sugar has completely dissolved. Let cool. Let frozen passion fruit defrost and then add it to the rich simple syrup. Stir until combined and store in a resealable container.

*Orgeat – You can find my step by step process on how to make orgeat in this post on A Beautiful Mess.

To make the Titan cocktail, simply add mezcal, lime juice, orange juice, passionfruit syrup, orgeat and falernum to a cocktail shaker. Dry shake without ice and pour into a highball or swizzle glass. I used these pearl diver mugs from Cocktail Kingdom. Fill the glass with crushed ice and swizzle with a swizzle stick or bar spoon. You can do this by gently twirling the spoon or stick between the palms of your hands until a frost forms on the outside of the glass. Swizzling is a method of dilution the same way as shaking and stirring is, except it is done in a glass with crushed ice.

Next, float the ANGOSTURA aromatic bitters on top of the drink and top with more crushed ice. Garnish with a lime twist and a cherry. I like to roll the twist around the cherry and then use a cocktail pick to secure it.

I just made a few small tweaks to the Saturn cocktail and made it my own by substituting the gin for mezcal. The mezcal adds a slight smoke and earthiness to an otherwise sweet drink. The addition of the ANGOSTURA aromatic bitters is really what changes everything. ANGOSTURA aromatic bitters counteracts the sharp taste of acidic ingredients and subdues the pronounced flavors of spirits. That’s why it is the perfect ingredient to balance summer cocktails. Although ANGOSTURA aromatic bitters contain some ABV, using just a few dashes can transform your cocktails. So whether you’re sipping on a high-proof or low-abv beverage, ANGOSTURA bitters are the perfect flavor and enhancer and complement to any cocktail. I hope you will be mixing up a few Titans before summer is over. xo

Celebrate Easter Weekend with the Carrot Painkiller

March 30, 2018 by Natalie Leave a Comment

If you’re looking for the perfect Easter cocktail then look no further then the Carrot Painkiller. Did you really think I wasn’t going to give you something delicious to sip on this weekend? I’d never let you down and this Carrot Painkiller will surely not disappoint your taste buds.

If you’re not familiar with the classic Painkiller cocktail it is a riff on the Piña Colada. You know how much I love Piña Coladas and given a chance, I will basically turn anything into a Piña Colada. The original Painkiller was created in the 1970s by Daphne Henderson at the Soggy Dollar Bar on the Island of Jost Van Dyke in the British Virgin Islands. It is a blend of rum, pineapple juice, orange juice, and coconut. This cocktail is associated with tiki bars and tropical drinks, which as you all know, happen to be my favorite.

If you’re not aware I worked at a tiki bar in NYC called Painkiller (R.I.P). Pusser’s Rum has the Painkiller cocktail trademarked and we wound up having to change our name to PKNY to avoid a lawsuit. So while I love this cocktail, the Painkiller and I have a pretty tumultuous history. PKNY which was located on the Lower East Side of Manhattan shuttered in 2013 over the loss of our lease. A plague that struck a lot of bars in that neighborhood and in almost every neighborhood in NYC still to this day. Let’s just say, almost 5 years later, I still haven’t fully recovered from the closing of that bar.

Maybe that’s why I’m always developing variations on Piña Coladas. Homesick for a place that doesn’t exist anymore. Before I get sad let’s make drinks!

Carrot Painkiller, serves 1

2 oz. aged rum (preferably Pusser’s Rum)

1 1/2 oz. pineapple juice

1 oz. fresh carrot juice

1/2 oz. orange juice

3/4 oz. coconut cream

First, make your juices. I juiced my pineapple and carrot juice with my Hurom Slow Juicer. I highly recommend owning a slow juicer if you don’t already have one. It has made my life so much easier and healthy. They do not sponsor me (yet, one can dream) so this is 100% my own opinion and recommendation. For the coconut cream I use a 2:1 ratio of coconut cream to coconut milk. After that, this drink is easy peasy to make. Assemble all your ingredients in a cocktail shaker and dry shake. No dilution necessary because when you use crushed ice, dilution happens very quickly and immediately upon adding ice to the glass.

Dump your cocktail into your serving vessel. I used these cute clear tiki mugs from CB2 (now sold out). Then add crushed ice to your glass and garnish with a healthy dusting of nutmeg and a pineapple leaf or two.

Does anyone else adore making coconut themed things for Easter? I’m going to make this tart on Sunday for dessert. Coconut is one of my favorite ingredients to incorporate into this holiday. Also, I love carrots and so does the Easter bunny! I’m just so lucky that both of these ingredients are delicious together. If you’re looking for some other ideas, I also made this Carrot Orange Mimosa last year and shared some other Easter ideas. If you gave up drinking for lent, well then you’re crazy, but these will be such a treat to make and enjoy! Happy Easter everyone! xo

Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day with the Irish Colada

March 10, 2018 by Natalie Leave a Comment

St. Patrick’s Day is hardly a celebration without a little imbibing. I wanted to come up with something green without being cheesy (no green beers please!) so I put together this Irish Colada, a spin on the classic Pina Colada but with Irish whiskey, matcha, and banana. This Irish Colada is perfect for celebrating the Emerald Isle and a cocktail I will be drinking long after St. Patrick’s Day comes and goes.

Irish Colada, serves 1

1 1/2 oz. Irish whiskey (I used Jameson)

1/2 oz. banana liqueur

1 1/2 oz. pineapple juice

1 1/2 oz. matcha coconut syrup

pineapple wedge, pineapple leaves, and toasted coconut, for garnish

First, make your matcha coconut syrup. I used equal parts (1 can each) of coconut cream and coconut milk. In a saucepan combine them with 2 teaspoons of matcha powder, whisking until combined over low-medium heat. I used a matcha whisk to help incorporate the matcha better. Let cool and store in a jar or bottle in the refrigerator for 1-2 weeks.

I decided to make this drink shaken instead of frozen to mimic more of an iced matcha latte feel. Additionally, shaking it also doesn’t sacrifice the gorgeous green hue of the drink. Add all ingredients to a cocktail shaker with ice, shake, and strain over cracked or crushed ice in a highball or serving vessel of your choice. These adorable flamingo glasses are from my friend Meg over at Love & Victory. Finally, garnish your drink with a pineapple wedge, pineapple leaves, and toasted coconut. I toasted some coconut flakes with my kitchen torch but you can also do it over the stove.

The thing I miss the most about working in a tiki bar is an elaborately garnished drink. Each drink that went out was like a little piece of art. We had dozens of different straws, stirrers, and even little pipe cleaner animals! These sparkly palm tree stirrers remind me of those days and are from the Palm Springs Style Shop. I picked them up at the store while I was in Palm Springs for Modernism Week but they are also available here online if you need some fun garnishes at home!

Overall I really love how this Irish Colada came together. Whiskey and coconut complement each other surprisingly well and it was fun incorporating Irish whiskey into a tropical cocktail. The banana liqueur adds a touch more fruitiness and it’s one of my favorite ingredients to use with coconut in cocktails. In addition to the vibrant color, using matcha also adds health benefits to this drink. It’s packed with antioxidants/vitamins and is known to boost metabolism, relax the mind, increase concentration, and enhance the mood among many other things! Sounds like the perfect ingredient to pair with mood enhancing alcohol, don’t you think 😉 ? Matcha also adds sweet, vegetal, grassy notes that complement the other ingredients in this Irish Colada perfectly.

Do you have any special St. Patrick’s Day traditions? My mother always used to make corned beef and cabbage. I think my new tradition will be enjoying a few of these Irish Coladas. They certainly make the perfect boozy dessert. If you decide to make them, be sure to chime in on the comments below and tag a pic on Instagram using #ALinmyglass so I can see. I’d love to hear about what you’re doing this St. Paddy’s Day. Cheers everyone! xo

Tiki Cocktails

The Titan

*Passion Fruit Syrup

Carrot Painkiller, serves 1

Irish Colada, serves 1

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