tiki

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