Tiki Cocktails: Recipes and History of Exotic Drinks

Tiki cocktails are an integral part of tiki culture, which was particularly popular in the United States in the mid-20th century. Here we show you two recipes for tiki cocktails and give you an insight into the history of the drinks.

Make Tiki Cocktails yourself: Zombie

For the Tiki Cocktail “Zombie” you need a Tiki mug, alternatively, you can use a zombie glass. You will also need a jigger, teaspoon, straw, cocktail shaker, lemon squeezer, fine strainer, small knife and board, Lewis bag, and the mallet. The ingredients are golden Cuban rum, dark Jamaican rum, Demerara rum, absinthe, falernum, grenadine syrup, cinnamon syrup, grapefruit, lime, aromatic bitters, and mint for decoration.

1. Squeeze the grapefruit and lime. Mix grapefruit juice and cinnamon syrup in a 2:1 ratio and shake. This is the so-called “Don’s Mix” used in many original Tiki cocktails.
2. Pour 6 drops of absinthe into your cocktail shaker. You can do this simply by holding your thumb over the opening of the bottle and only letting a little liquid through.
3. Put ice cubes in the Lewis Bag and break them up with the hammer. Measure out 170 grams of ice. You won’t need it until later.
4. Using the jigger, measure 3 centiliters of the Demerara Rum, Jamaican Rum, and Cuban Rum and pour them into the shaker.
5. Also add 2 centiliters of lime juice, 1.5 centiliters of Falernum and 1.5 centiliters of Don’s Mix, a teaspoon of grenadine, and a dash of aromatic bitters to the shaker.
6. Put the ice in the shaker and shake the cocktail well.
7. Lightly tap the rims of the mug with the mint to release flavor and pour in the cocktail. Add more ice, insert a straw and garnish with some mint.

Make tiki cocktails yourself: Mai Tai

To make the Mai Tai you will need a Double Old Fashioned Glass, a jigger, a measuring cup, a cocktail shaker, a lemon squeezer, a fine strainer, a board, a knife, a Lewis bag, and a mallet. The ingredients for the Tiki Cocktail are rum, curacao, orgeat, simple syrup, lime, and mint.

1. Squeeze the lime over the sieve. Save the remaining peel for later.
2. Don’t hit ice cubes by placing them in the Lewis Bag and crushing them with the hammer. Measure out 340 grams of ice and place it in the glass.
3. Measure out 6 centiliters of rum and pour it into the shaker. This is followed by 2 centiliters of lime juice, 1.5 centiliters of Curacao, 0.75 centiliters of sugar syrup, and 0.75 centiliters of Orgeat, the ice from the glass, and 2 to 3 more ice cubes.
4. Shake the shaker well. Hit the rim of the glass with the mint and pour in the cocktail. Finally, add the mint and lime zest for decoration.

The History of Tiki Cocktails

Tiki cocktails emerged in the mid-20th century and were part of the popular culture of the time, which spread primarily in the United States. To this day, the drinks are popular in bars and to make yourself.

• The 1940s to the 1970s was the heyday of tiki culture. In addition to the cocktails, this also included music, architecture, fashion, art, food, and other things. Everything was related to Polynesia, a cultural region of Oceania, which includes many smaller islands as well as New Zealand.
• The influences came through US soldiers who were traveling in the region fighting Japan due to the Second World War and then returned to their home country. Some of them then opened bars where the Tiki cocktails were served for the first time.
• In 1934, the first Tiki Bar opened on Hollywood Boulevard. The founder was Don Beach, who was also the inventor of the zombie. He took a recipe from Polynesian culture, refined it, and offered it in his bar. “Don’s Mix” also goes back to Beach.
• The second influential person in the Tiki cocktails was Trader Vic, who also popularized his own cocktail: the Mai Tai. He established this in 1944 in his own bar, with which he also competed against Don Beach.
• In addition to zombie and mai tai, there are other tiki cocktails that are worth mentioning and recommendable for making your own. Try it out with “Painkiller”, “Scorpion” or “Hurricane”.