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The world of beverages is vast and with the emergence and evolution of non-alcohol cocktails/mocktails, NA/low-alcohol drinks, and healthy, mindful drinking, there is a lot to choose from. This way, I am reaching my audience more specifically. Check out the other blog posts to see what we’ve been talking about this summer.
What’s happening at The Michael Pour?
My summer mocktail program is kicking into gear with not just original mocktails but also turning classic summer cocktails into mocktails and creating variations of those cocktails. Please let me know if this something you are interested in for your place of business or for your summer parties or events. Wine and cocktails can also be included. Don’t require service? Just ask about a free consultation.
I have received some interest for stewarding wine dinners and conducting wine pairings and wine tastings. Wine, spirits, cocktail, and mocktail classes are available and pop-up events for local businesses who want to add a beverage component to their events and festivities.
On August 17th, I will be doing an Amaro and Vermouth class with a featured vermouth cocktail at “Vine & Fig” Wine Bistro and Shop in Rome with Mediterranean bites, wine, and history of Italian elixirs. If interested in attending, visit their page Vine & Fig, inquire by email, or look for announcement on Instagram this week.
Look out for our next social with Women for Wine Sense, Syracuse Chapter in August. It will be held on the courtyard at Eva’s European Sweets in Solvay. They are celebrating 29 glorious years in CNY. They are a lovely family!
On a personal note, I will be returning to my hometown of Harrisburg, PA this weekend to visit my mother for her birthday. This will be the first time I am back there in about three years.
For this week’s blog, I am dedicating it to my mother who loves a sunny, tropical, fruity, and sweet drink to enjoy by her pool. I decided to go with the classic “Mai Tai“. I will give the cocktail and mocktail version for you to mix up and a little history of this drink.
The “Mai Tai’ is arguably one of the most famous tiki cocktails in the world and all too often messed up by bar keeps. The classic does not call for orange juice or pineapple juice. It is a rum-based cocktail, and the rum should be the star, not the juices. For anyone who has traveled to Jamaica or Caribbean islands, you may have imbibed on a Mai Tai.
The tale of the Mai Tai started in 1944, according to Trader Vic. Victor Jules Bergeron, better known as Trader Vic, was the owner of a tiki restaurant of the same name. Together with Donn Beach, from Donn the Beachcomber, they were the first one to start the tiki culture. The tiki culture is a blend of the Polynesian and the Caribbean. It was a place where people could escape reality and be transported to the tropics while enjoying tropical flavored cocktails. The cocktails were a careful combination of tropical flavors like lime juice, curaçao liqueur, and Caribbean rum.
Trader Vic tells the story of the day he was serving two friends, Eastham and Carrie Guild from Tahiti, at his restaurant in Oakland. Inspired by the simplicity of successful drinks like Martinis, Manhattans, and Daiquiris he set himself to create a new exotic rum drink.
In keeping mostly with tradition, I like to get creative and modernize it a little by introducing new flavors. Although some ingredients may not be readily available, I offer alternatives.
Original Mai Tai
- 1.5 oz white rum
- 3/4 oz orange liqueur
- 1/2 oz Orgeat syrup (almond-flavored). Store-bought or homemade recipe (preferred) below. Don’t use Amaretto lol. If you are allergic to almonds, sub oat milk, or roast other nuts/seeds
- 3/4 oz fresh lime juice
- 1/2 dark rum
- Garnish – mint sprig and lime slice (no cherry or umbrella)
- Glass – rocks or tiki
In a shaker tin, combine all ingredients except dark rum and shake. Strain mixture into a rocks glass filled with shaved or very small ice cubes. Using the back of a bar spoon, carefully float the dark rum on top and garnish mint sprig.
Orgeat recipe –
- 1 cup of unsweetened almond milk, 2 cups of sugar, 3 tsp of almond extract, 1/2 tsp of orange blossom water, 1/4 cup of brandy. Combine the almond milk and sugar in a saucepan on medium heat. Stir until dissolved and the mixture starts to boil. Add the remaining ingredients and stir to combine. Transfer to a clean jar and store in the fridge. Should last up to 4 weeks.
Tahitian Tongue (mocktail)
- 1.5 oz spirit-free rum or combo of 1 oz pineapple juice, 1/4 tsp molasses, and 1/4 tsp vanilla extract (preferred)
- 3/4 oz coconut water
- 1 oz Acidified Orange Juice (to mimic lime juice add a drop of malic and citric acid to orange juice)
- 1/2 oz Orgeat syrup (almond-flavored). Store-bought or homemade recipe (preferred) below. Don’t use Amaretto lol. If you are allergic to almonds, sub oat milk, or roast other nuts/seeds
- 2 dashes aromatic bitters
- Garnish – mint sprig and orange twist (no cherry or umbrella)
- Glass – tiki or tulip
In a shaker tin, combine all ingredients and shake. Fine Strain mixture into a rocks glass filled with ice and garnish.
Cheers,
Michael Nagy
michael@michaelpour.com
717.877.2729