Cocktail Corner: with Liquor King; August 22, 2019

Eddie from Liquor King visits the studio to make a delicious Mai Tai using Bacardi.

MAI TAI ingredients

45ml x Bacardi Carta Blanca

30ml x Fresh Lime Juice

15ml x Disaronna

15ml x Cointreau

10ml x Sugar Syrup (1:1)

Add the above into a shaker with ice. Give a short hard shake and strain into a tumbler full of shaved ice.

Garnish: Mint Leaf, Lime wedge

METHOD

The Mai Tai is all about freshness, and a focus on the balancing of citrus & the two sweetening elements talked about during the segment – orange & almond.

Keeping in mind that we are using equal parts citrus to sweetener, we need to ensure that there is a balance between the two before we add our spirit. Taste the serve without the spirit first (sugar syrup (1:1), Cointreau, Disaronna & Fresh Lime Juice), and ensure you are happy with the overall taste before continuing on. The citrus may be more or less tart, and we should adjust for that! Also remember, the sugar syrup is purely for mouthfeel & texture. If the sweet/sour mix is too sweet, dial back or re-make without the sugar syrup.

The drink will be served over crushed ice, so it is important to understand how much dilution we should add in the shaking part of the process. The cocktail will be served over crushed ice, meaning that there will be a large amount of dilution added to the drink after you serve it. This means that your shake must either be short, or the ice you use in the shake cannot be as wet. Have a look at the ice you will be shaking with. Does it look wet and glassy? Or opaque & dry? That will tell you how your shake will be.

Dialling into the shake, be aware of the shaker you are using. If you are using a toby shaker (tin on tin) or a boston shaker (glass on tin), your shake needs to focus on the horizontal line, utilizing your arm’s length to smash the ice and aggressively aerate + mix the cocktail. If you are using a cobbler shaker (three piece w/ a built in strainer), you shake will need to utilize the reduction in space, focusing on the vertical line and adding a slight twist at the top of what is called the Japanese hard shake (youtube and you’ll see 😊 )

The garnish element is key – go crazy. Mai Tai’s are an island staple, and tiki cocktails always call for mint springs, orange zests/slices etc.

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