Before the downfall of civilization, a panel was convened to discuss the Mai Tai: esteemed cocktail creators Garret Richard, Shannon Mustipher, and Natasha Bermudez, and esteemed cocktail quaffer “Tiki” Adam Kolesar, all offering up their differing approaches to the drink.
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I love it—looking forward to part two. Garrett’s dissection of the various rums Trader Vic’s has employed is particularly interesting reading.
The thrilling conclusion:
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Splendid!
And it reminds me that it has been far far too long since Garret Richard made me drink. And now I am sad.
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I don’t think you should take it personally!
It might make you feel better to make his Mai Tai spec from the article. That’s what I’ve been doing and it’s helping.
I hope I am in the right place. I am having a party for my wife’s birthday and it’s Tiki/Tropical themed, I planned to have a batch of Mai Tais, and I know I can’t pre-prep the lime but does anyone have any experience mixing all the rums/orgeat/curaçao in one bottle and then just adding the fresh lime and blending with ice last on an as-needed basis? If so, how long do you think the mixture can last in fridge afterward without it tasting off?
You could batch the rum, curaçao and sugar months in advance and that mixture would not even require refrigeration.
The orgeat… well it depends on your orgeat and how shelf-stable it is. You could probably add the orgeat days in advance and keep the mixture in the fridge. Just remember to shake/stir the batch well before use in case the orgeat has separated/settled.
If you’re using fresh squeezed lime juice, then I would add that day-of, or even as close to a la minute as you can handle. That said, some people deliberately age their lime juice. If you instead make lime super juice (worth considering), you could probably batch the entire drink days in advance. You could certainly prepare the super juice days in advance, even if you kept it separate.
Thanks! I learned my lesson once before about trying to squeeze limes the night before, so I am happy to break out the electric juicer and do it on-site and/or a few hours before. As for the orgeat, I’ve tried nearly every brand out there, but still prefer my own which is unsweetened almond milk, cane sugar and some almond extract. Cookbook author Michael Ruhlman just came out with the Book of Cocktail Ratios and he too prefers this recipe (he even credits me and my book Tiki Triangle in his), so I have no problem refrigerating that in advance, along with a liter of Negronis and perhaps a Manhattan, so all I have to do is shake or stir with ice. He states in his book he had the Negroni months later and there was no significant decline in taste, so I am favoring a small cocktail menu with variety but also something that keeps me tentative to other parts of the party rather than sitting behind the bar the whole time.
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Last question on this point I forgot to ask - will juicing limes, straining out the pulp & freezing the juice ice cube trays diminish the taste? Once frozen I will move to Tupperware containers. There is going to be a lot for me to prep so extra minutes here/there all add up.