I have written about the Mai Tai before, but now (after a much needed vacation) this post comes with a much better understanding of what a Mai Tai can do – a new and welcome appreciation of this ass-kicking drink.

Let me first explain that I am much more of a microbrew drinker than I am one for frilly/sweet drinks. When I do drink liquor it’s vodka water with lime. So, I was slightly leery when a flight attendant asked if he could start me off with a Mai Tai on a recent flight to Maui, but it was hard to resist joining in as I looked across and down the aisle to see rows of pineapple and colorful umbrellas.

After my first (albeit airplane) Mai Tai, I was hooked on it as my vacation drink. It was soon after our arrival that I realized there was no escaping it – everywhere you turn in Maui, there’s someone with one, someone pouring one, someone wanting one. And I wanted to be a part of the action. I drank them at the pool bar, out of a pineapple at 10 am (don’t tell anyone).

My favorite version of this tropical drink included the nap-producing drug 151. Deliciously sweet and perfectly potent. Here’s a slight twist on the last recipe I posted (just add OJ and make sure to top with 151):

1 oz dark rum
1 oz light rum
1 oz orange curacao
2 oz orange juice
½ oz lime juice
Dash Orgeat
1 oz 151 to top

Combine all of the ingredients in the order listed in a Old Fashioned style glass over ice. Stir with a swizzle stick. Garnish with a slice of pineapple and a cherry.

TAGS [ MAI TAI | MAI TAI RECIPE | TROPICAL DRINKS | COCKTAILS | COCKTAIL RECIPES | HAWAII ]