The Makahiki Cocktail
Celebrating Hawaii’s Major Agricultural Crops: Coffee, Sugar Cane, Pineapple
1 oz Cape Verdean Grogue (Unaged Rhum Agricole)
1 oz Clarified fresh lime juice
1/2 oz Cape Verdean Ponche
1/2 oz Clarified fresh Big Island sugar cane juice
1/4 tsp. 100% Kona Coffee (ground)
Pineapple Sediment thickened w/ UltraTex 8
Ring Cut Pineapple Slice
Garnish:
Pineapple Slice (soak for 24 hrs in 3% glucose solution by weight; then dehydrate for 18-24 hours)
Marasca Cherry soaked in housemade Allspice Dram
Read more about the Makahiki, developed at Clio Restaurant, here. Also, check out what Fred Yarm has to say about it @ his Cocktail Virgin Blog!
Starman’s Delight
Inspired by the truckloads of star fruit given to me by Auntie Laurie.
Muddle:
1 Tbsp. sugar
Thick slice star fruit
1 tsp green cardamom pods
Add:
2 oz dry gin (Pinnacle)
1 1/2 oz fresh lemon
1 draw grapefruit bitters (Bittermens)
1 bar spoon aged Jamaican rum (Appleton 12)
Add ice to shaker; Shake hard.
Double Strain into a DOF glass with a big ice cube.
Float 1/2 oz soda
The Star of Makiki
Drench 1 slice of starfruit with Angostura bitters and muddle
2 oz Hayman’s
3/4 oz Aperol
1/2 oz fresh lemon juice
1/2 oz simple syrup
Shake, double strain, up; slice of fruit on the rim.
This is a somewhat tart/citrusy take on a drink we had at Clio called the 370 Comm. Ave (the restaurant’s address), which was Beefeater, Aperol, Lemon, and St. Germaine…. very popular. I like this one though, because it is a bit more tart and of course features the Star Fruit both as an ingredient in the drink and as a garnish.
I have also tried the same formula, substituting black plum for the star fruit, and that works marvelously too.
THE TAHITIAN MILK PUNCH
This is my ‘Hawaii Regional’ take on a historic Colonial New England formula that infuses spirits with spices, citrus, and sugar; then curdles and clarifies that infusion, resulting in a liqueur with a velvety mouthfeel… perfect as a dessert pairing.
My recipe uses Batavia Arrack (pot stilled Indonesian sugar cane rum), fresh ginger, Tahitian Vanilla, and is served chilled in a cinnamon-smoked coupe glass.
The preparation of the glass (dry cinnamon stick; pastry torch) influences the guest’s palette by drawing out the spicier notes of the liqueur. It also implies a slight sweetness to the cinnamon smoke, which to me is reminiscent of being in a pineapple (or sugar cane) field during harvest.
This presentation awarded me 2nd place (tie) in the annual Dole Cocktail Contest, that draws competitors from around the world.
Chee-Hoo Fizz
This one was presented by John Gertsen, Bar Manager of Drink, in Paris at the invitation-only Cocktails Spirits Show. (I apologize for not having a more professional picture of this favorite drink).
2 oz Cognac (e.g. Pierre Ferrand Ambre or Frapin VS)
1/2 oz housemade orgeat
1/2 oz housemade falernum
1/2 oz fresh lime juice
2-4 dashes Peychaud’s bitters
egg white
soda
Dry shake, shake, and double strain into a chilled Collins glass filled 1/3 with soda. Garnish with a lime twist.
You may be wondering about the name. In Hawai’i, local people commonly exclaim “chee-hooooo” when they see or hear something they really like. When trying to name this drink, I remembered the story of how the Mai Tai was named: Vic Bergeron made it for a Tahitian friend, who exclaimed maita’i upon her first sip. I like to think that this drink is that good. Of the people I’ve made it for, that seems to be the consensus, anyway.