The Daiquiri - a class act

In between episodes (and there are 3 new ones in progress), I was asked to put together a cocktail class for a private event - a class that was held yesterday (October 17, 2015). I walked the class through a brief overview of rum, basic cocktail making, and then everyone made 2 cocktails - a classic daiquiri and Donn Beach's Sumatra Kula. The class also sampled a daiquiri that wasn't properly measured for comparison against a balanced version. Good times all around.

If you're in the Los Angeles area and are interested in holding such a class, please get in contact with me.

Materials, preparation

Session stations

Class set-up

Formidable Dragon (Tribute to)

I've talked about and linked to Hurricane Hayward's The Atomic Grog in the past and it remains a great resource for cocktail and tiki info across the country, and especially from the east coast. His Mai-Kai cocktail guide and tribute recipes could keep you busy for a year or more. And I'm once again linking to him, this time to highlight his tribute recipe to the Formidable Dragon cocktail.

The Formidable Dragon was Martin Cate's cocktail for this past year's "Tiki Tower Takeover" at The Hukilau. I'm always in the mood to try a cocktail by Martin Cate but given that I was not at the Hukilau this year, I did not have a chance to try it in person. Fortunately, Hurricane Hayward has approximated the drink and posted his Tribute to the Formidable Dragon. 

Between the blend of rums, the spice, and the molasses syrup, this is a grog for the ages. This is my first foray into molasses syrup in place of rich demerara syrup but I'm happy with the results. Molasses syrup is a natural choice for a rum drink, but it needs a bracing rum or three to take it on - the flavor is strong. Be sure to grab the recipe from the Atomic Grog, and raise your glass to the Hukilau, Martin Cate, Hurricane Hayward, and Admiral Vernon.

Back from Tiki Oasis

Well, I've actually back for a few days now. It's just that the ratio of days spent at Tiki Oasis to days recovering from Tiki Oasis is about 1:1. As usual there was a lot of good information on rum (and tasting), especially from Martin Cate's presentation. Eventually that info will find its way into an episode or two of this here show.

And on Sunday of Tiki Oasis weekend I was part of the judging panel for the first "San Diego Bartenders Tiki Battle" at Tiki Oasis with some esteemed company (photo below). Ram from Boy Drinks World was the MC for the event. Watching the 4 contestants mix their cocktails and hear them explain their thoughts behind them was enlightening. It's one thing to get a nice cocktail served to you. It's another to hear the bartender talk through their thought process on the drink and garnish. For the 2nd round the two finalists had to create a new drink on-the-fly using unknown (until that point) spirits and mixers. It was a bit like Iron Chef in that way I suppose. Good times. Fun for all. And hey, the audience got 4 cocktails from the contestants too, so what's not to like?

Judges (left to right): Otto von Stroheim, Kelley Merrell, Rob Burr, yours truly, and Marie King. Photo by Marie King.