Mai Tai

Mai Tai: 1 ounce rum (medium bodied); 1 ounce rum (full bodied); 3/4 ounce lime juice; 1/2 ounce orange curaçao; 1/2 ounce orgeat; Garnish: Float of dark rum (optional), and garnish with a lime shell and sprig of mint.; Shake with ice. Strain into an ice filled Old Fashioned glass.; Source: Created in 1944 by Victor "Trader Vic" Bergeron.; This recipe is a slight variation of the original Trader Vic's recipe. Feel free to experiment with different rums if you like.

Trader Vic's original Mai Tai recipe from 1944 was made with 2 ounces of 17 year old Wray & Nephew rum, the juice from one lime, 1/2 ounce of Holland DeKuyper Orange Curacao, 1/2 ounce of French Garnier Orgeat, and 1/4 ounce Rock Candy Syrup. Today, the Wray & Nephew rum is no longer available, and it was a wonderfully rich flavored rum indeed. My version of the recipe is trying to simplify this drink as much as possible in order to make it easily approached by home bartenders. For this reason I am simply listing an ounce of "full bodied rum" and an ounce of "medium bodied rum", which rums you use is up to you. Because this isn't nearly as heady as the 17 year old Wray & Nephew, I am leaving out the simple syrup, because that would have otherwise made this drink too sweet. Feel free to experiement with different rums on your own, and if you feel it necessary, by all means add a little simple syrup to adjust the balance.