Made with the rums we'd pour, the Zombie is 3.3 standard drinks in a single glass. 5 of these 15 tiki cocktails use more than one rum, which is why a fruity-tasting drink can be the strongest thing at the party. Every recipe uses a bottle we've reviewed.
1. Mai Tai
The real one is rum, lime, orange curaçao and orgeat, with no fruit juice. Two Jamaican rums give it the funk.
Recipe: 1 oz Appleton Estate 12 Year Old Rare Casks, 1 oz Smith & Cross Traditional Jamaica Rum, ½ oz dry curaçao (Pierre Ferrand), ¾ oz fresh lime juice, ½ oz orgeat. Shake with crushed ice, pour unstrained into a double rocks glass, garnish with mint and the lime shell.
2. Zombie
Three rums, falernum, lime and a cinnamon-grapefruit syrup. It's the strongest drink here, and the fruit hides it well.
Recipe: 1½ oz Smith & Cross Traditional Jamaica Rum, 1½ oz Appleton Estate 12 Year Old Rare Casks, 1 oz El Dorado 15 Year Old Special Reserve, ½ oz velvet falernum (John D. Taylor's), ¾ oz fresh lime juice, ½ oz grapefruit-cinnamon syrup, 1 dash Angostura. Flash-blend or shake with crushed ice, pour into a tall glass.
3. Jungle Bird
Funky Jamaican rum, pineapple and Campari. The bitterness keeps the pineapple from tasting like juice.
Recipe: 1½ oz Smith & Cross Traditional Jamaica Rum, ¾ oz Campari, 1½ oz pineapple juice, ½ oz fresh lime juice, ½ oz demerara syrup. Shake with ice, strain over a large cube.
4. Painkiller
Pineapple, orange, cream of coconut and dark rum, with fresh nutmeg on top. A rich Demerara rum suits it.
Recipe: 2 oz El Dorado 15 Year Old Special Reserve, 4 oz pineapple juice, 1 oz fresh orange juice, 1 oz cream of coconut. Shake with ice, pour into a tall glass over crushed ice, grate nutmeg on top.
5. Navy Grog
Three rums, honey, lime and grapefruit. The shaved-ice cone around the straw is optional, and showing off.
Recipe: 1 oz Appleton Estate 12 Year Old Rare Casks, 1 oz El Dorado 15 Year Old Special Reserve, 1 oz Mount Gay XO Reserve Cask, ¾ oz fresh lime juice, ¾ oz fresh grapefruit juice, 1 oz honey syrup, 1 oz soda water. Shake with ice, strain over crushed ice, top with soda.
6. Hurricane
A passion fruit punch with two rums. Real passion fruit syrup, not the red powder mix, is the difference.
Recipe: 1 oz Appleton Estate 12 Year Old Rare Casks, 1 oz Diplomático Reserva Exclusiva, 1 oz passion fruit syrup, 1 oz fresh lemon juice. Shake with ice, strain into a hurricane glass over crushed ice.
7. Planter's Punch
One of sour, two of sweet, three of strong, four of weak, as the old rhyme goes. A Jamaican rum suits it.
Recipe: 2 oz Appleton Estate 12 Year Old Rare Casks, ¾ oz fresh lime juice, ¾ oz demerara syrup, 2 oz pineapple and orange juice, 2 dashes Angostura. Shake with ice, strain over crushed ice, dash bitters on top.
8. Aged Rum Piña Colada
Made with an aged rum instead of white, the piña colada tastes like rum again. Blend it or shake it.
Recipe: 2 oz Diplomático Reserva Exclusiva, 3 oz pineapple juice, 1½ oz cream of coconut, ½ oz fresh lime juice. Blend with a cup of ice, or shake hard and pour over crushed ice.
9. Jamaican Stormy (Navy-Strength Rum and Ginger)
Rum, ginger beer and lime, made with a navy-strength rum that carries through the ginger.
Recipe: 2 oz Smith & Cross Traditional Jamaica Rum, 4 oz ginger beer, ½ oz fresh lime juice. Build over ice, float the rum on top.
10. Saturn (Gin Tiki)
Proof that tiki isn't only rum: gin, passion fruit, falernum and orgeat. The lemon-peel ring around the cherry is the planet.
Recipe: 1¼ oz Tanqueray London Dry Gin, ½ oz fresh lemon juice, ½ oz passion fruit syrup, ¼ oz orgeat, ¼ oz velvet falernum (John D. Taylor's). Blend or shake with crushed ice, pour into a coupe or rocks glass.
11. Scorpion
Rum and Cognac with orange juice and orgeat. Scaled up, it's the classic tiki punch bowl.
Recipe: 1½ oz Mount Gay XO Reserve Cask, 1 oz VS Cognac, 1½ oz fresh orange juice, 1 oz fresh lemon juice, ½ oz orgeat. Shake with ice, pour over crushed ice.
12. Test Pilot
Two rums, orange liqueur and falernum, and short enough to hide how strong it is.
Recipe: 1½ oz Appleton Estate 12 Year Old Rare Casks, ¾ oz El Dorado 15 Year Old Special Reserve, ½ oz Cointreau, ½ oz velvet falernum (John D. Taylor's), ½ oz fresh lime juice, 1 dash Angostura. Shake with crushed ice, pour into a double rocks glass.
13. Port Light (Bourbon Tiki)
A tiki drink for whiskey drinkers: bourbon, passion fruit, lemon and grenadine.
Recipe: 2 oz Wild Turkey 101, ½ oz passion fruit syrup, ½ oz fresh lemon juice, ¼ oz grenadine. Shake with ice, strain over crushed ice.
14. Queen's Park Swizzle
Demerara rum, lime and mint, churned with crushed ice and topped with bitters, so it comes out in three layers.
Recipe: 2 oz El Dorado 15 Year Old Special Reserve, ¾ oz fresh lime juice, ½ oz demerara syrup, mint leaves, 4 dashes Angostura. Muddle mint lightly, add rum, lime and syrup, fill with crushed ice, swizzle, top with bitters.
15. Navy-Strength Daiquiri
Rum, lime, sugar. A funky high-proof rum keeps it from tasting thin.
Recipe: 2 oz Smith & Cross Traditional Jamaica Rum, 1 oz fresh lime juice, ¾ oz simple syrup. Shake hard with ice, double strain into a chilled coupe.
How Strong Are Tiki Cocktails?
A US standard drink is 0.6 fl oz of pure alcohol. 4 of these drinks are two standard drinks or more in one glass, led by the Zombie at 3.3. Juice, syrup and crushed ice hide the alcohol, so count by the standard-drinks column, not by taste.
| Cocktail | Pure alcohol | Standard drinks | Drinks per 750 ml bottle of the base |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mai Tai | 1.20 oz | 2.0 | 25 |
| Zombie | 1.98 oz | 3.3 | 16 |
| Jungle Bird | 1.03 oz | 1.7 | 16 |
| Painkiller | 0.86 oz | 1.4 | 12 |
| Navy Grog | 1.29 oz | 2.2 | 25 |
| Hurricane | 0.83 oz | 1.4 | 25 |
| Planter's Punch | 0.86 oz | 1.4 | 12 |
| Piña Colada | 0.80 oz | 1.3 | 12 |
| Jamaican Stormy | 1.14 oz | 1.9 | 12 |
| Saturn | 0.62 oz | 1.0 | 20 |
| Scorpion | 1.04 oz | 1.7 | 16 |
| Test Pilot | 1.22 oz | 2.0 | 16 |
| Port Light | 1.01 oz | 1.7 | 12 |
| Queen's Park Swizzle | 0.86 oz | 1.4 | 12 |
| Navy-Strength Daiquiri | 1.14 oz | 1.9 | 12 |
Pure alcohol is each pour multiplied by the ABV on our review of that bottle, plus: Pierre Ferrand Dry Curaçao 40%; John D. Taylor's Velvet Falernum 11%; Campari 24% (US bottling; check your label); VS Cognac 40%, the legal minimum for Cognac; Cointreau 40%. Bitters dashes and syrups are left out. One standard drink is 0.6 fl oz of pure alcohol (NIAAA). Ice and shaking add water, not alcohol, so dilution does not change these figures.