Mai-Tai

Our go-to orgeat brand is Liber & Co.

This was way too lime-y for me. I see there’s another recipe here that’s actually identical except it asks for “juice of one lime” which is about what 1 oz (as called for here) is, and various people responded with “too much lime!” I lean away from sweet so didn’t use syrup, but next time I might try 1/2 oz lime juice and maybe 1/2 oz syrup or maybe orange juice and see how that goes. Generally though I love and appreciate Jim’s recipes!

I found this perfect. Used 1 oz dark rum, 1 oz light rum, and Pierre Ferrand dry curaçao. Brought Hawai’i home to Boston for a night!

I had to adjust and add 3/4 oz each of the orgeat (Small Hands Foods) and curaçao as the cocktail was not balanced. Perhaps because this recipe omits the simple syrup? Not sure but now it’s just right.

The rum is key. The traditional choice (what Trader Vic used when he created it) is a good, aged Jamaican rum. I recommend Appleton (any), Hamilton, Coruba, Mezan, Plantation Xaymaca, or (use slightly less of) Doctor Bird or Smith & Cross. Denizen Merchant's Reserve is a beautiful rum that was formulated to emulate the rums Trader Vic was using in the '50s. Myers's works if it's your only option. For your orgeat, buy a nice bottle without corn syrup or almond flavorings.

For the orgeat, it's well worth it to buy a nice one without corn syrup or a bunch of flavorings—a lot of the bigger brands/bottles tend to overpower whatever they're used in. If that's all you've got, start with just a teaspoon of orgeat and two teaspoons of simple syrup. Mr. Meehan has simplified this recipe to suit a delicate orgeat; others (including Trader Vic's original recipe) call for ¼ oz each of orgeat and simple syrup. Garnish with a mint sprig and spent lime shell.

An excellent, basic Mai Tai without all the tourist-y fruit juices and garnishes. Prefer Denizen Merchant Reserve 8 yr Rum with this.