cocktail_mai_tai

It's Tiki TIme: Mix Up a Mai Tai Cocktail

• 3 mins
• Prep: 3 mins,
• Cook: 0 mins
• Yield: 1 cocktail (1 serving)

The Mai Tai is one of the iconic rum drinks to come out of the tiki scene. This classic rum cocktail is too much fun to pass up, especially on those hot days of summer.

This is a drink with a great story and it all began in 1944 at Trader Vic's original location in Oakland, California.

Victor Bergeron, one of the founders of the tiki cocktail culture, was very well known for his amazing rum cocktails.

One day he mixed up a new drink using ". 17-year old Jamaican J. Wray Nephew rum, added fresh lime, some Orange Curacao from Holland, a dash of Rock Candy syrup, and a dollop of French Orgeat. " with lime and mint and served it to a friend visiting from Tahiti. After that first drink, the Tahitian phrase "Mai Tai - Roa Ae" ("Out of this world - The best!") was exclaimed and Bergeron had a name for his drink.

Over the years, the Mai Tai recipe has changed greatly. The first recipe below is a close adaptation of Bergeron's 'original' recipe sourced from Beachbum Berry, a great resource for tiki cocktail history.

Bergeron and other tiki bartenders were notorious for guarding their recipes against competitors. Over the years, their secrets slowly came out. However, just like every other story in the bar, there's a good possibility that even the so-called original recipes have been tweaked a few times.

What You'll Need

• 1 ounce light rum
• 1 ounce dark rum
• 1 ounce lime juice (fresh)
• 1/2 ounce orange curacao
• 1/2 ounce orgeat syrup
• 1/4 ounce simple syrup
• Garnish: lime shell
• Garnish: ​mint sprig

How to Make It

1. Pour the ingredients into a cocktail shaker filled with about 2 cups of crushed ice.
2. Shake well.
3. Pour everything (do not strain) into an old-fashioned glass.
4. Garnish with a lime shell sunk into the ice and a sprig of fresh mint.

A Few Tips on Making this Mai Tai Recipe

The '17-year old Jamaican J. Wray Nephew rum' that Bergeron used is no longer produced. Beachbum Berry has two fantastic recommendations for both the light and dark rums: Rhum Clément VSOP Martinique Rum and Appleton Estate Extra Dark Jamaican Rum.

If you cannot find those specifically, there are many suitable alternatives.

The lime shell is a unique citrus garnish that can be found in a number of tiki cocktails. It is, quite simply a half of a lime that has been partially hollowed out with a reamer to create a bowl that rests in the drink.

Some tiki drinks will fill the shell with overproof rum and light it on fire as well. It is a fun trick and should be executed with care.

A Slight Variation to the Original Mai Tai

This Mai Tai recipe is very similar to Bergeron's original recipe and is one that I have personally used for years.

To make this drink, shake 1 ounce light rums with 1/2 ounce each fresh lime juice, orange curaçao, and orange syrup with ice. Strain into an old-fashioned glass with fresh ice and float 1 ounce dark rum on top. Garnish with a cherry.

A Very Fruity Mai Tai Cocktail Recipe

Over the years, the Mai Tai took on too many different variations to count. Many of these piled layers of tropical fruit on top of rum and ranged in color from a brilliant red to bright blue. It seems that, at one time, every bar in the tropics created their own rum cocktail and simply gave it the Mai Tai name.

This is not to say that any of these new 'Mai Tai's' are bad. In fact, many are quite delicious and just as appealing as the Bahama Mama and Blue Hawaiian. However, they are not the Mai Tai as it was originally intended and this is a point that is important to realize. Many bar arguments have been started by questioning the real Mai Tai.

This last recipe is one of those, shall we say, imposters. It is filled with pineapple and orange juice, adds a bit of grenadine for sweetness, and tops everything off with a dark rum float. It is a great drink.

To make the drink, pour 1 ounce light rum, 1/2 ounce triple sec, 1/4 ounce lime juice, 1 1/2 ounces each pineapple juice and orange juice, and a dash of grenadine into a cocktail shaker filled with ice. Shake well, strain into an old-fashioned glass half-filled with ice, the float 1/2 ounce dark rum on top. Garnish with a cherry.

Cocktail recipes

It might be because of the colors, but the Mai Tai is the perfect drink to enjoy the sunset with. Do not be fooled, though. Although the moment might be laid back, the cocktail is not. The Mai Tai is a mix of Triple Sec and two different Rums, so it is safe to say that this cocktail is for the fierce cocktail drinkers.

Ingredients

• ½ part Senior Curaçao Triple Sec
• 1½ part Gold/ Amber Rum
• 1 part Dark rum
• ¼ part Lime juice
• 1½ part Pineapple juice
• 1½ part Orange juice
• 1 dash Grenadine
• Ice cubes
• Garnish: Orange slice

• Shaker
• Strainer
• Double Old Fashioned glass

How to prepare

Add all the ingredients in the shaker and fill the shaker with ice cubes. Shake well till the cocktail is chilled. Add some ice cubes in the glass and strain the cocktail over it. Garnish with an orange slice.

Visit only if you are over legal drinking age.

Bartending/Cocktails/Mai Tai

The Mai Tai is perhaps the canonical Tiki cocktail and there are innumerable recipes for it. Here are a number of them:

The Original from 1944 Edit

• 2 oz of 17-year old J. Wray & Nephew Rum over shaved ice
• Juice of one lime
• 1/2 oz Holland DeKuyper Orange Curaçao
• 1/4 oz Rock Candy Syrup
• 1/2 oz French Garnier Orgeat Syrup

• Shake vigorously.
• Add a sprig of fresh mint and spent lime shell

The "Old Way" from 1997 Edit

• 1 oz (3 cl) Fine Jamaican Rum (15 or 8 year old)
• 1 oz Martinique Rum (St. James)
• juice from one lime (

3/4 ounce)

1/2 ounce Orange Curaçao

1/2 ounce Orgeat syrup

• Mix and serve as in the Original Formula

"Current" Mai Tai Formula Edit

This recipe is what Trader Vic's restaurants serve today:

• 1/4 Lime squeeze (drop in glass as garnish)
• 1/2 oz lemon juice
• 3/4 oz Trader Vic's Mai Tai mix
• 2 oz Royal Amber Rum
• Garnish: maraschino cherry, pineapple, mint sprig

Shake all the ingredients in a shaker with ice and strain into an old fashioned glass over crushed ice. Garnish with fruits and mint, and serve with a straw.

Don the Beachcomber Mai Tai

This version is much closer to what Don the Beachcomber served in his restaurants. It can be garnished with various fruits, as in the above recipe. Falernum is a spice and lime-based Caribbean liqueur/syrup with a very different taste from the Orgeat syrup used in the Maitai #1.

• 2 oz (or 1/4 cup) water
• 3/4 oz or 1-1/2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
• 1 oz or 2 tablespoons fresh grapefruit juice
• 1 oz or 2 tablespoons sugar syrup
• 1 oz or 2 tablespoons dark rum
• 1-1/2 oz or 3 tablespoons golden rum
• 1/2 oz or 1 tablespoon Cointreau or triple Sec
• 1/4 oz or 1/2 tablespoon Falernum liqueur/syrup
• 2 dashes or scant 1/2 teaspoon Angostura bitters
• 1 dash or scant 1/4 teaspoon Pernod or other anisette-flavored pastis

Shake all the ingredients in a shaker with ice and strain into a tall highball glass filled with crushed ice. Garnish with fruits and serve with a straw.

The Warringtonian Mai Tai

• 2 oz orange juice
• 2 oz pineapple juice
• 1 oz Rose's lime juice
• 1 oz dark rum
• 1 oz light rum
• 1/2 oz triple sec
• 1/2 oz grenadine

(aka the attempted Mai Tai.. happens in bars that do not carry Orgeat)

Fill a collins glass with ice. Add:

Lastly, add ½ oz. of Grenadine on top, it will sink to the bottom to create a layered look.

Grenadine is almost always heavier (more dense) than whatever beverage, alcoholic or not, you're making. That being said, if you'd like a thin red layer at the bottom of your beverages add it last. It also helps if you let it slide down the glass, as opposed to just pouring it in.

O'Sheas Famous Mai Tai

• 3 Ounces Raspberry or Regular Vodka
• 3 Oz. Of Cranberry Juice
• 3 Oz. of Orange Juice
• 3 Oz. of Pineapple Juice
• 3 Oz. of All Natural 7-Up

1. Pour vodka over shaved ice
2. Add juices, stir with vodka in cocktail shaker
3. Strain or leave with ice.

• 2 Shots - Good Quality Spiced Rum
• 1 Shot - Cointreau
• 1 Shot - Orgeat Syrup
• Splash - Agave Syrup
• 1/2 Lime - Juice
• 2-3 Sprigs Mint
• Mulled Pineapple (Optional)

Glass: Low Ball Glass

Pre-cool the glass with ice. Add all the ingredients into a cocktail shaker including the mint (mint must bruise with ice). Shake vigorously and pour into the glass over ice.

Samurai Steve's Iowa Mai Tai

• 1 oz white rum (Paramount or better)
• 1 oz spiced rum (Captain Morgan or better)
• 1 oz orange rum (Bacardi O or better)
• 1 oz Malibu rum
• 1 oz Sour mix
• 1/2 oz Grenadine
• 4 oz Pineapple Juice
• 2 oz Orange Juice
• 1 Glass with Ice
• 1 Swirly straw or tiny umbrella

1. Mix rums into glass with ice
2. Add Pineapple and Orange juices
3. Top with Sour Mix and Grenadine
4. Add swirly straw or tiny umbrella

Mirage Hotel, Las Vegas Recipe

Very close to the original recipe.

• 1 1/4 oz Appleton Jamaican rum
• 1 1/4 oz Mount Gay Eclipse rum
• 1/2 oz orange curacao
• juice of 1 1/2 fresh lime
• 1/2 oz orgeat syrup (almond syrup)
• 1/2 oz rock candy syrup (2 parts sugar, 1 part water, boil until syrup)
• Splash of Grenadine to achieve appropriate color.

In an ice filled mixing glass add above ingredients minus the appleton: shake until well-blended, strain into an ice filled 16oz glass or cup and float the appleton on top. Garnish with spent lime shell, mint spring and pineapple spear.

Fuji & Jade Garden (State College, PA - 2010) Recipe

A slight tweak on the original recipe. The parenthetical ingredients hint at how this version of the Mai Tai evolved.

• 3/4 oz Cruzan Estate Light rum
• 3/4 oz Cruan Guava rum
• 1/2 oz Trader Vic's Macadamia liqueur (or 3/4 oz Amaretto)
• 1/2 oz DeKuyper triple sec (or Cointreau)
• 1/2 oz Nellie & Joe's lime juice (or fresh)
• 1/2 oz Velvet Falernum
• 3/4 oz Zaya 12-yr Trinidad rum [floater]

Glass: 12-oz Rocks Glass (aka Double Old-fashioned glass)

In an ice-filled mixing glass add the first six of the above ingredients. Shake until well-blended, then pour into a 12oz rocks glass. Top with Zaya 12-yr rum as a floater. Garnish with fresh mint, orange slice and/or a pineapple spear.

The Original Mai Tai

Ingredients (7)

• 2 ounces aged rum
• 3/4 ounce freshly squeezed lime juice, juiced lime half reserved
• 1/2 ounce orange curaçao
• 1/4 ounce Rich Simple Syrup (see Game Plan note), also known as rock candy syrup
• 1/4 ounce orgeat
• 1 cup crushed ice
• 1 mint sprig, for garnish

• Calories 204
• Fat 0.1g
• Saturated fat 0.02g
• Trans fat
• Carbs 13.35g
• Fiber 0.68g
• Sugar 9.57g
• Protein 0.26g
• Cholesterol
• Sodium 12.88mg
• Nutritional Analysis per serving (1 servings)Powered by

This recipe is the real deal, tracing back to Victor “Trader Vic” Bergeron Jr. in the 1930s. It comes to us via Martin Cate, owner of Smuggler’s Cove in San Francisco. (Who based it on the recipe found in Jeff Berry’s book Beachbum Berry’s Sippin’ Safari.) See Cate demonstrate how to make it in our You’re Doing It All Wrong video.

What to buy: Orgeat is an almond-sugar syrup traditionally made from whole blanched almonds. The nut oil gives the syrup (and cocktails made with it) a richness that can’t be duplicated with a cheap syrup made with almond flavoring and sugar. Try to find a high-quality brand, like the one from Small Hand Foods.

Game plan: You’ll need to make our Rich Simple Syrup before you begin.

Mai Tai

Mai Tai means ‘Out of this world’ in Tahitian and it’s the perfect name for an irresistible exotic cocktail. This recipe was created in 1944 by Trader Vic Bergeron at his Polynesian-themed restaurant in San Francisco.

INGREDIENT:

1 part BACARDÍ 8 AÑOS Rum

1 part BACARDÍ GOLD Rum

1/2 part Orange Curaçao

3/5 part freshly squeezed lime juice

3/5 part Orgeat Syrup

Pour all the ingredients into a mixing glass. Then add plenty of ice cubes and mix it all up thoroughly. Now serve it up by straining the mix into a glass full of crushed ice. Garnish with a sprig of mint and orange wedge.

© 2016 BACARDÍ , ITS TRADE DRESS, THE BAT DEVICE AND BACARDI UNTAMEABLE ARE TRADEMARKS.

Mai Tai

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Ingredients

1. • 1 oz (2 tablespoons) dark rum
   • 1 oz (2 tablespoons) amber rum
   • 2 tablespoons fresh orange juice
   • 1/2 oz (1 tablespoon) Cointreau or triple sec
   • 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
   • 1 teaspoon orgeat syrup* or 1 drop pure almond extract
   • 1 teaspoon superfine granulated sugar
   • Dash of grenadine
2. • Garnish: an orange slice

Preparation

1. 1. Shake all ingredients in a cocktail shaker with 1 cup ice cubes, then strain into a glass filled with ice cubes.
2. 1. *Available at Fortunes Coffee Roastery Inc. (888-327-5282).

Related Video

Nutritional Info

• Calories 223
• Carbohydrates 14 g(5%)
• Fat 0 g(0%)
• Protein 0 g(1%)
• Saturated Fat 0 g(0%)
• Sodium 3 mg(0%)
• Polyunsaturated Fat 0 g
• Fiber 0 g(1%)
• Monounsaturated Fat 0 g

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Our new favorite drink

Excellent Mai Tai recipe. I made 16 servings and added 4 cups of ice to the pitcher. When my guest arrived it was so easy to put ice in their glass and pour the Mai Tai in. Cheers.

This is a nice enough mix, however it is a a variation of the original Mai Tai and not in fact a true Mai Tai. A search for Vic Bergeron's (Trader Vic) 1944 Mai Tai will lead you to the original. Having said that, I substitute agave syrup for the sugar and ameretto liquor when I cannot find true orgeat and get rave reviews. Don't forget to garnish with a sprig of spanked mint!

I concur with the other reviewers, it's the perfect Mai Tai recipe. Best ever. If you like tropical drinks, this is it! By the way, I found orgeat syrup at an Italian grocery. they are into almond things, take a look at the one near you.

This was the drink du jour at a party we had last summer - i don't know how i'll top it this year! we went through about 12 quarts of it - scary. everyone is still talking about it. Whatever you do, don't even contemplate making your own orgeat syrup - i don't know what i was thinking on that front - next time i'll use Monin almond syrup . . .

This is simply a delicious drink. It's great for parties - next time, I'll make mai tais by the pitcher!

I have been looking for the perfect Mai Tai recipe. This is it!

Fantastic! One, if not the best I've ever had!

This recepie tastes exactly like the best Mai Tais we drank in Hawaii. My husband and I loved it!

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Mai Tai recipe

Scan me to take me with you

posted by Jeffrey @ 10:00AM, 4/27/06

* 1 ounce gold rum

* 1/2 ounce orange curaнѓВ§ao

* 1/2 ounce Orgeat (Almond Syrup)

* 1/2 ounce fresh lime juice

* 1 ounce dark rum

posted by kainalu @ 09:29PM, 5/25/06

posted by cha cha @ 11:35PM, 7/04/06

2 ounces 17-year-old J. Wray Nephew Jamaican rum

1/2 ounce French Garnier Orgeat

1/2 ounce Holland DeKuyper Orange Curacao

1/4 ounce Rock Candy Syrup

juice from one fresh lime

1 ounce Cruzan Black Strap Rum

1/2 ounce Torani Orgeat

1/2 ounce Bols Orange Curacao

1/4 ounce Rock Candy Syrup (homemade)

juice from one fresh lime

posted by Chip and Andy @ 06:05PM, 7/11/06

1/4 oz Triple Sec or Cointreau

1/4 oz Sugar Syrup

1 1/2 oz Jamaican Rum

1 1/2 oz Martinique Rum

posted by Ahu @ 11:23AM, 7/13/06

1oz Martinique rum (Rhum St. James is good)

1/2 oz orange curacao (not the blue stuff)

1/4 oz Orgeat syrup (not creme de almond)

1/4 oz sugar syrup (and Vic puts a little vanilla in his)

the juice of one small lime (3/4 oz approx.)

posted by comquest @ 11:44AM, 8/04/06

posted by Drink Up @ 08:50AM, 9/08/06

1/2 oz triple sec

1/2 oz orange Curacao (sub almond syrup)

juice of 1/2 lime or splash of roses lime juice

1 oz orange juice

1 oz pineapple juice

splash of dark rum

posted by Candace @ 02:17PM, 12/08/06

posted by Flamingo @ 05:43AM, 4/04/07

1 1/2 oz Myer's Plantation Rum

3/4 oz fresh lime juice

1 oz fresh grapefruit juice

1/2 oz Cointreau

2 dashes Angostura Bitters

Shell of squeezed lime

1 cup cracked ice (size of a dime)

Shake for one minute on medium speed. Serve in double old fashion glass. Garnish with four sprigs mint. Add a spear of pineapple. Sip slowly through mint sprigs until desired effect results.

posted by Cait @ 07:01PM, 4/04/07

posted by J-Lu @ 06:12PM, 4/13/07

posted by Lobo-N-Jerzey @ 04:17PM, 6/16/07

1 measure of Malibu Coconut Rum

2 measures of Pineapple Juice

2 measures of Mango Juice

a splash of Grenadine for color

a splash of Sprite

garnish with a slice of orange and lime

posted by charlie @ 01:26AM, 7/01/07

posted by Ed @ 01:01PM, 7/13/07

posted by Jorge @ 02:53PM, 7/21/07

1 oz Orange Curacao or Triple Sec

2 oz Orange Juice

1/2 oz Lime Juice

Dash of Orgeat ( Almond Creme ) = Amaretto

posted by Sean @ 06:52PM, 9/13/07

posted by Deborah @ 10:53PM, 9/15/07

posted by Shawn @ 05:12PM, 10/03/07

posted by yours truly @ 06:06AM, 11/20/07

posted by ardiril @ 04:08AM, 11/25/07

1 oz triple sec

posted by Nura @ 09:36AM, 1/05/08

1/2 oz. Apricot flavored Brandy

1/2 oz. Triple Sec.

Fill OJ & Pineapple Juice

posted by Chuck @ 09:43AM, 2/01/08

For information on creating mixed drink recipes, bartending information, and measurements for alcoholic drinks, visit our Bartender Guide.

DrinksMixer.com, A property of SheKnows.com, LLC. © 2017 SheKnows.com, LLC. All rights reserved.

and the following drinks, with similar ingredients.

Mai-Tai Cocktail

Shake well with ice. Strain into an old-fashioned glass 1/3 filled with ice. Garnish with cherry and pineapple wedge. Serve with a straw.

Ingredients:

• 2 oz. White rum
• 1 oz. Triple sec
• 1/2 oz. Orgeat syrup
• 1/2 teaspoon Sugar
• 1/2 oz. Grenadine
• 1/2 oz. Lime juice

3.75999999046326 20

Mai Tai Chi

“I like the way the chai syrup makes this a more exotic drink while still honoring the classic,” says Marco Dionysos. Topping the cocktail with a pinch of cinnamon highlights the spice in the chai. Leftover syrup can be used to pump up the flavor of regular iced tea or stirred into warm milk. Slideshow: Delicious Rum Cocktails

Ingredients

• Crushed ice
• 2 ounces amber rum
• 1/2 ounce Licor 43 (citrus-and-vanilla-flavored Spanish liqueur)
• 1 ounce fresh lime juice
• 1/2 ounce Chai Syrup (see Notes)
• 1/4 ounce orgeat (almond-flavored syrup)
• 1 mint sprig, 1 lime wheel and a pinch of ground cinnamon, for garnish

How to Make It

Fill a cocktail shaker with crushed ice. Add the rum, Licor 43, lime juice, Chai Syrup and orgeat and shake well. Pour the drink unstrained into a chilled double rocks glass and garnish with the mint sprig, lime wheel and cinnamon.

Mai Tai Recipe

Learn how to make this classically delicious cocktail.

Mai Tai Ingredients

• 2 ounces rum -- dark rum
• 1 ounce lime juice
• 1/2 ounce orange curacao
• 1.2 ounce orgeat syrup
• 1/8 ounce simple syrup
• Collins glass

Instructions:

Stir the rum, lime juice, curaçao, orgeat syrup (an almond syrup sometimes inflicted on coffee; for all we know, you can pick some up at your local Starbucks), and "rock candy syrup" (no more than sugar syrup -- look that up in your Joy of Cooking -- made with a couple drops of vanilla extract) with cracked ice in a chilled cocktail shaker. Shake well and pour unstrained into a large Collins glass (or, of course, tiki mug). If making two or more, you might want to strain the mixture into the glasses, then pour in the ice (to ensure even distribution). Garnish with half a lime shell and sprig of mint.

The Wondrich Take:

You know, mixology isn't organic chemistry. Wait a sec -- mixology is organic chemistry, which puts Victor J. Bergeron -- Trader Vic to his public -- somewhere between Lavoisier, the father of modern chemistry, and John Styth Pemberton, the cracker who came up with Coca-Cola, in the scientific pantheon. On the basis of the mai tai, Bergeron's closer to the French guy.

In 1944, as the Russians were pulverizing Hitler's Army Group Center and the Anglo-Saxons were forcing their way through the Normandy hedgerows and over the bloody coral ridges of Saipan, Bergeron surveyed the state of the world from behind the bar of his Oakland restaurant. "I felt a new drink was needed," he later wrote. Yes.

He began with a fine, 17-year-old Jamaican rum. But let's let him tell it. "I took a fresh lime, added some orange curaçao from Holland, a dash of rock candy syrup, and a dollop of French orgeat, for its subtle almond flavor. A generous amount of shaved ice and vigorous shaking by hand produced the marriage I was after. Half the lime shell went in for color. I stuck in a branch of fresh mint and gave two of them to Ham and Carrie Guild, friends from Tahiti. Carrie took one sip and said, Mai tai -- roa ae! In Tahitian this means 'Out of this world -- the best!'"

But oh how the mai tai has suffered, not the least at Bergeron's own hands. Success brought shortages and substitutions -- the fine old rum was the first to go, followed by the imported orgeat. More success brought shortcuts and mass production and inept imitation. Eventually, this divine compound was reduced to a bottled mix or a what-the-hey catchall for stray fruit juices and grades of rum a pirate would have trouble choking down. But when the experiment is performed correctly, you forget that things like world wars exist -- or are even possible. Out of this world indeed.