Quarantiki - Grog

Wednesday, May 6, 2020

For cocktail hour tonight I made grog. It's a traditional tiki drink which I've heard gets its name from Admiral Edward "Old Grogram" Vernon of the British Royal Navy in the 1700s. It's basically just line, juice, sugar syrup (I used Demerara sugar), and rum. Simple and delicious.

I've wanted to make this drink for a long time.


I looked over three different recipes, came up with something of an amalgamation, and ended up with the following:

3/4 oz. lime juice
3/4 oz. Demerara sugar syrup*
3 oz. rum**
lime wedge as a garnish

Shake in cocktail shaker and then strain into a lowball with ice cubes.

*I used Beachbum Barry's way of making sugar syrup. One cup sugar (I used Demerara) and one park water shaken until the sugar dissolves in the water. I like it because it's a tad easier and faster than the boiling method.
** I used Hamilton 86 Demerara Rum

I had a sense of deja vu while drinking the grog. I was similar to something I'd had before. On a hunch I looked up the Barbados Rum Punch recipe in Martin and Rebecca Cate's Smugglers Cove book from 2016. Yep, I'd hit the nail on the head. The only difference between the Barbados Rum Punch and the Grog was a dash of Angosture bitters. I added that to my third grog of the evening and, voila, I revisited the first (and so far only) drink I'd made from the Smuggler's cove book. 

Barbados Rum Punch

Thursday, June 7, 2018

Tomorrow is the last day of school so I celebrated tonight with some Barbados Rum Punch from the Smuggler's Cove book.

Memorial Day 2018 - Barbados Rum Punch

Sunday, May 28, 2018

Posted the above picture on Instagram with the following caption:

"Barbados Rum Punch is the first cocktail I've made from Martin and Rebecca Cate's Smuggler's Cove book. I used El Dorado rum and, yes, I made my own Demerara syrup and squeezed my own lime juice!!"

Memorial Day 2018 - Barbados Rum Punch

Sunday, May 28, 2018

Dale and I had Julie and Regina over for brats at lunch today. No one else was interested in drinking so I saved my Barbados Rum Punch for later afternoon. It turned out great. It made a difference using fresh lime juice and homemade Demerara syrup. Using El Dorado, an aged 5 year rum, probably made a difference too. It was a Martin Cate suggestion and he's the expert, right? I thought it was fantastic. Goal achieved - making my first cocktail from the Smuggler's Cove book by the end of Memorial Day Weekend 2018.

P.S. It got up to 100 degrees today. Earliest 100 degree day in Minneapolis EVER. 

Memorial Day 2018 - Barbados Rum Punch

Sunday, May 28, 2018

I did it! Today I made my first cocktail from Martin and Rebecca Cate's Smuggler's Cove book. I chose the Barbados Rum Punch as it's actually one of the easier drinks to make from the book. 

First step was the make the Demerara syrup which called for two cups water, one cup Demerara sugar, and 3 cups granulated sugar. First you boil the water and then add the Demerara and continue to boil after the sugar dissolves (about a minute) and you can see the bottom of the pan.

Then you add the granulated sugar and boil that down until the water is clear. Let it cool.

After cooling the syrup, I bottled it. It's supposed to keep in the fridge for a few weeks. 

The recipe calls for and ounce of fresh squeezed lime juice, and ounce of the Demerara syrup, and two ounces of blended aged rum. According to the Cates, aged rum is 5 to 14 years old. One of their suggestions was El Dorado which was a five year aged. Shake the ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice and then strain into a glass filled with ice.

Memorial Day Weekend 2018 - Hula Hula Time

Sunday, May 27, 2018

Made another Hula Hula Cocktail tonight. As pictured, I hadn't even taken a sip yet. Made it with the same amount and proportions I always use. Just goes to show how big the Tiki Diablo tiki glasses I got at UnderTow in Phoenix really are. Picked up the Demerara and granulated sugar today I'm going to need to make the Barbabos Rum Punch tomorrow.

Memorial Day Weekend 2018 - Tiki Cocktail Contemplation

Saturday, May 26, 2018

I know I look like I'm asleep in this photo but I'm not. I'm checking out the drink recipe from the Smuggler's Cove book that I'm planning to make this weekend. I love this book! Not only is it an extensive drink recipe book it's also an incredibly complete comprehensive overview of tiki culture in the United States. To me, the making of tiki cocktails seems to be a pretty fussy affair what with having to squeeze three different types of fruit juices, making your own syrup or two, and having to blend three different kinds of rum for a typical tiki cocktail. I'm just not that patient. However, someone I follow on Instagram has inspired me to try the Barbados Rum Punch. It's fairly simple compared to many of the recipes so my goal is to make it before Memorial Day weekend is over!

Dale posted the above picture on Instagram with the following caption:

"It's at least 90 degrees but sitting in the shade having cocktails is not a bad way to deal with it. Joe is reading up on tiki drink recipes. He really should stop teaching and open a tiki bar."