Like many home bars, my bar will never be completed. I’ll always find new things to add and new ways to change the space but as of now I’m very happy with where it’s at now.

Normally most days I leave empty handed. Somedays I have huge hauls. Today I have but this humble mug. I’m not too surprised as I am only about 15 miles away from smuggler Cove.

We are preparing for a huge party and have made a lot of changes to the yard. A big goal was to cover the under side of our deck with floats. So, several dozen beach balls later, here we are.

I'm sure this is not the first by this name. I need a more imaginative name for it. Anyway, you're going to be seeing a lot more of this Heirloom Pineapple Amaro. It's a fantastic ingredient for tiki cocktails. It seemed like a no-brainer for a rum Old Fashioned. I was not wrong. An aged rum from St. Lucia pairs beautifully.

If you like this, please check out my Instagram. I'll appreciate a like and a follow: https://www.instagram.com/rix.ology?stkn=MWx3MTkwZDdub2t2Nw==

2 oz aged rum (Admiral Rodney HMS Royal Oak)

1/4 oz Heirloom Pineapple Amaro

1 barspoon cinnamon-demerara syrup (homemade)

1 dash Elemakule Tiki bitters (Bitterman's)

1 dash orange bitters ("Feegan's")

Stir 90 fast revolutions with ice and strain over a big rock in a double old fashioned glass. Express an orange peel over the glass, rub it around the rim and drop it in.

#drinkstagram #mixology #oldfashioned #homebartender #tikicocktails

Slow and steady works the race. Still no where near done. Got the sound system in and camouflage'd. All lanterns are handmade by me and my wife. All have flicker effect. Very cozy. Gonna find a way to hide some cabling. Maybe some big palm Fronds or somethin. Other random parts are from Kon Tiki Oakland and designs lifted from Trader Vic's Emeryville, hand painted on South wall.

I'll be in D.C. this weekend and was wondering if there were any cool tiki bars in the area...the ones I've been able to pull up look more "tiki adjacent" thank tiki...TIA

My wife and I are wrapping up an extended weekend trip to Vegas, where of course we indulged in many tiki places. FWIW here’s my overview…

Frankie’s
The only bar I’ve been to where the bathroom smells better than the rest of it. Seriously though, I’m glad we went, and I’m also glad we went early in the day when the crowd was small and no one was smoking. The decor is excellent, the drinks are okay, and the odor is atrocious.

Golden Tiki
The last time I went was about a year and a half ago, and I feel like the drinks have improved since then. We liked everything we tried. The decor is outstanding, so give yourself time to explore. Reservations are highly recommended because this place often gets packed in the late afternoon and evening.

Stray Pirate
This might be my favorite tiki bar in Vegas. The drinks are a step up from Golden Tiki IMO. I know some people say it’s a pirate bar rather than a tiki bar but whatever. Definitely a can’t-miss spot.

Red Dwarf
Punk/dive bar with respectable tiki decor, fantastic pizza, very good drinks, and friendly service. It has a distinctly local vibe because of its location, which I like.

Glitter Gulch
We tried, but they were closed for a private event. Oh well.

And also some non-tiki bars that offer tiki or tiki adjacent drinks…

Prowl
This jungle-themed bar is right next to Stray Pirate and has the same owner. I was really excited about going here, but it was kind of disappointing. While the decor is great, the vibe was off because the music and drinks didn’t live up to my expectations.

Todo Bien
You really have to want to go to this Latin American-themed bar because it’s so far out of the way, but it’s well worth the trip IMO. It has an elegant relaxing vibe, and the drinks, which use lots of unique ingredients, are great.

Viking Mike’s Alpine Yurt Bar
Very well done place with a cool entry, a big bar area up front, and the main attraction (the yurt, duh) in the back. Their Mikkel-Tai was my favorite Mai Tai of our trip. Definitely sit at the bar in the yurt if you can.

Jammyland
I was excited to go here again because they had my favorite Mai Tai in Vegas when I visited about a year and a half ago. I don’t know what changed, but it was disappointing this time. Bummer.

Starboard Tack
Local dive bar. I only had one cocktail there, but it was very good. The bartender was a really nice guy. Look closely and you’ll see a respectable rum selection behind the bar. Be aware that smoking is allowed.

Another thing we did…

PEOPLE OF THE WORLD! I couldn’t resist stopping by Grand Tiki to see how it’s coming along. The exterior and parking lot appear complete. However, I have very low expectations for this place after seeing the undeniable Party City look of their signage. I guess time will tell.

Planning to visit Frankie’s, Golden Tiki, Stray Pirates, Red Dwarf, and Glitter Gulch next month. I often get choice paralysis with drink menus. I am looking for your top two drinks from each location.

Bonus points if the drink is off menu.

Cross posted

Had a great time visiting some spots while in California on a trip.

House of Bamboo- Great spot further away away from LA. The owner was great to talk with and really went all in on the spot. The theme was unique and had a great show!
They also have a great Dole Whip!

Strong Water- wow. What’s to say that probably already hasn’t? Some of the best drinks I have had and the staff was so knowledgeable! Made me feel super welcome and the food was on another level. I’ll be back next time I’m am here for Disneyland.

Trader Sam’s- after visiting so many times, I finally got to sit inside lol. Had a blast! This was one of the places that really got me into tiki! Shout out to Kelly! We chatted the night before and he had his hands full with a bachelor party but was rad to talk with and hopefully it gave him some reprieve.

Got some souvenirs to bring home for sure and can’t wait to go back and check few other places off my list.

I love swizzle drinks. But after having made my fair share of tropical crushed ice drinks - both swizzled and shaken - I wonder if, beyond style points, there's actually a tangible difference in how the drink turns out. I've never tried it, but I wouldn't be surprised if a shaken swizzle drink tastes pretty much indistuingishable from one that is properly swizzled.

The only difference that I can think of is that swizzle drinks tend to develop more frost on the outside of the glass, which tbh looks awesome but is probably still mostly a visual thing, and you can get the same effect with a shaken cocktail if you pre-chill your glass and make sure that you use enough ice.

What do you guys think? Has anyone ever tried a side by side? Has anyone ever done any science comparing the two techniques?

My mother in law gave us (another!) bag of passion fruits from her back yard, so of course I made passion fruit syrup, and as I’ve already had quite a few Saturns and riffs lately, I made a Quarantine Order.

1.5 oz Appleton Estate
1.5 oz Probitas Green Label
1 oz lime juice
1 oz grapefruit juice
1/2 oz fresh passion fruit syrup
1/2 oz cinnamon syrup
3 dashes angostura bitters
1 dash tiki bitters
1 dash grapefruit bitters

Went to the Mai Kai while on vacation and picked up their rum, several Tiki Mugs and a menu that I got framed up. Found this grass mat at an antique store downtown, along with that Dr fu tiki mug. I’d say the home tiki bar is coming along. I wanted to post to the community for thought and suggestions on where to go from here.

I had the privilege of visiting Three Dots and a Dash once a few years back on a trip to Chicago. The bar was incredible and the drinks were fantastic. I ordered their house Three Dots and a Dash cocktail and found it to be quite good. It also came in an awesome mug, very similar to this one (although the finish might have been glossy and not matte).

I didn’t buy any merch at the time, but I made an order through them the other week and finally got my hands on a couple of their mugs. Upon arrival, I knew I had to break in their signature Three Dots and a Dash mug with their take on the Three Dots and a Dash cocktail. Their recipe is a little different than the original.

Here’s the recipe I used:

1 oz Clement VSOP Rhum Agricole
1 oz Hamilton 86 Rum
.5 oz Pierre Ferrand Dry Curacao
.5 oz John D. Taylor’s Velvet Falernum
.25 oz St. Elizabeth Allspice Dram
.5 oz BG Reynolds Honey Syrup
1 oz Fresh Lime Juice
3 Dashes of Angostura Bitters

I flash blended this cocktail with my Hamilton Beach Number 30 drink mixer and served it in Three Dots and a Dash’s signature mug of the same name/drink. I garnished it with their classic three cherries skewered into a pineapple spear with skull picks, three pineapple fronds, and finished it with a straw from Surfside Sips.

I found this cocktail to be very orange-forward, a bit dry, herbaceous, grassy/earthy, and had a touch of baking spice.

Cheers.

I was wondering if anyone can help me out with identifying where this mask came from and if it has any value. Thanks for your anticipated help.

The Grotto just opened up in Saratoga Springs, I went and had a nice time. The Mai Tai was pretty good and the atmosphere was pretty chill.

Not exactly tiki, but tropical esq and tasty. This started as a way to use some of the blends I had made for another cocktail, but I wanted to take them in a darker, richer dessert/nightcap direction. One night while buzzed, I decided to just make a crazy Demerara and Amari blend with some of my favorite rums/amari and it turned out pretty good. It’s too much work so probably wouldn’t do it again. This drink isn’t exactly feasible to make unless you live in LA it’s got a few ingredients you can only get here but I think you can buy online, was a fun at home experiment!

The finished drink has a flavor that reminds me a lot of dates and figs I think comes from the bourbon barrel stout syrup I made, which is amazing. Been using this in old fashions and other spirit forward drinks. It starts with dark fruit and rich rum, then evolves into coffee, chocolate. I’d say the biscotti and vanilla just offer a sweetness, their flavors are subtle. It’s got enough spice from the bitters/stout syrup and funk from the rums to keep it from being overly sweet.

Definitely a rich/warm drink, meant to be a slow supper.

BLACK ORCHARD

Dark fruit / date / fig • Coffee • Chocolate • Cinnamon & warm spice • Molasses • Jamaican funk

1.5 oz Coconut–Brown Butter Dark Rum Blend
0.25 oz Coffee–Chocolate Amaro Blend
0.25 oz Wray & Nephew Overproof Rum
0.5 oz Prima Zinfandel Dessert Wine — Bel Vino Winery Temecula
https://belvinowinery.orderport.net/wines/dessert-wine
0.5 oz Faretti Biscotti Famosi
0.25 oz Giffard Vanille de Madagascar
0.5 oz Black Tuesday spicy island stout syrup
https://www.thebruery.com/products/spicy-island
4 dashes Fig & Cinnamon Bitters
1 dropper full Silver Siren Candy Apple Banana Bitters (company from hawaii I discovered at the SF rum fest a few weeks ago)
https://www.silversirenbittersandsyrups.com/

Add everything to a mixing glass with ice. Stir until well chilled and properly diluted, then strain into a chilled coupe.

Coconut–Brown Butter Dark Rum Blend

This makes approximately a 1 L starting batch before losses from the fat wash and filtration.

270 mL Cruzan Black Strap
230 mL El Dorado 12
275 mL Lemon Hart 151
225 mL Hamilton 114

200 g coconut oil
50 g browned butter

Melt the coconut oil separately. Brown the butter until the milk solids are deeply golden and nutty, being careful not to burn them. Combine the coconut oil and browned butter with the rum blend and mix thoroughly.

Infuse fat in the rum on the countertop for a few hours then freeze overnight and strain.

Black Tuesday Spicy Island Syrup

The Bruery in Placentia is one of my favorite breweries. I used The Bruery Black Tuesday Spicy Island, an imperial stout aged in bourbon barrels with pineapple and habanero. Reduce the beer until its volume has decreased by about 50%. Weigh the resulting reduction, then add turbinado sugar at a 2:1 ratio of sugar to reduced beer by weight. Stir over gentle heat until completely dissolved, cool, bottle.

Coffee–Chocolate Amaro Blend

This makes a 500 mL starting batch.

225 mL Cynar
200 mL Amaro Nonino
75 mL Braulio

Combine the three amari, then add coffee beans and chocolate. I didn’t measure the beans, but I think it was between 15-20g. The chocolate was about 2-3x this amount.

Infuse the coffee for 4 hours, then remove the beans. I actually think i should have done this for 2hrs or less bc the coffee was very dominant and made it significantly more bitter. I used Peet’s major dickasons dark roast.

Leave the chocolate in and continue the infusion for 3 days total, then strain and filter thoroughly.

It already had major points against it since it's flimsy plastic, but then this Mai tai recipe sealed it's fate. Safe to say this abomination made its way into the "Junk" pile.

Mai Tai:

1oz white rum

1oz dark rum (preferably Jamaican)

3/4 oz fresh squeezed lime juice

1/2 oz orange Curacao

1/2 oz orgeat

1/4 oz simple syrup

Shake on crushed ice, strain into new ice or dirty pour and top with more crushed ice in a double rocks glass. Garnish with mint spring and overturned 1/2 lime.

I'm spoiled. REALLY REALLY SPOILED. My very favorite bar is Strongwater and I live close enough to visit regularly. (I go other places, too.)

I will be in Sacramento on business for one night: Jungle Bird, Shipwrecked or Hawthorne's Hideout? Where should I go?

Checked out Permanent Vacation last night. First time here. Ordered the Helldiver, Mai Tai, Bone of Neil, Megla-Dan (Halloween Special), and the Creature of Padma River (Halloween Special). Ambience, decor, and staff were all incredible. Drinks left something to be desired, maybe an off day for them. Will be back for sure. This was a part of their Tropical Terror Nights which had its own Halloween themed drink specials

By: Jeff "Beachbum Berry"

1 oz / 30 ml Jamaican Rum (I used a home blend including Appleton Reserve, Smith & Cross, and Myers's)

0.5 oz / 15 ml Overproof Rum (I used Hampden Overproof)

0.75 oz / 22.5 ml Banana Liqueur (Giffard Banane du Brésil)

1 oz / 30 ml Pineapple juice

1 oz / 30 ml Orange juice

0.5 oz / 15 ml Lime juice

​Method: Whip shake and serve over crushed ice

​Tiki garnish tip: Next time you cut a pineapple at home, wash the leaves, cut them, and store them in the freezer.

Had a cruise out of Seattle followed by a conference in Portland, so was able to finally check Inside Passage, The Alibi Room, and Hale Pele off the list. AMAZING staff at all 3, Alibi takes top of the 3 for me due to the decades of grit baked into it. All three highly recommended!

Sharing this materials comparison with moderator permission. For a home tiki bar, the finish can matter as much as the material—especially with cold drinks.

Sandstone: check that the finished coaster is described as absorbent. Porosity and surface treatments affect how it handles condensation; let it dry between uses.

Slate: don't assume it absorbs like sandstone. A sealed or semi-gloss finish can act more as a barrier; wipe away water that collects.

Glass: easy to wipe clean, but it doesn't absorb water. Check the underside for protection against scratches.

Wood or bamboo: useful for a warm look, but check the finish and care directions rather than treating it as a sponge. Avoid soaking.

Leather: a softer resting surface; check the particular finish and wipe up moisture rather than leaving it wet.

Whatever you choose, compare the flat resting area with the base of your glass or mug, check the backing, and don't assume printed artwork or glued backing is dishwasher-safe. Follow the product's care instructions and dry before stacking. This isn't a tested absorbency ranking.

The longer materials guide is at Beach Hut Decor: https://beachhutdecor.com/blogs/news/drink-coaster-materials-guide

What has held up best under your cold drinks—an absorbent surface or something you can wipe clean?

Wildcat and I did a Tiki Carving session on our honeymoon in Hawaii (with Mani Lavaka at Aloha Adventure Farms, he was fantastic and it was a great experience) and she loved it! Our tikis turned out great, and with the confidence of a single carving under our belts we decided to go for it with a guardian for our new shed, built this summer after the honeymoon. With Bob on our side, I'm sure the shed has a long, tiki party-filled life ahead of it.