Drink Rescue
Sometimes what is in the past deserves to stay in the past, but you don't know until you try
It wasn’t the first time, but I hosted a successful Trader Jane’s night on Monday that I took to the next level. Printed menus and everything (folks, spend a few bucks on a laminator, it’ll take everything to the next level). It was great to have friends over, go through the rum, make the San Francisco cocktail, and even share a little Malört with friends (who are even still calling me friends after). All in all, a successful night, a lot of fun, and more leftover Mamahuhu than I know what to do with (actually, that’s a lie, you eat it)
But, I’ve written up most of the drinks on there (you can figure out a Rum Old-Fashioned without my help I’m guessing), and was lovely to revisit Babylon Sisters and Red Wing and Carthusian Trip is a drink that has a permanent place on any menu. Hell, I’ve even discussed daiquiri philosophy before.
However one of the things about stocking up for having friends over is I end up with a lot of extra things around. In this case, I bought a lot of mint (you never know when you need it, right?) but I didn’t end up using it at all. So I have all this mint and I decided to see what to do with it. So I turned to Beachbum Berry’s Total Tiki app and typed in mint.
Not a lot of selection involves actual fresh mint as anything other than a garnish, but one drink that caught my eye, if only for its bizarreness is one called Missionary’s Downfall. It’s a 40s recipe from Don the Beachcomber apparently, and it’s been left there, likely because it’s weird. Here is what is on the ingredient list for a blended drink for 2:
.5 oz lime
.5 peach liqueur
1 oz honey mix
1 oz light rum
2 oz fresh pineapple chunks
2 oz fresh mint leaves
6 oz crushed ice
A drink for 2 with 1.5 ounces of liquor? Like…really? Why not just make a mint smoothie at this rate? I’m not saying you gotta pour liquor in until it tastes like nothing but alcohol, but I do not understand mixed drinks that don’t have at least 1.75 ounces of alcohol, and even that I am leery of. 2 is a good benchmark if you ask me. And I haven’t even gotten into the name which…let’s just leave that in the 40s too.
Also, I do not need a drink for 2, I’m by myself tonight. Still, this is…intriguing as a challenge. So let’s launch a bit of a rescue mission on this drink. Here’s where I tinkered:
.5 oz lime
.5 oz peach liqueur (Rothman & Winter)
.5 oz agave syrup
2 oz light rum (Ron del Barrilito 2 Star)
2 oz pineapple chunks
2 oz fresh mint leaves
4 oz crushed ice
Take that all and blend the hell out of it, give it a good 20 seconds or so, and pour it into a glass. I used a Hurricane glass that ended up being comically large. Garnish that with some mint and there you go.
How is it? It still tastes more like a spiked Jamba Juice or something, which is not really my jam. It was fine. I feel like a few more adjustments and we might even be at a good drink. Anyway, not adding this to a menu any time soon, I got some better drinks to come over whenever you can make it. And seriously, let me know, this rum ain’t using itself people
This is Trader Jane’s, a periodic newsletter about drinks (mostly tiki) and other fun writing. Follow me on Substack for something every week or two (if we are being honest), and follow me on Twitter and Instagram for more timely updates on my beverages (and for lots of other things of course!)
And, as with any good drink, feel free to share (responsibly, of course)