So I was in Vegas over the weekend and it was mostly normal. Almost too normal. I had lots of good tacos, I attended the Golden Knights 1st-round playoff game, I came out a couple bucks ahead at the blackjack tables, and of course, I enjoyed a good beverage or two. We took the requisite trip to Frankie’s Tiki Room since I’ve never been, I had a great Hotel Nacional at Jammyland, but the real tiki star is of course The Golden Tiki. They had some drinks, and a lot of rums I recognize, and a few more I’d love to add to my own collection. In particular the Viking Negroni Dole Whip (which will serve as an inspiration for a future entry) and a Jungle Bird shot that involved Tajin because of course it did, which aren’t even on their current online menu.
But it was all a lot. Fun and delicious and tiring and enough to make me want to take a break for a few days. You know, reset, establish that baseline, etc. I’m an adult, it ain’t all about liquor. I got things to do. But building creative tropical drinks isn’t just about rum. Or at least it doesn’t have to be. After all, you should have a couple fun non-alcoholic or low alcohol beverages in your back pocket, and building drinks like this is about building flavors. Rum, in all its forms and varieties, also adds flavors, but it’s also about all the other stuff that creates that flavor. The syrups and juices and judicious application of garnishes that create an experience.
A Jet Pilot is one of my favorite drinks, and a fun one to build around. At its center, it builds off of the the fun interplay of cinnamon and grapefruit, and wouldn’t you know it, they work fine with each other no matter what. So I pulled out my cinnamon syrup and grapefruit. Building off the rest of that theme, I grabbed a lime, my demerara syrup, a bottle of bitters (the only real alcohol here, but at a couple dashes, adding no more than you would get out of a non-alcoholic beer. Feel free to omit if you want a totally alcohol free beverage), and of course the trustiest of beverages in my fridge, Topo Chico. Here’s what I ended up with:
2 oz grapefruit juice
1 oz lime juice
.75 oz cinnamon syrup
.25 oz demerara syrup
2 dashes Angostura bitters
Topo Chico to top (approximately 2 oz)
Take everything but the top and build it in a shaker. You could also just stir I guess, but idk, I’ve got the tools around and I like the dilution of shaking. Strain that into a Collins glass. Fill about 2/3rds with fresh crushed ice. Top with Topo Chico. Top with a little more ice. Garnish with mint. Viola! You could also add a few drops of absinthe if you want to add a bit more flavor and are okay working with a nominal amount of alcohol.
In homage to the family of beverages that this comes from, how about we call this one a Flight Simulator?
Hopefully this will serve you well the next time you want a drink but don’t necessarily want a drink. Or you have a friend who doesn’t drink. Or you just want something refreshing in the middle of the day. You do you.
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)