A 1950's punch by Don the Beachcomber.
I spent the last few weeks focusing on simple cocktails so I decided it was time for a classic Tiki drink. And it doesn't get any more classic than Don the Beachcomber! This cocktail first hit one of Donn's menus at The Colonel's Plantation Beefsteak and Coffee House at the International Marketplace in Waikiki. It was a steak house where you picked your steak out from a butchers case before going to your table. If you've ever seen the Elvis movie, Paradise, Hawaiian Style, you know what it looked like as they rebuilt the entire restaurant as a set for the movie. (Bonus trivia - the waiter serving Elvis his steak is actually Lean Lontoc, a Philippine immigrant that actually worked at Don the Beachcomber's in Hollywood. There's an entire section on him in Beachbum Berry's Sippin' Safari that's well worth the read).
At any rate, Plantation Punch sticks with Donn's Pernod/Angostura formula and shows off the benefits of mixing rums of different origins. Two things make a huge difference in the flavor of this cocktail; the type of Ginger beer and the type of Jamaican rum. Ginger beer (not ale) is stronger and spicier than ginger ale. Trying a few different brands you will see that some are down right spicy. And Jamaican rums can by molasses forward like Myers to super funky like Doctor Bird. Finding the right balance for your taste buds might take all weekend, but I've had much worse weekends...
Colonel Beach's Plantation Punch
Source -Beachbum Berry, Beachbum Berry Remixed
1 ounce fresh lime juice
2 ounces unsweetened pineapple juice
2 ounces Dark Jamaican rum
1 ounce gold Puerto Rican rum*
1/2 ounce gold Barbados rum
1/2 ounce falernum*
dash Angostura bitters
6 drops Pernod (1/8 tsp)
2 ounces ginger beer*
Add everything except the ginger beer with crushed crushed ice and shake vigorously. Add the ginger beer to the shaker and stir to mix it in. Gated pour into a glass containing 3-4 ice cubes. Garnish is a pineapple chunk and mint leaves.
*Bamboo Sam's customizations: I sub Virgin Islands rum (Cruzan amber) for the Puerto Rican rum. For falernum I prefer Taylor's Velvet Falernum. As for the ginger beer, I'm going with Barritt's Bermuda Style Ginger Beer.
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