Pupule
Tiki Oasis is next weekend. Unfortunately, I won’t be there. A lot of people I know and follow on social media will be, though, and I’m super bummed I can’t go. But you know… life.
The closest I’ve ever come to Oasis was Mission Tiki which is a drive-in theater and swap meet filled with tiki themed art and clothing. There aren’t any seminars and worse yet, not a single cocktail… anywhere. I mean, how can you have tiki without cocktails? I guess when it’s a drive-in theater, you really don’t have a choice. At least they have movies on a regular basis. No, they’re not classic Hawaiian movies like South Pacific or Blue Hawaii, but still… movies.
The point is, next weekend is Tiki Oasis and since I can’t be there, I figured I had to at least make a cocktail in honor of the grand event. See, unlike Mission Tiki which is a daily swap meet and drive in, Tiki Oasis is just one long weekend complete with dancing, DJ’s, burlesque shows and plenty of cocktails. So, if I’m going to make a tiki cocktail, I have to go with a classic. Unfortunately I don’t have any of Jeff Berry’s tiki books or any of Vic or Don the Beachcomber’s original recipes. So, I went with the next best thing: Smuggler’s Cove.
I’ve had this book for over a year. I’ve made a ton of cocktails from it and I love every single one of them. Sure, I’ve never made any of the pineapple recipes (a pineapple allergy really sucks when you’re mixing up tropical drinks), but if they’re anything like the others I’ve imbibed (and I’ve imbibed quite a few), then I’m all in. I’ve made the Mai Tai, the Fog Cutter and even the Dr. Funk, but there are still a few classics that I have yet to shake up. This Pupule is one of them.
According to Smuggler’s this drink dates all the way back to the 1930’s and from one of the original tiki men, Don the Beachcomber. Jeff Berry discovered it and Smuggler’s has put their own twist on it. I couldn’t find the original drink recipe and since I don’t own anything by Berry, I made Smuggler’s version. I even went so far as whipping up my own vanilla and cinnamon syrup like Smuggler’s suggested. The syrups are amazing. You can taste the vanilla and the cinnamon. And since I made so much, I can’t wait to use both of these syrups in other cocktails. But those recipes are for another post.
Back to the Pupule. It’s tart and sweet with a hint of spice thanks to the cinnamon syrup and St. Elizabeth All Spice Dram. It’s a great tiki drink and one that doesn’t have an ounce of pineapple juice in it, which means I can drink as many as I want. Give it a try this weekend (or next) and toast Tiki Oasis. I bet after one taste, you’ll be sipping on a few as well.
Notes
Adapted from Smuggler's Cove.
Ingredients
- 2 cups water, divided
- 2 cups sugar, divided
- 3 cinnamon sticks
- 2 vanilla beans
- 3/4 ounce orange juice
- 3/4 ounce lime juice
- 1/4 ounce cinnamon syrup
- 1/4 ounce vanilla syrup
- 1/4 ounce St. Elizabeth All Spice Dram
- 2 ounces rum
- 1 dash of Angostura bitters
Instructions
Make the simple syrups:
- Place 1 cup of water and 1 cup of sugar into a small sauce pan. Bring to a boil and stir sugar until dissolved. Remove from heat and add the cinnamon sticks. Cover and let steep for at least 8 hours and up to overnight. Strain into a bottle and refrigerate until ready to use.
- Place the remaining water and sugar in another pan. Bring to a boil and stir sugar until dissolved. Remove from heat. Slice the vanilla beans in half and scrape out the seeds into the pan. Cut the beans in three and add to the pot. Cover and let steep for at least 8 hours and up to overnight. Strain into a bottle and refrigerate until ready to use.
Make the cocktail:
- Add the remaining the ingredients (including the freshly made vanilla and cinnamon syrups) to a cocktail shaker. Fill the shaker with crushed ice and shake vigorously until chilled.
- Pour everything into a footed pilsner glass. Garnish with an orange peel, a sprig of mint and a straw and serve.
