The Mai Tai: How it's made and where to find a good one
Imagine creating a cocktail so good that it drank the world dry – of rum at least. That's exactly what Victor 'Trader Vic' Bergeron did in 1944 in Oakland, California when he poured the very first Mai Tai. Come with me to uncover more about this beverage and to try a few too.
Origins
Victor Bergeron first created the Mai Tai to celebrate the richness of a bold 17-year-old Jamaican rum, blended at the time by J.Wray & Nephew. As the tale goes, Bergeron mixed the drink for Tahitian friends who were visiting him. After one sip his friend yelled 'Maita'i roa a'e' meaning 'out of this world, the best!' and so, the Mai Tai was named.
Ingredients
I'm a cocktail fan and they're a big part of what we offer at Forest – the Auckland restaurant I co-own and host alongside chef Plabita Florence. Even so, I realised I didn't know much about rum. In looking into the Mai Tai though, I've learnt that dark rum is made from fermenting molasses and water. It darkens with age, taking on flavours from the bourbon and oak barrels where it's stored. White rum is the filtered, un-aged version, used in mojitos and daiquiris. Lighter again is rhum agricole, made from fresh sugarcane juice. It's grassier, more vegetal and is crafted predominantly in Martinique. In some Mai Tai recipes, a combination of these are used.
And what else is in the Mai Tai? Dry Curacao, specifically Pierre Ferrand, a brandy-based spirit made with candied orange and bitter peel, which imparts citrus notes. Orgeat is next. Pronounced 'or-zha' or 'or-zhaht', this creamy almond-based syrup is infused with orange blossom, which adds a fatty mouthfeel. Fresh lime juice is essential and sometimes simple syrup is added for balance. Crushed ice is served high in a mound like a snow cone for aesthetics and to help with dilution. To finish, the Mai Tai is generally garnished with a lime half and sprig of mint to represent an island and a palm tree. In the Pacific, mixologists often add pineapple juice and exuberant garnishes for sweeter palates.
Where to try a Mai Tai
If metaphorically escaping to a tropical island sounds particularly enticing right now, you're in luck. The rum scene in Aotearoa has blossomed over the last decade. If you want to drink great rum in Tāmaki Makaurau you'll find it in venues like Deadshot, Bar Mea, Captain's Bar, Panacea and Pineapple Bar. If you're in Pōneke, head to Hawthorne, and in Ōtautahi both Casa Publica and Austin Club have great rum offerings.
I went along to three Auckland spots to try this special cocktail and to learn more about how it's made. These three bars have joined forces with Appleton Estate, to create a Mai Tai to commemorate National Mai Tai Day (August 30th) which began in Oakland, the birthplace of the cocktail. These specials will be on offer for all of August. Here's what I thought about them:
Deadshot
My Mai Tai adventure began on a Sunday afternoon in Ponsonby at Deadshot. Bar manager Taite Malty believes that 'people often try cheap, poor quality rum in their youth, but there are more styles than most of us have heard of making it super versatile.' Fellow barman Peter has some serious cocktail knowledge, explaining that 'with classic cocktails, half the fun is the story'.
The rum of choice for Deadshot's Mai Tai special is the Appleton Estate Hearts Collection 2003. It clocks in at 63% ABV which is far stronger than the standard 40%. Just one tiny sip of this rum, which is barrel-aged for 18 years, made my cheeks instantly warm. It's fiery in a non-abrasive way, backed up with a smooth sweetness. With 45ml of this special rum, this Mai Tai is a strong brew, but it's expertly balanced with nutty, zingy flavours from the freshly squeezed lime juice which is kept for no more than five hours. The orgeat is made in-house here with almond milk and sugar. It's infused with orange blossom and almond essence. Grand Marnier offers the orange curacao component. Deadshot's Mai Tai is finished off with an elaborate garnish of lemon, orange, mint and cherry which all add to the fragrance. This cocktail kept developing as it sat, getting smoother, more fruity as the ice melted.
Captain's Bar
Next I headed to Wynyard Quarter. Tucked inside the Park Hyatt is the luxuriously cosy Captain's Bar. With a whopping 70 rums onsite, their rum menu is broken into fruity, oaky, floral and spiced sections. Assistant manager Sura Basnet introduced me to their Mai Tai which she described as more feminine in design – New Zealand botanicals like mānuka honey and kawakawa are used alongside their house-made pistachio orgeat.
Captain's Bar's Mai Tai is built around Appleton Estate Signature and the eight-year-old Reserve, which is pre-batched and poured over a single large ice cube. The absence of crushed ice really allows the smooth texture to be fully appreciated. The drink is milk-clarified, a process which removes impurities resulting in a crystal clear liquid. The solids leftover are then turned into the garnish – a disc of pistachio and milk powder tuile, delicately perched on the rim. To finish, this Mai Tai is topped with a maraschino cherry and a tiny sprig of mint, an ode to the traditional island and palm tree garnish. I liked this sweeter, more delicate approach, and the way the honey and pistachio both came through.
Bar Mea
'People are finding rum again,' Jonny Park, general manager of Bar Mea, explained to me when I arrived. We sat outside looking out over the Viaduct. Bar Mea is one of very few venues serving the Appleton Estate 17-Year-Old Legend. This rum was crafted by head brewer Joy Spence to emulate the 1940s J.Wray & Nephew rum that inspired the original Mai Tai. With only 1500 bottles produced globally in 2022, they are packaged in boxes decorated with hummingbirds, which frequently visit the distillery in the Nassou Valley in Jamaica. Jonny generously let me try a drop of this special nectar. It smelt like spiced caramel, and was both blazing yet delicate on the palate, a welcome contrast to the brisk winter breeze.
Bar Mea has not one but three Mai Tai's on offer this month. The first is for rum aficionados. It's made with a generous 60ml pour of this rare spirit, is served in a blue bespoke mug you can take home and rings in at $115. The second is a classic take on the 1944 original, and the third is a hot-buttered rum where the lime is replaced with cinnamon. I tried the second, served in a green ceramic tiki-style mug, it was delicious and full of revitalising freshness. I'm confident you couldn't go wrong, whichever one you choose.
Turns out I've been unknowingly bypassing the Mai Tai on drinks menus for years. As the Captain's Bar menu rightly suggests, 'raise a glass and let your taste voyage begin' – the Mai Tai is a mid-winter escape in a glass.
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