The Mai Tai recipe
for your table
Shake the amber rum, curaçao, orgeat and lime juice briefly and vigorously with crushed ice.
Pour everything, including the ice, into the glass.
Top up with extra crushed ice and float the dark rum on top.
Garnish with a generous sprig of mint and half a squeezed lime.
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The story
Victor 'Trader Vic' Bergeron mixed the first Mai Tai in his restaurant in Oakland for friends from Tahiti, with an aged Jamaican rum as the star. His eternal rival Donn Beach ('Don the Beachcomber') claimed to have invented the drink earlier, and the feud between the two tiki pioneers became legendary. In the fifties and sixties, the Mai Tai conquered America, helped by Elvis in Blue Hawaii, and emptied entire rum stocks. Anyone who makes one today with fresh ingredients understands what all the fuss was about.
The right glass
A Mai Tai is served in a double-walled sculpted tiki glass or a wide, low tropical glass holding 45 to 49 cl. Trader Vic himself used a sturdy tumbler, but tiki culture turned it into an art form: glasses with reliefs, faces, and Polynesian motifs. In our Mai Tai category, you'll find glasses that complete the party, from classic to extravagant. For glasses with Polynesian relief, explore our tiki glasses.
Royal Leerdam Cocktail Tiki Glass 49 cl (4 pieces)
Tiki Glass 45 cl
Together € 35,90.
The right tools
For a Mai Tai, besides the glass, you use a Boston shaker, a jigger for precise measuring, a cocktail strainer, a fine strainer for double straining, and a citrus press. These are the bar tools we use ourselves; you can find everything in our bar tools & cocktail sets.
Glass set (our choice 01) + 5 bar tools together € 92,70.
Variations & twists
Trader Vic's original is all about good rum. Blend an amber Jamaican rum with a rhum agricole yourself for the full spectrum. Add pineapple juice and it becomes sweeter and more touristy; purists frown, partygoers cheer. The dark rum float on top is welcome in both camps. Looking for more inspiration? Browse more than 100 cocktail recipes.
Serving tip
Orgeat is the soul of the Mai Tai. Buy a good almond syrup or make it yourself. And skip the orange juice version: the original contains not a drop of juice, only lime.
Good to know
Trader Vic's proportions explained
The 1944 original revolves around 4 cl of aged rum, 1.5 cl of orange curaçao, 1.5 cl of orgeat and 2.5 cl of fresh lime juice, with 1 cl of dark rum floated on top. Proportionally, that is about eight parts rum, three parts curaçao, three parts orgeat and five parts lime. There is no fruit juice in it: no pineapple, no orange, no grenadine. That very simplicity is what sets it apart from the tourist versions. Shake briefly and vigorously with crushed ice, then pour everything, including the ice, into the glass.
How strong is a Mai Tai
In the glass, you end up with about 16 percent. The 4 cl of amber rum and the 1 cl float together provide 2 cl of pure alcohol, while the 30 percent curaçao adds almost half a centiliter more. After shaking with crushed ice, you have a glass of about 15 cl, equivalent to almost two standard drinks. If you use a Jamaican overproof rum at 57 percent, that rises to just over 20 percent. This is not beach lemonade, as the orgeat and lime mask the rum extremely well.
Mai Tai or Hurricane: the difference
The Hurricane from New Orleans uses two types of rum, passion fruit, orange juice, lime and grenadine, and is deep red, fruity and sweet. The Mai Tai leaves out all fruit juice and is built on orgeat and orange curaçao, resulting in a dry, nutty cocktail in which the rum remains the centerpiece. The preparation also differs, as the Hurricane is shaken for 12 seconds and strained, while the Mai Tai is briefly shaken and goes into the glass complete with its crushed ice. Two tiki classics that have little in common apart from their base.
What is orgeat, and where can you buy it?
Orgeat is a thick syrup made from blanched almonds, sugar, and a hint of orange blossom water, and it is the soul of this cocktail. In the Netherlands, you can find it at Asian supermarkets, Italian delicatessens, and online with bar supplies, with Monin and Giffard being the most widely available. You can also make it yourself: steep 200 grams of almond flour in 25 cl of water, strain it, dissolve 250 grams of sugar in it, and add a teaspoon of orange blossom water. Almond syrup from the supermarket's coffee section lacks the orange blossom and tastes flatter, but it will do in an emergency.
Frequently asked questions
What is in a Mai Tai cocktail?
The original contains 4 cl aged amber rum, 1.5 cl orange curaçao, 1.5 cl orgeat, 2.5 cl fresh lime juice, and 1 cl dark rum as a float, garnished with mint and a squeezed lime half. Orange juice or pineapple juice do not belong in it, no matter how often you come across them.
Is Mai Tai sweet?
Less sweet than its reputation. Orgeat and curaçao add sweetness, but 2.5 cl of fresh lime juice balances it out; the result is more nutty and refreshing than sugary. The syrupy versions you get on holiday owe that to added fruit juice and ready-made mix.
What does Mai Tai mean?
Maita'i roa ae is Tahitian for extraordinarily good. According to tradition, a guest from Tahiti exclaimed this after tasting the drink at Trader Vic's in Oakland in 1944, and that is how the cocktail got its name. So the pronunciation is not a coincidence but a compliment.
What is orgeat, and can you replace it?
Orgeat is a syrup made from almonds, sugar, and a hint of orange blossom water, and it is the soul of the Mai Tai. You can replace it with regular almond syrup, although it often lacks the floral note. Serve with crushed ice in a wide 45 cl glass; see our Mai Tai glasses.
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