The Three Dots and a Dash recipe
according to the IBA specification
Make the honey syrup in advance: dissolve honey in an equal amount of hot water and let it cool.
Pour both rums, the falernum, the allspice dram, lime juice, orange juice, honey syrup, and bitters into the blender.
Add about 35 cl of crushed ice and blend for 3 to 5 seconds on the highest setting: long enough to mix and chill, too short to turn it into a slush.
Pour everything, including the ice, into the hurricane glass and top up with fresh crushed ice to just above the rim.
Thread three cocktail cherries and a strip of pineapple onto a pick, place it across the glass, and serve with a straw.
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The story
Three Dots and a Dash comes from Donn Beach, born Ernest Raymond Beaumont Gantt. After Prohibition, he opened his Don the Beachcomber bar in Hollywood and is considered the founder of the tiki bar. The cocktail dates from the years of the Second World War. Its name is Morse code: three dots and a dash form the letter V, for victory. The garnish plays on this, with three cherries as the dots and a strip of pineapple as the dash. Donn kept his recipes secret, so many of them seemed lost for a long time. Tiki historian Jeff 'Beachbum' Berry spoke with former Donn bartenders, reconstructed the drink and included it in his 2007 book Sippin' Safari. In 2013, a tiki bar with the same name opened in Chicago, and the cocktail is now on the official IBA list.
The right glass
The IBA specifies a footed copo: a rounded bowl on a short stem, the same type of glass in which you often get a Piña Colada. A hurricane glass of around 44 cl comes closest. It holds more than 12 cl of drink plus a generous mountain of crushed ice, and the stem keeps your hand away from the cold glass. The rounded bowl also shows off the amber color. If you prefer a mug with a face, you will find one among our tiki glasses.
Royal Leerdam Hurricane Cocktail Glass on Foot 44 cl (6 pieces)
Arcoroc Hurricane Cocktail Glass 44 cl (6 pieces)
Both sets together € 95,90.
The right tools
For a Three Dots and a Dash, in addition to the glass, use a jigger for precise measuring, a citrus squeezer, a bitters bottle, glass straws and cocktail picks. These are the bar tools we use ourselves; you can find them all in our bar tools & cocktail sets.
Glassware set (our choice 01) + 5 bar tools together € 156,70.
Variations & twists
Tiki bars also serve it in a tiki mug and sometimes thread different fruits onto the pick; this does not change the flavour. Without rhum agricole, you can use an aged rum from the Caribbean, but the drink will be sweeter and lack its grassy freshness. Want more drinks from Donn Beach's repertoire? Try the Missionary's Downfall with mint and pineapple, or the Don's Special Daiquiri with passion fruit and honey.
Serving tip
Blend for just three to five seconds. Any longer and the ice turns to slush, diluting the drink before it reaches the table. Put the glasses in the freezer for ten minutes so the mound of crushed ice stays in place longer. Serve with a straw, because drinking through a dome of ice is impossible.
Good to know
Three Dots and a Dash recipe: the ingredients at a glance
The recipe contains eight ingredients, and each has a role. The 4.5 cl rhum agricole is the backbone: grassy, fresh, and dry. The 1.5 cl aged blended rum adds depth and a hint of vanilla. Falernum and allspice dram, 0.75 cl each, provide the spices: clove, ginger, lime, and allspice. Lime juice and orange juice bring acidity and fruit together, while the honey syrup ties everything together and rounds out the drink. Two dashes of Angostura bitters bring out the spices further. Because the measurements are small, a jigger with half- and quarter-centilitre markings is no unnecessary luxury.
What are falernum and allspice dram
Falernum is a sweet preparation from Barbados with lime, cloves, ginger, and almond. You can find it as a liqueur of around 11 percent, such as Velvet Falernum, or as an alcohol-free syrup. Allspice dram is a rum liqueur flavored with pimento, called allspice in English: a berry that smells of cloves, cinnamon, and nutmeg at the same time. The IBA specifically names the St. Elizabeth brand. Use both in small quantities, as they can quickly overpower the drink. In this cocktail, they form the spicy heart, a combination you also find in many versions of the Zombie.
Which rum works best
The IBA calls for rhum agricole from Martinique. It is distilled from freshly pressed sugarcane juice rather than molasses, and you can taste the difference: grassy, slightly earthy, and less sweet than most rum. Choose an ambré or vieux that has spent a few years in wood; a white agricole makes the drink sharper. For the second rum, an aged blend from the Caribbean or a dark rum from Guyana works well, bringing caramel and depth. If you use only regular aged rum, the cocktail becomes sweeter and lacks its fresh, vegetal edge. Find more ideas in our rum cocktails.
Making Three Dots and a Dash without a blender
If you don't have a blender, you can shake it. Add all the ingredients and a generous scoop of crushed ice to the shaker, then shake for ten seconds, briefly and vigorously. Pour everything unstrained into the glass, including the ice, and top up with fresh crushed ice. The result is slightly less airy than the blended version, but the flavor and dilution come close. Be careful not to shake for too long, because crushed ice melts quickly and will water down the drink. The same approach also works for the Don's Special Daiquiri.
Making Three Dots and a Dash for a group
For six people, mix 27 cl rhum agricole, 9 cl aged rum, 4.5 cl falernum, 4.5 cl allspice dram, 9 cl lime juice, 9 cl orange juice, 9 cl honey syrup, and twelve dashes of bitters in advance. Store the mixture covered in the refrigerator, but don't juice the citrus more than a few hours ahead. When serving, blend per two glasses: 24 cl of the mixture with about 70 cl of crushed ice for three to five seconds. This keeps every round equally cold and equally strong. Prepare the picks with cherries and pineapple in advance.
Difference from the Zombie and the Mai Tai
All three come from the early tiki world, but they are built differently. The Zombie is the heavyweight, with multiple rums, plenty of alcohol, and a sharp, spicy edge. The Mai Tai is more restrained: rum, lime, curaçao, and orgeat, shaken and served over ice. Three Dots and a Dash falls somewhere in between. The honey and orange juice make it rounder and softer than the Zombie, while falernum and allspice dram make it spicier than the Mai Tai. The rhum agricole also gives it a grassy freshness that the other two lack.
Frequently asked questions
What does Three Dots and a Dash mean?
The name is Morse code: three dots and a dash form the letter V, for victory. Donn Beach created the cocktail during the Second World War and also incorporated the code into the garnish. Three cocktail cherries on a pick are the dots; a strip of pineapple is the dash.
What goes into a Three Dots and a Dash?
According to the IBA: 4.5 cl rhum agricole, 1.5 cl aged rum, 0.75 cl falernum, 0.75 cl allspice dram, 1.5 cl lime juice, 1.5 cl orange juice, 1.5 cl honey syrup, and 2 dashes of Angostura bitters. Everything goes into the blender for a few seconds with crushed ice.
Can I leave out falernum or allspice dram?
Preferably not, because together they form the spicy core of the drink. Without allspice dram, you miss the allspice aroma; without falernum, the clove and ginger. If you only have falernum, use 1.5 cl of falernum and an extra dash of bitters. Both bottles last a long time and can also be used in other tiki cocktails.
Which glass do you use for a Three Dots and a Dash?
The IBA specifies a glass with a rounded bowl on a short stem. A hurricane glass of around 44 cl comes closest and has room for a generous mound of crushed ice. A tiki mug is also fine. View our hurricane glasses.
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