I'm a Bastard!!

    On November 17th, 2013 around 7pm, after many wonderful Tiki recipes, I was finally crowned a member of the Loyal Order of the Drooling Bastard!  Here, Syd dons my Buckoff necklace as various Tiki patrons look on, most of which are drooling bastards themselves.  The Tonga Hut bastard bell is rung, the announcement is made, and the ceremony is completed!

The pomp & circumstance for the occasion was greater than I could have imagined, I had many very generous LODB members coming up to congratulate me as if I had just graduated college!  Drooling Bastard member and site photographer, Tom D. Kline, even invited me to sit with the many current members for an initiation photo.  Very cool.

The journey of the Grog Log is now over.  All that is left, is to design & create my plaque for the wall, which I'll be sure to post about once that sucker goes up.  Now I can go back to tasting the amazing specials that the Tonga Hut bartenders have created!  Joining me for my final night of Grog Log are several visiting patrons from the journey.  Including my very good friends Katie & Matt Flynn, my long time schoolmate & campus TV cohort Nick palmer, Jessica Forer with whom I first visited the Hut in the first place, and of course my co-captain Mike McKee, who was there for the beginning of the list, and is now here at the end.  Thanks everyone for coming, thanks for reading, and until next time, Cheers and Okole Maluna!

#78: Scorpion Bowl

 
    After 77 other amazing tiki recipes, 7 months, and many grog-y hangovers, I have at last come to the final drink on my Grog Log: The Scorpion Bowl.  Like the other final 10 drinks, this one is immensely classic as well, so much that almost every self-respecting tiki bar as a version of this drink.  There are many variations, and more often than not, a tiki hut will have its own house variation with its own spin on the classic.  Even Jeff Berry lists a few versions in his various books.  The Grog Log, however, boasts this recipe:

• 3 oz light Puerto Rican rum
• 1/2 oz brandy
• 3 oz orange juice
• 2 oz lemon juice
• 3/4 oz orgeat

See the link above for some recipe comparisons among some of the most popular tiki temples.  It should be noted, even the Tonga Hut has its own version called the Tonga Punch Bowl.  The original drink was supposedly created at a Bar in Honolulu in the 30s by an unknown bartender.  About a decade later, Trader Vic's in Oakland managed to get the recipe, and added the large-format "bowl" aspect to the drink, thus birthing the Scorpion Bowl.  I've seen it come in various sizes, often quite humongous, and the Hut serves it up in variations of 1, 2 or 4.  Here you can see myself and several other Grog Log Blog participants digging in simultaneously.  Cheers!

#77: Navy Grog

Finishing the list, before moving on to the final ceremony drink, is the incomparable  Navy Grog.  This is yet another drink from the Don the Beachcomber lexicon of classic recipes.  Created in the 40s, this drink made its way to the Trader Vic's menu as well, with a more complex set of rums (listed in the recipe below).  Like the Zombie, this drink also had a limit, when served at Beachcomber Restaurants.  The name comes from the old water & rum based recipes introduced to the Royal Navy by British Vice Admiral Edward Vernon on August 21, 1740.  The recipe from the Grog Log is as follows.

• 1 oz Light Puerto Rican Rum
• 1 oz Dark Jamaican Rum
• 1 oz Demerara Rum
• 3/4 oz Lime Juice
• 3/4 oz Grapefruit Juice
• 3/4 oz Honey
• 1 oz Club Soda

This drink also has a famous serving-method, often using a snow-cone of ice with a straw through the center for drinking.  Supposedly, this drink was Frank Sinatra's favorite drink at the original Hollywood Restaurant location.  Mike stayed toe-to-toe with me in the final stretch, as we both went Navy Grog for the last drink of this visit.

And with that, the regular list-mission comes to an end.  Next post will be of the final drink, the Scorpion Bowl, and hopefully photos from the Ceremony.  Took me a little over 7 months to get through all 78 drinks, started April 19th, 2013, ended Nov 17th, 2013.  Below you can see the deterioration of the list, as months of handling, spilled drinks, ink, and pressed against it's fellow list-brothers in the vault takes its natural wear and tear.  See you next time for the closing.

#76: Zombie

When I said that it's hard to find a drink more classic than the 151 swizzle, I was of course referring to the ultimate classic of all time, The Zombie. This drink is the legendary staple and cornerstone of the tiki recipe library.  Invented by Donn Beach back in the 30s, the drink got it's name when a hung-over customer at his restaurant needed a drink to get him through a business meeting.  Donn Beach created the drink, and the customer returned several days later saying he was a zombie for the entire length of the trip.  The original ingredients were so secret that Beach would communicate the recipe to his staff in code.  A more public recipe became available in the 50s, and that is the one that most bars stick to today.

• 1 oz fresh lime juice 1 oz fresh lemon juice
• 1 oz unsweetened pineapple juice
• 1 oz passion fruit syrup
• 1 oz white Puerto Rican rum
• 1 oz gold Puerto Rican rum
• 1 oz 151-proof Lemon Hart Demerara rum (no substitution)
• 1 teaspoon brown sugar
• 1 dash Angostura bitters

The drink is popular for it's incredibly high alcohol content.  At Don The Beachcomber restaurants, they even limit you to two per person.  The taste is a very strong yet very refreshing tiki flavor, with a beautifully prepared look.

#75: 151 Swizzle

As I roll into the final 5 drinks, virtually every drink is going to be a classic, and it's hard to get more classic than the 151 Swizzle.  I fell in love with this one over at Tiki-Ti in Silverlake, and the love has not faded.  Garnished with cinnamon and Nutmeg, this one packs a whallop of strong flavor.

• 1/2 oz fresh lime juice
• 1/2 oz sugarcane syrup
• 1 1/2 oz Lemon Hart 151 (or El Dorado)
• Dash Angostura bitters
• 6 drops Pernod
• 8 oz crushed ice
• Freshly ground nutmeg

Garnish with a stick of cinnamon, and there you have it, the 151 swizzle.  The visual presentation of it is pretty popular in itself, pictured below.  In the background is my co-captain Mike McKee's Blood Orange Honi-Honi, and a lime, why not.

This beautiful baby wont stay full for long, This is what satisfaction looks like.  The drinks are piling up (and so are the discarded taco plates from Tacos Durangos, the popular Taco hut out back), and the party is only halfway over.  On to the next.

#74: Gone the Beachcomber

Finally we've come to the final week of the Grog Log before the induction ceremony.  Starting off this week is the curious Gone the Beachcomber.  The recipe remains a mystery, as the ingredients are not listed in ANY of Jeff Berry's books.  I'll have to be content with the taste itself!  Simple, delicious, on to the next!

#73: Gold Cup

    Closing down this visit to the Hut is the elusive Gold Cup. The title lead me to believe this would be a less-than-stellar Martini-glass drink, turns out I was only half right.  Any licorice fan will love this one, and anyone who doesn't will still appreciate the strong scent and flavor.  A strong dose of Pernod & Almond extract gives it this twist:

• 3/4 oz lime juice
• 3/4 oz simple syrup
• 1/2 oz maraschino liquer
• 1 1/2 oz gold Jamaican rum
• 1 tsp Pernod
• 3 drops almond extract

Strain into Martini glass, garnish with cherry & stalk, you got yourself a solid tiki drink. My co-captain Mike McKee joins me on this nearly final week of Grog Log.  Pictured below, he looks very enthused as he tackles a Honi-Honi, Classic Mai-Tai, and a Hut Halloween special: Blood of the Tiki.  Big Mo even makes a photobomb in this drink portrait.