DECEMBER 2021 UPDATE: The Barrel Before Christmas tribute recipe
OCTOBER 2021 UPDATE: Rum Barrel recipe on Spike’s Breezeway
The Barrel O’ Rum and our new tribute recipe were featured on Spike’s Breezeway Cocktail Hour. Check out the YouTube video below and follow Spike on Instagram and Facebook.
APRIL 2021 UPDATE: Deconstructing Kohala Bay
Hurricane Hayward joined the Austin Rum Society online to reveal several new rum blends that hope to duplicate The Mai-Kai’s late, great dark Jamaican mixing rum. In the video below, we also enjoyed a Rum Barrel featuring the new recipe and discussed the history of The Mai-Kai …
APRIL 2020 UPDATE: Building a better Barrel
The new tribute recipe was revealed on The Trader Brandon Transmissions on Instagram …
Check out our Tiki Tuesday chat with Brandon Kleyla on his Instagram page or view the video below.
* Go to TraderBrandon.com and browse all his cool merch
Watch Hurricane Hayward make the updated Barrel O’ Rum …
FULL UPDATE COMING SOON!
PREVIOUS UPDATES …
Updated March 1, 2015
See below: Our Barrel O’ Rum review | Official Mai-Kai recipe
Related: Master Mixologist Rum Barrel Challenge | Mai-Kai cocktail guide
Don The Beachcomber had the Zombie. Trader Vic had the Mai Tai. While Fort Lauderdale’s iconic Mai-Kai has many cocktails worthy of classic status, it’s the mighty Barrel O’ Rum that has become the 55-year-old landmark’s signature drink, and possibly the most underrated tropical drink in history.
Sure, it’s hugely popular. Just wind your way through The Molokai bar during any busy happy hour and you’ll see more Barrels than BP lost in the Gulf. Among the general public and popular media, the Barrel O’ Rum and The Mai-Kai are synonymous.
But among the the cocktail intelligentsia, the Barrel just doesn’t quite measure up. What gives? Come on guys, this is an incredible drink. A deceptively deadly celebration of rum and citrus that manages to be both simple and complex. This is a work of art courtesy of The Mai-Kai’s inimitable mixologist, Mariano Licudine, who took an often muddled concept and perfected it for the thirsty, rum-swilling masses during Tiki’s heyday. A half century later, it’s a timeless classic, often copied, never duplicated.
As Rodney Dangerfield (who probably drank many Barrels in his day) would say, the Rum Barrel just don’t get no respect.
On the other hand, who needs respect? The Barrel’s lowbrow appeal is what makes it the classic that it is. It’s the drink for the Everyman (and woman). As Rodney so eloquently put it: “My doctor told me to watch my drinking. Now I drink in front of a mirror.”
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The official menu description
BARREL O’ RUM
Smugglers, pirates and rum runners took their pleasures with this spirituous libation, bold and big, but rightfully smooth.
Okole Maluna Society review and rating
Size: Large
Potency: Strong
Flavor profile: Dark rum, lime juice, passion fruit, bitters
Our take: An explosion of rums and juices in a prefect marriage of sweet and bitter.
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars (see how it ranks)
Ancestry: A variation on the original rum barrel popularized by Don The Beachcomber and other early Tiki establishments, this classic has been on the menu since The Mai-Kai’s opening in 1956. Undoubtedly created by mixologist Mariano Licudine, who based The Mai-Kai menu on all the prototypes he’d been making for Don The Beachcomber.
Bilge: This is the drink the local press always spotlights when reviewing The Mai-Kai or compiling lists of the best South Florida signature cocktails. It’s also The Mai-Kai’s most popular and iconic mug, regularly selling out in the gift shop.
GRANDFATHER BARREL (4 stars)
An off-menu, premium version of the Barrel O’ Rum, the Grandfather Barrel is typically made with top-shelf aged rums and carries a hefty price tag. It was originally made with a special mix of rums that was set aside to mature, resulting in a uniquely tasty concoction. But this custom blend is no longer available. Our take: You can definitely taste the premium rums in this high-end version. A must if you’re a rum connoisseur. If not, just stick with the regular Barrel and save a few bucks. Also worth noting: A version using Old Granddad bourbon in lieu of rum was never really an option, despite it’s mention in Beachbum Berry’s Taboo Table, according to The Mai-Kai’s general manager, Kern Mattei.
RAINBOW BARREL (2 1/2 stars)
This vodka version of the Barrel is ether an abomination (according to rum fanciers) or the best vodka drink you’ll ever taste. It’s probably neither of those things, but we see no real reason to drink this unless you have a legitimate rum allergy. The great flavors of the rums are stripped away, leaving a very good vodka-based fruit drink but nothing worthy of the great Mai-Kai tropical drink legacy. We recently learned that three different Absolut vodas are used in the Rainbow Barrel, but we’re still not sold on its worth.
Agree or disagree? Share your reviews and comments below!
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OFFICIAL MAI-KAI RECIPE
The Mai-Kai Barrel O’ Rum
(From Beachbum Berry’s Taboo Table)
* 2 ounces white Puerto Rican
or Virgin Islands rum
* 2 ounces dark Jamaican rum
(Kohala Bay preferred)
* 2 ounces fresh lime juice
* 2 ounces orange juice
* 2 ounces white grapefruit juice
* 2 ounces rich passion fruit syrup
* 1 teaspoon rich honey mix
(2 parts honey, 1 part water)
* Splash of club soda
* 6 dashes Angostura bitters
Pulse blend with a heaping cup of crushed ice (perferably in a top-down or spindle mixer). Pour into a ceramic rum barrel or large snifter, adding more crushed ice to fill.
Notes and tips for home mixologists
* Don’t skimp on the bitters. It’s essential to offset the sweetness of the drink.
* The Mai-Kai likely uses Bacardi silver or its white well rum, but there are other very good white rums to recommend, such as Cruzan or Flor de Cana. We’ve confimed that The Mai-Kai uses the distinctive dark rum formerly known as “Dagger” in the Barrel. Kohala Bay is most notable for its use in the Black Magic and many of The Mai-Kai’s strong cocktails. It’s hard to find outside of South Florida, though distribution has improved over the past few years. Feel free to use other dark Jamaican rums such as Coruba or Myers’s. To approximate the taste of Dagger, combine equal parts Smith & Cross Jamaican rum and El Dorado 12-year-old Demerara rum. Click here for more on this rare rum. You could also experiment with aged rums such as Appleton Estate or Plantation, creating a Grandfather Barrel.
* Use only fresh juices (freshly-squeezed if possible). It’s also crucial to use white grapefrut juice (not pink) with no added sugar. And make sure you use a good brand of passion fruit syrup (not juice). There are many available online, such as Fee Brothers, B.G. Reynolds, Monin, and Aunty Lilikoi. You can make your own by heating rich simple syrup (2 parts sugar to 1 part water) with frozen passion fruit puree. The use of rich syrups makes The Mai-Kai’s drinks extra rich and savory.
* Though Taboo Table calls for shaking, we now know that The Mai-Kai blends all of its drinks. Frozen drinks are blended until smooth in a standard blender, but most others are “pulse blended” in a top-down mixer (the kind you may see most commonly used for milkshakes). This is a tradition passed down from Don the Beachcomber. Using this method creates a richer drink with a big frothy head. Just make sure to not over-blend. A few quick, 3-4 second pulses is all that’s needed. If you don’t have this kind of mixer/blender, a standard blender will work. It just won’t create quite the same rich consistency. Hamilton Beach makes a very good mixer at a decent price that I highly recommend.
This is a classic cocktail that’s not too difficult to make at home. It’s best enjoyed in an authentic Mai-Kai Rum Barrel or similar Tiki mug. It’s also a great drink to make in large batches. Invite all your friends and make it a BYOB (bring your own Barrel) party.
Okole maluna!
Made one tonight in my Mai-Kai rum barrel mug, delicious! Just like I remembered it. Thanks for posting the recipe.
Different from the recipe I have. I should try this beside the one I have and see how they fare. This is a lot bigger drink than mine and essentially waters down the booze more and may be the idea. Half everything but the booze and it is very close to my recipe from Marriano.
Swanky: Have you seen an original Barrel mug anywhere? It’s got to be considerably smaller. The above recipe fits perfectly in the current mug.
If I was going to make this in a large batch, how would you measure out the bitters?
Michael,
There are lots of “rules of thumb” you can use for measuring bitters. A common one is 32 dashes per ounce. Since the Barrel calls for a healthy 6 dashes, I would not skimp. Try 1 ounce of bitters per every 5 drinks batched.
Okole maluna!
Love this recipe!! The only thing I recommend is 1.5 oz of lime juice instead of the 2.
Mahalo for the comment. That’s a good idea. Some folks also like to change up the amounts of passion fruit syrup and/or bitters. It’s definitely easy to adjust to personal taste.
Hey Hayward! I recently ran out of my myer’s and I want to try coruba, is there any place in south Florida that sells it??
I always get it at Roy’s in Fort Pierce. It’s pretty far north, but they also carry Hamilton 151, Lemon Hart 151 and other essential rums. Nice independent store.
https://www.yelp.com/biz/roys-liquors-fort-pierce
Thanks for the quick reply! I actually found it today though at my local liquor store across the street.
Which three Absolut vodkas is used in the Rainbow Barrel?
Quick question…any ideas which rums go into the Grandfather Barrel?
Aloha! The Grandfather Barrel is rarely requested anymore, but I’m told that Appleton 12 can be added in addition to Appleton Reserve, making it an all-Appleton barrel.
Want to make Barrels by the gallon can you tell me the portions per gallon ?
Aloha Nick! Sounds like you’ll be entertaining a thirsty crowd. Try this:
* 20 ounces white Puerto Rican
* 20 ounces dark Jamaican rum
* 20 ounces fresh lime juice
* 20 ounces orange juice
* 20 ounces white grapefruit juice
* 20 ounces rich passion fruit syrup
* 2 ounces rich honey mix
* 2 ounces Angostura bitters
* 4 ounces club soda
Okole maluna!
Does anyone have the recipe for the Barrel Before Christmas holiday drink variant? I had one the other night and would like to replicate it at the home bar.
After tasting, we think it’s very similar to the standard Barrel, likely with 2 ounces of Lemon Hart Blackpool along with another rum (perhaps Appleton). And the garnish is very festive!
This is the best drink ever! I use POG instead of orange juice and I use cinnamon syrup instead of honey mix.
Interesting variation. Okole maluna!
Love the new tribute recipe. It’s a huge improvement, IMO.
Mahalo! Stay tuned for a full update, including the Barrel Before Christmas.
Okole maluna!
One suggestion on the blender…if you’re not sure about getting a spindle, top-down blender, you can use a “milkshake” blade on your garden variety Oster. It provides the same action, without having to splash out on a new appliance or taking up precious bartop real estate. (Only a few $$, too.)
Great suggestion!