Post #477022 by quickiki on Thu, Aug 13, 2009 11:59 AM

One piece of advise regarding the recipes in Grog Log and Intoxica, unless you've mixed these recipes previously, you'll probably want to adjust a few of them which use lime juice in particular. I've noticed that many of the drinks which have lime juice as a primary ingredient are way too sour. I don't know if this is because limes vary in acidity in various parts of the country or if its because he's using a different variety or size (like key limes), but almost without exception, Bum's recipes involving limes are too sour to my taste. When using his recipes, I usually start off with about 1/2 the lime amounts he specifies and then adjust to taste as necessary. Don't be afraid to substitute if you don't have the exact rum called for either. I've made several of the drinks with rums other than what was specified with excellent results too.

That's not to say Beachbum's books are bad. In fact, quite the contrary. These books are considered the Holy Grail of Tiki/Exotic drinks by many here for a reason. Many of the recipes he has either reverse-engineered or obtained by the bartenders that invented them. Even so, I still treat these books as bar guides and therefore allow some interpretation as to my taste.

Have fun and take 3 aspirin before going to bed!