Post #646400 by mbanu on Tue, Jul 31, 2012 10:58 PM

Sometimes the trick to making successful drinks is in understanding the tastes of the people you are making them for, and either selecting drink recipes that naturally will follow those tastes, or figuring out how to modify other recipes accordingly without damaging their fundamental character.

For the folks that like knocking their short drinks back, maybe something with a long lingering aftertaste? (Perhaps something heavy on the Herbsaint?)

Or take the folks that raved over the vodka pineapple juice - why do you think it was so popular? Perhaps it was a group who dislikes the taste of heavy rums? In that case going for lighter, whiter rums might be the solution. Alternately, there are many tiki drinks out there that call for vodka.

Was it the color it had when the Hawaiian punch was added that drew them in? Sometimes, it can be a case of presentation. Many people drink with their eyes. If one drink has a more impressive presentation, it may get more applause than one that is really more interesting flavor-wise, but served in a simple manner.

If that's the case, maybe bust out some of the trick pony drinks. A Shark Bite using one of those grenadine-filled sharks. Ice cones. A drink that you set on fire. Something with dry ice. Cheap showmanship, sure, but definitely part of a certain type of tiki culture. :)