Post #717948 by Destro100 on Fri, May 23, 2014 5:54 AM

Sweet and solid.

Drink 60: Polynesian Paralysis

Ingredients I used:

Fresh lemon juice
Fresh orange juice
Dole Pineapple unsweetened juice from the can
Baker's Bourbon
Simple Syrup (1.5 to 1 sugar to water ratio)
Orgeat by 1883 Routin

My wife is a beer drinker. She enjoys cocktails and tiki drinks on occasion but prefers beer. I was quite pleased when she agreed to share the Polynesian Paralysis with me; drinking this alone would have given me quite the sugar rush and quite a buzz.

I didn't have okolehao, so I opted for bourbon. As I compiled the ingredients, I knew that this would be sweet. For that reason I went with Booker's Bourbon. It is a small batch bourbon from Jim Beam that is aged 7 years and bottled at 107 proof. I thought that surely the strength of this bourbon should balance the amount of juices and syrup in the drink. Not really. My wife didn't even realize the drink was made with bourbon. Instead, she assumed there was a light or gold rum being used. The strength was there, but the bourbon flavor took a backseat to the other ingredients.

Fortunately, the flavor combination is nice. The lemon, orange, pineapple combination provides a great citrus-punch flavor. The orgeat helps elevate and add a little complexity to the drink. The nuttiness gets a bit muddled but stills helps to add an additional dimension. As a matter of fact, the inclusion of the orgeat and the use of a top-down milkshake mixer seems pretty essential to the success of this drink. The frothy, creamy texture generated by the top-down mixer, combined with the nuttiness of the orgeat almost fooled my wife into thinking there was coconut in the drink as well.

I question the necessity of the simple syrup. Cutting the simple syrup and raising the alcohol content might have resulted in an additional half-star. This is a nice easy-drinking, good to share, and perfect for sweet-toothes concoction. It lacks some balance and an exotic ingredient or two to help develop a richer flavor.

My personal rating: *** (3) out of ***** (5)

SCORECARD:

4.5 ALMOST PERFECT - 3 drinks so far
Chief Lapu Lapu / Kikuya Lapu / Mai Tai (Trader Vic)

4 - EXCELLENT - 11 drinks and counting
Colonel Beach's Plantation Punch /Aurora Bora Borealis / Outrigger / Bourbon Special / Beachcomber's Gold (Hollywood and Palm Springs) / Hell in the Pacific / Krakatoa / La Florida / Tortuga / Mai Tai Swizzle / 151 Swizzle

3.5 - VERY GOOD - 17 drinks and counting
Beachcomber's Punch / Coronado Luau Special / Hawaii Kai Treasure / Coconaut / Castaway (slightly modified) / Don's Special Daiquiri / Banana Daiquiri / Captain's Grog / Viking Fog Cutter / Navy Grog / Hurricane / Lani-Honi / Mariposa Fizz / Mai Tai (Stuft Shirt) / Never Say Die / Pago Pago / Painkiller

3 - GOOD - 16 drinks and counting
Eastern Sour / Astro Aku Aku / Kapu Kai / Western Sour / Beachcomber's Gold (Waikiki) / Red Tide / Samoan Fog Cutter / Gold Cup / Headhunter / Fogg Cutter / Noa Noa / Aku Aku Lapu / Mai Tai (Royal Hawaiian) / Missionary's Downfall / Strip and go Naked / Polynesian Paralysis

2.5 - ABOVE AVERAGE - 4 drinks and counting
Jasper's Jamaican / Derby Daiquiri / Carioca Hawaiian Cocktail / Hawaiian Room

2 - AVERAGE - 7 drinks and counting
Beachcomber's Gold (Chicago) / Lychee Nut Daiquiri / Fog Cutter / Von Tiki / Planet of the Apes / Rum Runner / Pieces of Eight

1.5 - BELOW AVERAGE - 2 drinks and hopefully not too many more
Boo Loo / Royal Daiquiri