Smoking and Flaming Drinks

Search as I might I was unable to find any info on techniques used to flame or smoke drinks. I'm interested in using dry ice for smoking. I was thinking about floating something in the drink, fill that with water and drop in dry ice.

I think a half of a lime would work for that but I haven't tested it. If you have any suggestions I'm all ears.

As far as flaming a drink I've got some 151 proof rum and I've floated a piece of soaked toast on a lemon wheel and got that to light. The problem is that it is pretty lackluster. I've heard of floating a lime shell, filling that with rum and lighting that but I haven't had any luck with that.

Are there any better (more impressive flames) techniques out there for this?

Edit: Link to fire risks thread https://tikicentral.com/viewtopic.php?topic=3366&forum=7

[ Edited by: sporkboyofjustice on 2004-07-30 16:13 ]

Pure lemon extract works the best.

sporkboy, here's a great thread with info on how to get a nice flame:

http://www.tikicentral.com/viewtopic.php?topic=4231&forum=5

Don't know about the dry ice, though, I have to admit I've never seen a dry ice drink in person. I know a number of the Spanish mugs are designed specifically to use dry ice, and have separate receptacles built in. I think that sometimes the way dry ice is done is to have the drink itself inside a tall thin glass that is sitting inside a wider mug that has dry ice in it. You don't want to risk someone trying to sip and bumping their lip into the dry ice. Yeowch!

On 2004-07-21 15:32, Humuhumu wrote:
sporkboy, here's a great thread with info on how to get a nice flame:

http://www.tikicentral.com/viewtopic.php?topic=4231&forum=5

With a one of the better TC members posting "interactions"

Sporkboy-get the book "Pad Parties" by Mark Maranian-he has all sorts of terrific flaming garnishes-the ring of fire,the roswell,the tahitian torch,and others.You'll have a blast going through his book-all sorts of nifty party ideas.One of his questions in the "How do you garnish?" is the question "Does your garnish throw flames so high it sets off the fire alarms?".Should be right up your alley.

Dry ice smoking cocktails is a tough one. As far as I understand, smoking drinks were fairly popular back in the day. In every instance I've ever seen them, they were in special bowls that usually had some kind of opening on either three or four sides that did not connect to the main "bowl" portion where the cocktail was poured. The dry ice was then placed in these openings, and some water was added which caused the smoking effect. You could create this still provided you had the right type of bowl. In other words, you don't just want to throw dry ice in your drink. I think it was bigbrotiki that sold a dry ice bowl (as I call them) on ebay a month or so ago and it sold for huge bucks. I make a seasonal punch (poison) on halloween with the dry ice smoking effect. I mix up the punch in one bowl, than place that bowl in a larger bowl. Then I fill the larger bowl, around the smaller bowl about 1/2 full with dry ice, then fill the rest with cool water. Then I add jello moais with candy worms inside them and let them float around on the water. It looks like a creepy swamp type of a deal. It's a very cool effect.

[ Edited by: SON OF MOTHRA on 2004-07-22 15:45 ]

Thanks for the tips everybody. I'll have to try the lemon extract, I think I have some laying around from candy making. I have seen the mugs and bowls from Spain, very nice but pricey. The only thing that I've found that might work would be a special type of tea cup.

They have a seperate compartment for a used tea bag on the back which could be used for a dry ice pocket. I'd need to tiki it up a bit but I think that it would work.

As far as the dry ice goes, keep in mind that if you simply put dry ice into cool or even tap temperature water, all it will do is bubble - you won't get the dramatic "smoky/steamy" effect at all, just bubbling water. To get the effect you see in pictures and movies, the water needs to be as warm or hot as possible, and even then the effect doesn't last long: once the super-cold dry ice cools the water down sufficiently, you'll be left with just bubbling water again. I've always wondered about the drink mugs with the little side pockets for water & dry ice, 'cause even if you used boiling water, that small of an amount of water would cool down awfully fast, and make a very short lived effect. However, being "right next to" the drink itself, the dry ice/ice water would contunue to cool the drink at least. Get some dry ice and try it out for yourself to get the temperature and timing right, so you will be sure to impress your guests with more than just bubbling water!

Oh, and for flaming drinks, I use a spent lime shell speared with a skewer (to help keep it from sinking). Drop a sugar cube in it, douse it with 151 and ignite. Unless the person sloshes their drink and puts it out, it'll burn until the "fuel" is gone, usually about 5 - 7 minutes. Volcano bowls - sugar cube and 151 as well. It makes a nice sized blue & orange flame, and if it gets in your drink - no worries! And once the fire does go out, you're not left with a charred crouton, just a wet sugar cube!

I was wondering about having a black lump of cruton in my drink, I'll have to get some sugar cubes to test out. I did know about using hot water with dry ice, last year I filled pumpkins with hot water and plopped in dry ice. It put out a ton of smoke while it lasted but it didn't last long at all.

I do have a couple fog machines but the smoke is toxic and no good for drinks. They do have ultrasonic smoke devices but I don't know if any are battery opperated and small enough for a drink. Does anyone know about these? I'll give google a go but I don't think I'll find one small enough.

Well, I only use the croutons in volcano bowls where it's isolated from the drink. I must say that I've never seen a taller flame than lemon extract and a crouton, so that's what I've stuck with. Plain 151 in a bowl (no sugar) is a low blue flame that you can't always see. Looks crappy.

While we're on the subject, how does one make 'flaming brandy' drinks & desserts? At the Mai Kai, I watched this woman make/serve Flaming Cherries Jubilee, which I believe is just cherries and brandy. She prepared it tableside by pouring brandy into a bowl of cherries and stirring it around with a spoon, before serving it in smaller bowls. All the while it was burning with an intense blue flame which was pretty easy to see because it was quite dark in the room. Every once in a while she'd pour it from a few feet up and the flame would race up into the pitcher. It was an amazing spectacle (but then again, what at the Mai Kai isn't??) and she spent some time making it for maximum effect. Anyhow, I've tried to light brandy before with no success. I've heard recently that it must be heated first - true?

The website I found below says that the brandy must be heated to 130 degrees before you add it to the dish. If there is a better use for the internet than learning how to set food and drinks on fire then I don't know what it is.

http://homecooking.about.com/library/weekly/aa123002a.htm

Edit: Highlights from the article:
80 proof is considered ideal for flambe.
Do not pour directly from bottle, it may explode.
Warm in microwave for about 15 seconds.
Food you are trying to flame must be warm.
Light fumes with a long match.

[ Edited by: sporkboyofjustice on 2004-07-23 15:42 ]

Here's some Flambe tips from Food Network:

Flambe tips from Food Network

Rev. Dr. Frederick J. Freelance, Ph.D., D.F.S

[ Edited by Humuhumu to fix wonky comma-laden and thus not auto-link friendly url ]

[ Edited by: Humuhumu on 2004-07-23 13:05 ]

On 2004-07-23 10:04, martiki wrote:
I must say that I've never seen a taller flame than lemon extract and a crouton...

My rubbing alcohol flame will kick ass on your lemon flame anyday!
Bring it on, crouton boy! :wink:

Just don't get any drips of that rubbing alcohol into your drink.

By the way, my gasoline flame is a sight to behold. Sort of stinks a bit though...

Watch out for the moderators....

You can't mod what isn't there!

[ Edited by: Chip and Andy 2009-02-23 10:21 ]

Ha! For a totally out there flame, try filling the volcano with absinthe and lighting that! Voila, la Fee Verte!

HA! Finally a use for that expensive potent stuff!

WARNING: a) Be sure to mix it 10:1, or maybe 10:2 NOT 1:1. b) Don't let drunken Tikiwahine mix it for you, unless she follows the 10:1 rules.

There was a baseball hat wearing fellow drinking it STRAIGHT at Al & Shelly's Bahia Cabana party Friday night, I'd love to know who it was!

Yeah well, stupid me got drunk and drank it straight too. Just about a half an ounce. It really is like nothing else on this earth.

thanks for bringing it...i think.

Old topic revival, sorry...

There was local bar (now defunct) that used to serve several cocktails with dry ice in them.

There really is no trick to it. The only caveat in the process is to insure the use of straws for bowl drinks and regular ice for drinks in glasses (straws here wouldn't hurt either).

A "puck" or some "cubes" of dry ice is placed into the glass first and then topped with water ice. This keeps it from floating up from the bottom of the glass. Then you simply strain the drink into it, add straw and serve.

The "smoke" will appear regardless of whether the drink is hot or cold. In fact, the only way one could get "maximum smoking" to take place would be to run heated liquid over the dry ice repeatedly, as its super-cold temperature rapidly cools any liquid it comes in contact with and this rapid boil ceases.

Most folks assume that because they dumped hot water on it and got a huge burst of "smoke", that this would be the way to go. In truth, this is only the case in the short term.

Try the same technique, but test the temperature of the hot water within 3-5 minutes. Provided you have used a sufficient ratio of dry ice to liquid (such that it is not all turned to gas upon intitial exposure), you'll find the water turned lukewarm at best rather quickly.

Yes, the smoke effect is lessened in a cold served drink, the bubbles will produce smoking effects when they burst, and as the drink warms a bit, the smoke will increase a tad.

It was never meant to be a huge cauldron effect when one is pouring into a highball glass. Rather, a subtle and kooky boiling fog should occur.

As for bowls, it's all about the quantity and the wait.

If you float a large flat hunk (lots of surface area) into a cold punch bowl, you'll get a reasonable amount of the "witch doctor brew" thing you are looking for in a short time.

Share the bowl via straws. Do not ladle this drink into cups though unless you use the flat chunk as described. One is tempted to use crushed bits to get the surface area I mentioned and thus more fog. If ladeling is your intention, then you must use straws for the cups or a big piece of dry ice that won't accidentally wind up on someone's lips after everybody is sauced.

As a side note, when you get your order of dry ice, don a pair of good gloves and grab a small chunk. Press this against any resonant metal surface (tubular steel railings work well) and move it around a bit and you should get a tremendous shreiking hissing noise like bad brakes on an old truck.

Cool!

Ahu

An older topic, but something I thought could be fun for Holiday entertaining.....

This is 151 in a spent lime-shell. Not the "Brightest" flame, but easy to manage and present.

Using Mat's method from PAD (with the Crouton and extract) makes a brighter flame, but tends to smoke as the crouton chars.

This is a split bowl that has pockets for the dry ice.

Safety first, then presentation.

I'm having a dinner party Friday night and using the my first volcano bowl that I just bought from Danlovestiki. I've had a couple smaller Harvey's bowls for years and never used them. I'm going to try the original Trader Vic's recipe for the Scorpion posted here, minus the white wine. I ordered the Orgeat online. I could not find any plain croutons tonight and Gardenias do not seem to be in season. I'm sort of nervous since I've never made a Scorpion before or flamed drinks.

Any pointers or suggestions will be appreciated.

On 2006-12-10 23:54, Tigerlily wrote:
I'm having a dinner party Friday night and using the my first volcano bowl that I just bought from Danlovestiki. ...

How did it go? Did you get pictures?

Try a pinch of cinnamon sprinkled over the flame

The party was so much fun. The Scorpions were a big hit and tasted great!! I used the Trader Vic's recipe. We soaked the sugar cubes in lemon extract and placed them in the volcano and used lemon rinds for the small bowls. The flame did not last long. I think we were needed to add the lemon extract directly to the volcano and the lemon rinds?

On 2007-01-08 17:40, Tigerlily wrote:
The party was so much fun. The Scorpions were a big hit and tasted great!! I used the Trader Vic's recipe. We soaked the sugar cubes in lemon extract and placed them in the volcano and used lemon rinds for the small bowls. The flame did not last long. I think we were needed to add the lemon extract directly to the volcano and the lemon rinds?

That looked like a fun party!!!! When's the next one Tigerlily??????

Where can you find those super long straws?

Ordered from artist and carver Bosko

ttp://www.tikibosko.com/

Okay, so evidently not forbidden.  Or secret.

But anyway, I phoned the Bahooka the other night to learn their secret, if they would tell me.  They did.  As Martiki has already divulged here and in another thread, the very best flame to be found anywhere -- anywhere in Rosemead, California, at least -- is with a dry crouton dipped in pure lemon extract.  The Bahooka Restaurant has their lemon extract delivered from a restaurant supply place, so they didn't know where or even whether a civilian could get some.

After fruitless forays into Ralph's, Whole Foods, Bristol Farms, and two liquor stores, I did finally find it at Smart & Final -- again, territory Martiki had already mapped here.  Someone else in the forums mentioned paying big $$$ for their lemon extract, but the stuff at Smart & Final is super cheap: 16 fl oz for under $5.  The brand they had when I went was Chef's Review, ingredients being alcohol, lemon oil, and water.

Almost needless to say, I experimented that very night, and discovered that (a) the flame burns meditatively long, intimidatingly tall, and crowd-pleasingly bright, (b) it seems like this single 16 fl oz bottle will illuminate parties all summer long, and (c) soaking the crouton in the extract for 10 minutes first was *less* effective than quickly dipping it right before ignition.

It's this last discovery that makes me think that, while sugar cubes have been "floated" (conversationally, that is) as a possible analog to croutons, the fact that sugar cubes soak through quickly means -- I'd assume -- they would most likely burn less spectacularly, or at least for less time.  If ever I have a sugar cube handy, maybe I'll perform a controlled trial to test this assumption.

At our inaugural Eye of Erna-Erna Backyard Bali Hai barbeque in a couple of weeks, I'll be floating (literally, not conversationally) the little flaming croutons on ice-blended drinks by taking an orange slice (quartered orange), removing the fruit from one half of the slice, spearing it (the orange peel with half its fruit liberated) with a sword cocktail pick for stability, propping the orange peel on the edge of the cup, and perching the crouton on the bare part of the orange peel before lighting it.

Our inaugural drink (I think invented by us that same night, and so named by us, though I could be wrong about no one inventing this before), and the signature drink of Eye of Erna-Erna Backyard Bali Hai, is:

Mona’s Flaming Volcano Taboo (named for a howler monkey we met in Costa Rica)

5 ounces dark rum (Cruzan; but am curious to try Captain Morgan Spiced, too)  
2 ounces banana liqueur  
2 ounces water  
1 ounce Triple Sec  
1 ounce cream of coconut  
2 peeled ripe bananas  
½ peeled lime (the fruit, not just the juice)  
2 tablespoons sugar (raw, if handy)  
Ice to top of blender

Puree until smooth and thick.

And safety first, please, with those flames!  Leave the violent explosions and burnt flesh for the real volcanos.

_________________  
Bahookahuna

*Look not into the eyes of the idol*...

![](http://www.silentyakking.com/eyeofernaerna.jpg)

[ Edited by: Bahookahuna  2007-04-26 15:37 ]

More scenic (same recipe):

Bahookahuna

Look not into the eyes of the idol...

[ Edited by: Bahookahuna 2007-04-27 13:37 ]

I went to Trader Dicks in Reno several years ago, and they served a drink called a Volcano. I did not try it because I was drinking Mai Tai's instead. However in the color photo in their menu it appears to have a thin but tall Collins glass containing a yellow beverage (perhaps pineapple or lemon J) inside a hurricane glass with a green liquid at the bottom) and something erupting(maybe dry ice). The caption in the photograph stated "A unique drink served with all the action of an erupting volcano." I have no idea what type of booze was in either glass. Any ideas on what else in in the drink and how do I get it to erupt?

In the March issue of The Atlantic magazine Wayne Curtis has an article on flaming drinks. It hasn't been posted online yet so I scanned the article which is next to impossible to read. I'll re-post the article when it becomes available online.
There will also be a video of bartenders making their favorite flaming drinks when the article gets posted.

Here`s 151 in a spent lime shell, maybe not the best flame but enough for a drink for me and on my blog anyway:-)