Tiki Central / Tiki Drinks and Food
Fassionola?
KT
Kreaky Tiki
Posted
posted
on
Thu, Aug 28, 2003 11:32 PM
I have the Don The Beachcomber Drink book and it references an ingrediant called Fassionola. After searching on Google for Fassionola, the only thing that comes up is this neat article about the Mai Kai. You should take a look at this link it is interesting. Does anyone know anything about Fassionola? I feel as though, I need to mix some with rum! Please help me. Cheers, KT [ Edited by: Kreaky Tiki on 2003-09-04 08:34 ] |
A
Alnshely
Posted
posted
on
Fri, Aug 29, 2003 7:21 AM
High Times Liquor in Costa Mesa has it. There are two kinds green and red. |
KT
Kreaky Tiki
Posted
posted
on
Fri, Aug 29, 2003 12:09 PM
Thank you! I'm all over it! I bet they some other great mixers, as well. Cheers, KT |
G
gatorjwade
Posted
posted
on
Wed, Sep 3, 2003 10:51 AM
Anyone got a phone number or address on High Times Liquors in Costa Mesa? When I searched on yellowpages.com all I found was a High Time Inc. in Long Beach. (Maybe I can slide by while I'm out there for the Tiki Room 40th - I too have not had luck finding fassionola.) |
T
Traderpup
Posted
posted
on
Wed, Sep 3, 2003 11:04 AM
|
TS
The Skipper
Posted
posted
on
Wed, Sep 3, 2003 12:20 PM
Like Kreaky Tiki, I had the urge to grab a bottle of Fassionola so I can start making some of the Beachcomber's concoctions (many of the drinks call for it), but after stopping by the Hi-Times over the weekend I found out they no longer carry it. Apparently they couldn't sell the stuff, and their distributor stopped carrying it. Maybe if enough TC'ers request it, they'll try and put it back on the shelves. On a side note, there is a sidebar in the Beachcomber book that mentions substituting Hawaiian Punch for Fassionola if you don't have any on hand. Al, is this a feasible substitution? Oh, the Hi-Times website is: http://www.hitimewine.com. They do mail order. If you live out-of-state there's no sales tax. |
KT
Kreaky Tiki
Posted
posted
on
Thu, Sep 4, 2003 1:20 PM
I sent an email this morning to inquire about the availability of Fassionola. Below is the reply! A 750ml bottle retails at $4.79. Best regards, |
KT
Kreaky Tiki
Posted
posted
on
Thu, Sep 4, 2003 3:36 PM
Well, after making the call... they do not carry it anymore. I just got off of the phone with a Bartender at the Mai Kai, and he confirmed the bad news... The company that had been making Fassionola, no longer makes it. He forgot who that was. If any has a bottle please post the info so we can call the manufacture to try and have it resurrected:( KT |
F
freddiefreelance
Posted
posted
on
Thu, Sep 4, 2003 4:17 PM
...Or get the recipe & make your own. There can't be that big a market, but selling it as a Lounge/Exotica specialty @ swapmeets, &c. might getcha a couple bucks. Give it a mock-Shag label & put "The Rat-Pack's Favorite..." on the label... |
K
KuKuAhu
Posted
posted
on
Mon, Nov 15, 2004 3:45 PM
I'm bumping this in the hope that someone out there might help me in my quest to locate a bottle of original Fassionola and thus have the basic ingredients list and/or manufacturer name. My goal is to try and develop a recipe for homemade fassionola. I'll do all the leg work if one of you has the info. Anyone got a bottle or know where an old school liquor store might be that could have some on a shelf? Ahu |
K
kick_the_reverb
Posted
posted
on
Tue, Nov 16, 2004 11:32 AM
The red Fassionola Al was refering to is called something like Gold Tropical Fruit Mix by a company with "English" in its name. I'm not home right now but I'll check it later. I bought Hi Time's entire remaining stock (they had about 5) for ITD and gave them as gifts to Tiki Centralites who organized the event. These people know who they are. I don't think it tastes like Hawaiian Punch, but I'll have to try it side by side. BTW - it's very thick and syrupy, so the consistency is differnt than the punch. Ran |
K
KuKuAhu
Posted
posted
on
Tue, Nov 16, 2004 2:44 PM
Excellent! now we're getting somewhere. I look forward to hearing more from you when you get home. You said it was thick and syrupy. Is the flavor just a tropical fruit "red" kind of thing like any number of red colored tropical fruit drinks? I mean to say that, could it be as simple as reducing Hawaiian Punch to a syrup? Anyone else care to chime in? Cheers! Ahu |
T
thejab
Posted
posted
on
Tue, Nov 16, 2004 3:09 PM
Hawaiian punch used to be available in a concentrated syrup form in 16 oz. glass bottles. It would be interesting to find out how close it comes to Fassionola if one can find it. The history page for HP says that it started as a tropical fruit syrup for topping ice cream. |
K
KuKuAhu
Posted
posted
on
Tue, Nov 16, 2004 3:22 PM
Well, there are a few syrup companies making "Tropical Fruit Syrup". I'm sure they are artificially flavored bar syrup, but if they are similar to Fassionola in flavor then we might be getting somewhere. I still need to hear from the folks who got bottles of the original stuff from KTR. Good call Jab, that might be a solid lead. Perhaps the Don Beach book (which is full of editing errors and mistakes) intended to recomend Hawaiian Punch syrup as a substitute? Somebody witha bottle of Fassionola have the time to give us a flavor write up? Or would someone care to ship a small sample my way? I'd be able to match it most accurately I think. Edited to add: I had never heard of HP syrup before, so I checked out thejabs lead and found out that the same stuff is now available as a frozen concentrate. Same thing, just less water and different packaging. One could easily make a suitable bar syrup with it provided it is close in flavor to Fassionola. That would make more sense when a recipe asks for only a 1/4 ounce of it. Nice work so far folks. Cheers! Ahu [ Edited by: Ku Ku Ahu on 2004-11-16 15:48 ] |
K
kick_the_reverb
Posted
posted
on
Wed, Nov 17, 2004 11:12 AM
Ok, yesterday I looked at my bottle and it's: I also looked online for the syrup name and the company, but no luck (just phone book entries for the company). BTW: if you're interested in the contents here's what the bottle says: Nothing that actually helps... Al said he got another one from Hi Times (when he got the red one), and it was green and actually said Fassionola on it. I haven't seen that bottle yet, maybe if Al has time he can shed some light on the subject. Ran |
A
Alnshely
Posted
posted
on
Wed, Nov 17, 2004 11:51 AM
[ Edited by: Alnshely 2006-12-21 06:55 ] |
L
laney
Posted
posted
on
Wed, Nov 17, 2004 1:12 PM
A bit off topic...but, I remember having Hawaiian Punch as a syrup. It also started as a ice cream topping. In a search to see if they still make it in syrup form I came across a brief history of Hawaiian Punch and was shocked to find out it was born in a garage in Fullerton CA, my home town! |
T
teddy-bear2003
Posted
posted
on
Wed, Dec 29, 2004 10:07 AM
We have an (empty) bottle of the Original Passinola South Seas Mix Base (since 1916). The ingredients are: sugar, artifical coloring, blend of reconstitued citrus fruits, citric acid, orginal blend of passion fruit and other fruit flavors. Contains 1/10 of 1% benoate of soda. The address of the company is Fassionola Products P.O. Box 2354 Van Nuys, CA 91494. We have tried calling but no answer. We are looking for a source too. |
K
KuKuAhu
Posted
posted
on
Wed, Dec 29, 2004 4:31 PM
Well, the current Fassionola situation on my end is as follows: Use Hawaiian Punch concentrate until I find some Fassionola or somebody sends me a small sample which I can try to replicate. Or as mentioned above, if someone who actually has some on hand could do a side by side taste test of Hawaiian Punch syrup and Fassionola... If the HP frozen concentrate were mixed to the same syrup consistency as the Fassionola, and the taste test proved to be positive, it might just solve the whole issue for everyone. I have a gut feeling that the HP syrup would be a very close match. Ahu |
T
teddy-bear2003
Posted
posted
on
Thu, Dec 30, 2004 12:16 PM
We just got a bottle of Trader Vic's Passion Fruit mixture (double strength). It seems to be the same as Fassionola. |
J
JTD
Posted
posted
on
Fri, Mar 31, 2006 9:32 AM
Do you think Fassionola was a rip-off of Passionola? See entry in CoctailDB: http://cocktaildb.com/ingr_detail?id=345 I'm guessing yes and will quit my search for Fassionola and just use TV's passion fruit syrup. JTD |
IDOT
I dream of tiki
Posted
posted
on
Fri, Mar 31, 2006 9:53 AM
Well done, JTD. Happy to see this question put to rest. Cheers! Wouldn't it be twisted if it turned out to be mis-spelling of Passionola all this time? :wink: |
K
Kono
Posted
posted
on
Fri, Mar 31, 2006 5:27 PM
I have a hard time thinking that Fassionola is simply colored passion fruit syrup. At least one recipe in the Don the Beachcomber book (Pi-Yi, and I swear there's another but cannot find it) has both Fassionola and passion fruit juice. Realizing that syrup and juice are not the same it would still seem odd to have a drink with some of both. For what it's worth, there is also a recipe (Cherry Blossom Punch) in the DtheB that has Hawaiian Punch and Fassionola as ingredients. The name "Fassionola" suggests that passion fruit juice or flavoring is likely a central component of Fassionola but I'd think there would be other flavors as well or else it wouldn't be described as a "fruit flavored blend" when passionfruit syrup was already being used in other recipes. The unfortunate thing is that this could probably be solved very quickly if the TC brain trust could get it together. We have members who are very good at reverse engineering (or at least replicating) drinks and we have members who own bottles of Fassionola. Can someone mail an ounce or two to KK Ahu or Pablus and see what they come up with? In the name of SCIENCE!! this needs to be settled. :) |
T
thejab
Posted
posted
on
Fri, Mar 31, 2006 5:41 PM
Hey, there's a wikipedia entry on Fassionola! OK, who on TC wrote it? Anyway, it says to substitute hawaiian punch syrup. |
T
thejab
Posted
posted
on
Fri, Mar 31, 2006 5:53 PM
The Passionola bottle shown on CocktailDB shows the ingredients as: Sugar, Water, Juices of Passion Fruit, Apricot, Peach, enhanced by True Fruit and Artificial Flavors, Fruit Acid, Pectin, Certified Food Color, and Benzoate of Soda. Sounds like more different flavors then Passion Fruit Syrup has. I would guess that Passionola was one popular brand, and Fassionola was another popular brand for the same type of mixer. |
C
captnkirk
Posted
posted
on
Sat, Apr 1, 2006 4:54 AM
I have found another substitute for Fassionola that is common and works perfectly. Pat O'Briens Hurricane mix. It comes as a powder so you can order it cheaply from the internet if your local grocery or liquor store does not stock it. A liquid mix and concentrate are also available but not very common outside New Orleans. Have Fun |
P
pablus
Posted
posted
on
Sat, Apr 1, 2006 9:36 AM
BK is good at reverse engineering, too. Al-ii, send me an ounce of the green fassionola and I'll have a recipe for it in 4 days. Corn syrup. Blecch. |
K
KuKuAhu
Posted
posted
on
Sun, Apr 2, 2006 2:14 PM
Yes, reverse engineering it would not be difficult with an ingredient list and a sample. Hell, that's all it took for me to copy Sazerac Falernum. I agree that Pablus or BK could easily do the same. I'd love to get a hold of a sample, and I'd be willing to trade a sample of one of the homemade versions of items I produce for it, as well as the recipe for said samples from both (my recipe for the sample I send, and the recipe I generate for Fassionola). I make a La Grenade style nutmeg liqueur that gets good reviews and is a fine exotic for having on hand (and is near impossible to acquire outside of Grenada). I make true pommegranate grenadine, Sazerac style Falernum, pimento, a strong clove liqueur (not like becherovka, more suited to tropicals) that is key to constructing Sazerac easily, as well as some uncommon exotics for the truly adventurous (and completist or obsessive compulsive) experimental bartender. Sorrel liqueur Anyway, yes Kono, we need to put this to bed and get a solid recipe for this stuff. There is no reason to keep hunting for NOS ingredients when a recipe can be had that all of us could use. Especially when we can make a version that tastes and acts the same, but contains no unnatural bullsh*t. Ahu [ Edited by: KuKuAhu 2006-04-02 18:53 ] |
P
pablus
Posted
posted
on
Sun, Apr 2, 2006 5:04 PM
Hibiscus? And why haven't you made Okolehao? hunh? why? |
K
KuKuAhu
Posted
posted
on
Sun, Apr 2, 2006 6:51 PM
I do not... uh.. distill spirits at home.. er.. because that.. well, that would be illegal. Actually I have looked into making okolehao, and the process for growing ti and making the mash would be easy. And while the equipment to distill the result would be easy to acquire, and the raw liquor relatively simple to make, there is a problem. Aging. I really don't have the patience to sit on a barrel of oke for a year or two. I mean, maybe I could do it, but... I just don't know. And the unaged stuff would be like white lightning. Not exactly good for cocktails. Now if we assume that the okolehao used in old recipes is the moonshine-like young stuff, then it is doable. But I'm guessing it isn't. Hibiscus liqueur is bright blood red and very fruity, almost citrusy. Looks a lot like proper grenadine, and the flavor is reminiscent of rosehip tea. I make mine with hawaiian sugar and organic hibiscus flowers. Some recipes call for lemon zest or even vanilla beans, but I prefer to keep it purely hibiscus flavored. I use an alcohol steep followed by a spring water steep to extract as much from the flowers as possible. Then I use the water steep in the sugaring process. It makes for a thick syrup if you leave it in concentrate form as the hibiscus seems to have a sort of pectin property. It even "crystalizes" a bit of jelly at the top of the rest bottle. I have used it in place of grenadine in drinks and it really shines. Ahu [ Edited by: KuKuAhu 2006-04-02 18:57 ] |
TDH
the drunken hat
Posted
posted
on
Mon, Apr 3, 2006 6:17 AM
i wonder if either of these are the same as fassionola? http://www.webejava.com/site/1254423/product/232-5412253 http://www.westindianstore.com/anchorfruitps.html i would order them and find out if i had a bottle of the real stuff to compare it to. |
G
GatorRob
Posted
posted
on
Sun, Dec 17, 2006 4:14 PM
bumpola. So many Donn recipes that call for Fassionola. So many empty glasses. Such a shame. Anyone care to be a hero and solve this? |
G
GatorRob
Posted
posted
on
Wed, Dec 20, 2006 3:53 PM
Okay, thanks to the wonderful Jeff "Beachbum" Berry, the mystery of Fassionola is solved! Well, mostly. I have a message here from the Bum:
So, it appears that we should be substituting TV Passion Fruit Syrup for Fassionola. It's intersting to me though that there were 3 flavors: passion fruit, cherry and lime. |
K
Kono
Posted
posted
on
Wed, Dec 20, 2006 5:46 PM
I also contacted da Bum a while back and obviously got the same answer (I didn't ask him if he minded me posting the info here, so I didn't. But I thought about it...Sorry!) Anyhoo...he did say that it had an orangey tone so I got some of the Stirrings Blood Orange bitters (which is not very bitter by the company's own admission on the label) and mix a little bit of it with the TV Passionfruit syrup for what I hope to be close to the old fassionola taste. Just an idea. |
TM
Tiki Mortis
Posted
posted
on
Thu, Dec 21, 2006 6:16 AM
Based on the info GatorRob posted, it seems that Fee Brothers makes three types of Passion Fruit Syrup. Except that the green color has a mint flavor. |
P
pappythesailor
Posted
posted
on
Thu, Dec 21, 2006 7:26 PM
Nice post, Gator! Thank you |
S
sirginn
Posted
posted
on
Tue, Jul 14, 2009 11:20 AM
Not sure if I stumbled on something or not, when searching for some other items, I stumbled across a "Fee brothers red passsion fruit cordial syrup" described as a passion fruit syrup with hint of cherry, it is made by Fees and states is what is utilized in the hurricane and tonga punch. (see full description below link) based on the research by others in the thread, fassionola was predominately passion fruit based, but with red/punch character, and one of the posts showed an add with a cherry flavor. I ordered one and will see I will post the results when it arrives, previously I have been using fruit puch concentrate or passion fruit syrup when fassionola was called for. Here is the link: http://www.kegworks.com/product.php?productid=21382&cat=546&page=1 Fee Brothers Red Passion Fruit Cordial Syrup Opened in 1863, Fee Brothers of Rochester, New York, is in its fourth generation of manufacturing top quality cocktail mixes, bitters, flavoring syrups and other beverage ingredients. In stock and ready to ship. |
MT
Mai Tai
Posted
posted
on
Tue, Jul 14, 2009 2:32 PM
Anyone ever use the "search" feature? :) From page 1 of this thread that we're currently reading (and corrected for spelling):
On how Fassionola tastes compared directly to passion fruit syrup
How Fassionola compares to passion fruit syrup in a cocktail (particularly using the old Trader Vic's passion fruit syrup that had real passion fruit, which was the passion fruit syrup that most of us here preferred).
How Fassionola tastes in old tiki cocktail recipes that call for it
Where to buy Fassionola
So, to recap, Fassionola is basically a fruit punch concentrate that doesn't have any passion fruit juice in it. But it is the preferred ingredient in old tiki drink recipes that call for it, especially Don The Beachcomber recipes. And passion fruit syrup, even the old Trader Vic's passion fruit syrup that had real passion fruit juice in it, is not an acceptable substitute in recipes that call for Fassionola. And Fassionola is still available, and you can order it here: Jonathan English's Brand Mystery solved! |
P
pappythesailor
Posted
posted
on
Wed, Jul 15, 2009 11:55 AM
Hey, speaking of Fassionola, I heard that it's just Rose's Grenadine with yellow food coloring added. Where do you get that stuff, anyway? |
C
CincyTikiCraig
Posted
posted
on
Wed, Jul 15, 2009 8:09 PM
I ran across this Tropical Blend Syrup from Monin, and I've been using it as my Fassionola, with one modification: Monin describes this syrup as: "Like a tropical escape with varied colors, aromas and sights, Monin Tropical Blend is a wonderful medley of colors and flavors. Rich mango, aromatic passion fruit, lush pineapple, intense banana and citrusy tangerine are combined in one, easy to pour, tropical sensation" The ingredients are: Pure Cane Sugar, Water, Mango Flavour, Passion Fruit Flavour, Pineapple Flavour, Concentrated Lemon Juice, Natural Banana Flavour, Natural Mandarin Flavour. I combined about 75% of the Monin syrup and about 25% of the Hawaiian Punch syrup that I made ( 1 packet of HP mix, the amount of sugar called for on the packet and about 10 ounces of water). This blend really works in the DTB Pi-Yi and Rum Barrel.....Think I'll have one right now in fact! Cheers, Craig [ Edited by: CincyTikiCraig 2009-07-15 20:10 ] |
C
captnkirk
Posted
posted
on
Tue, Jul 21, 2009 4:06 AM
I have been using Pat O'Brians Hurricane mix as a replacement for the red Fassionola for years. I think it is the closest substitute out there. I would love to know for sure. We should get a few master tiki bartenders and experts from this forum and taste a sealed bottle of the original stuff. Maybe we could all spark up demand and someone would begin producing it again. [ Edited by: captnkirk 2009-07-21 04:07 ] |
MT
Mai Tai
Posted
posted
on
Tue, Jul 21, 2009 4:59 PM
Tell us exactly how you prepare the Pat O'Brien's Hurricane mix into your syrup. How much of the powdered mix, how much water, how long you boil it down, etc.
Ran and I are going to do something like this with various passion fruit syrups during Tiki Oasis. We could do a direct comparison with your home made syrup from the Pat O'Brien's powdered mix vs. fassionola in a planters punch or something similar at Tiki Oasis as well. And we can easily obtain the fassionola for comparison in the San Diego area, since it is still being produced there.
Uh, did you read the post above? :) Fassionola is still being produced, and you can purchase it here: I called them last week, and they have all three colors, the red, the green, and the gold. |
J
JamalSpelling
Posted
posted
on
Tue, Jul 28, 2009 5:11 PM
Yes it's true, JE tropical drink mix is available to anyone. It is in no way anything like |
C
CincyTikiCraig
Posted
posted
on
Tue, Jul 28, 2009 8:06 PM
John, Thank you for posting this. I can'twait to get my paws on all of the flavours. Can you tell us the price for the Fassionola? I don't see ot on your website. Cheers, Craig |
C
CincyTikiCraig
Posted
posted
on
Tue, Jul 28, 2009 8:07 PM
HOLY COW!!!! Jonathan English has a brand new website: http://jonathanenglishcompany.com/jonathanenglish/flash.swf I haven't even looked around much yet, I found it and wanted to post it ASAP! PS-They have their own Orgeat as well!! It's under the Barcelona Mixers. [ Edited by: CincyTikiCraig 2009-07-28 20:10 ] [ Edited by: CincyTikiCraig 2009-07-28 20:10 ] |
C
cathuna
Posted
posted
on
Thu, Mar 17, 2011 6:18 AM
No chance of finding Fassionola here in the UK. However I did spot this in a local supermarket: It's bright red, so the colour fits the bill alright! ponders whether to buy it anyway |
TT
Trader Tiki
Posted
posted
on
Fri, Mar 18, 2011 12:01 PM
I just got a sample of Fassionola. I don't see much challenge in recreating it using high quality, natural ingredients. This will, of course, be heavily tested hic at the Trader Tiki official science lab and mixotorium. |
J
jokeiii
Posted
posted
on
Thu, Feb 2, 2012 9:48 AM
Any progress on this front? Mahalo in advance, |