Best. Zombie. Ever.

I just received my new Beachbum Berry Remixed on Wednesday, and I've been making drinks from it every night since. Tonight I had the great pleasure of trying a new (to me) Zombie recipe listed on page 172 of Remixed-it's a Zombie recipe that was served at the Aku-Aku in Las Vegas, and as the Bum states in remixed: "the recipe is almost certainly the work of Don The Beachcomber, whom the Stardust hired to create the Aku-Aku's cocktail menu in 1959. We find this Zombie interesting for several reasons: First, how Donn streamlined the proportions of his 1930's original so that the Aku-Aku's bartenders could assemble the drink faster; Second how the ingredients remain essentially unchanged from that first version; And third, how a few drops each of.....make such a huge difference in the drink. Clearly Don had learned much in 25 years". WOW, what a drink-it's the bones of the original 1934 Zombie Punch, but this recipe is more balanced and very drinkable, while still packing quite a punch. The drink is made perfect by the use Trader Tiki's Cinnamon Syrup BTW. I'm not going to post the recipe, you'll need to buy the book to find it. However I predict that fellow Zombie fans will proclaim this recipe to be a classic.

I love a good Zombie so I think this will be probably be the first drink i'll make WHEN my copy of remixed arrives. Damn you international shipping.

On 2010-04-03 01:37, swizzle wrote:
Damn you international shipping.

Yep, I agree.

I made one last night also and agree, it's a great recipe. I too used the Trader TIki syrup but I was inspired to make my own from this drink alone.

Yes, very good but I use the Sonoma cinnamon syrup and might cut that back ¼oz when making this, it could overpower the drink.

Clearly many comparisons with the 1934 recipe will be needed.

[ Edited by: rev_thumper 2010-04-03 12:24 ]

On 2010-04-03 12:24, rev_thumper wrote:
Yes, very good but I use the Sonoma cinnamon syrup and might cut that back ¼oz when making this, it could overpower the drink.

Clearly many comparisons with the 1934 recipe will be needed.

[ Edited by: rev_thumper 2010-04-03 12:24 ]

Thumper, I understand that the Sonoma syrups are very good. I've been meaning to try them for some time now. Have you tried their orgeat? If so, what do you think of it??

On 2010-04-03 14:58, CincyTikiCraig wrote:
Thumper, I understand that the Sonoma syrups are very good. I've been meaning to try them for some time now. Have you tried their orgeat? If so, what do you think of it??

I have not tried their orgeat but we always try to have the cinnamon, vanilla bean and ginger around the bar.

Awesome, I'll give it a shot tomorrow for grilling day.

*Edit:
Okay, so I gave this one a go yesterday and it was pretty good. It reminded me a lot of a Bermuda Swizzle recipe I tweaked, and I think that was due to the abundance of cinnamon syrup the Aku-Aku Zombie called for.
So, I think next time, I'm going to adjust the recipe and use maybe only half of the cinnamon, because it pretty much killed out all the other little nuances that this recipe calls for. I dunno... maybe it's because I make my cinnamon syrup with turbinado and go with a 2 to 1 sugar to water ratio instead of a 1 to 1. I guess mine is more of a cinnamon rock candy syrup.
Adjustments must be made.

[ Edited by: CucamongaChango 2010-04-05 07:30 ]

Thanks for the compliments on the syrups!

That recipe is also on the back of the Trader Tiki Don's Mix, with just a few adjustments for ease of use.

Y'know, I like this post so much, I'm gonna work on something REAL nice for the Tiki Central Ohana.

Hey Trader, I received 3 of your syrups a couple of weeks ago and like them a lot! Kudos to you for bringing them to us!!!

Hey, head over to the Grogalizer and share your enthusiasm!

I made some cinnamon syrup in January using the recipe in Sippin' Safari and it came out great--but even at 1:1 it's plenty strong. I was concerned because I didn't have all the different filtering processes--I just kept pouring it through a strainer until the cinnamon pieces got smaller. However, once I made drinks with it (sometimes which called for a strained drink) I didn't notice any particles in the taste (and a little fiber never hurt anyone). When my St. Elizabeth's Allspice Dram bottle runs out (great, but ouch! in the pocketbook) I'm going to take a stab at making that (though with proper straining methods).

I find this too cinnamonamy.

I like this Zombie cocktail. It's tasty and easy to pre-blend up and just pour and serve at a camping event or someplace you don't feel like being a bartender.

I'll probably get roasted for this....BUT....I think its an improvement over the 1934 Original ( which I guess Donn felt as well) The cinnamon flavor is strong...but the underlying flavors are still present. Its the only Zombie the wife can handle! Ha!

I use Trader Tiki's Don's Mix (1-1/4 instead of 1-1/2 oz) in lieu of cinnamon and grapefruit (if there's no fresh juice handy) and it works just as well.