So what _does_ a mai-tai taste like?

I have never had one. Anywhere.

So I have nothing to reference it to.

So last night I tried to make a couple..

I used:
Bacardi Reserve dark rum (2 oz)
lime juice (3/4 oz or so)
simple syrup (1/2 oz)
amaretto (1/2 oz)
cointreau (1/2 oz)
shaken on ice.

Now.. that tasted rather like a whiskey sour, but with rum instead of whiskey.

So I upped the simple syrup to a full oz, and the drink got much sweeter and almost fruity.

(Yes, I realize it's cheap rum, I don't have orgeat yet, and I can't find orange curacou locally, yet.. I'm in PA LCB hell).

What do they taste like to you? Am I even close here?

Mahalo!

Ootwoods

[ Edited by: gordon58 2007-07-26 14:04 ]

I would increase your Amaretto just a wee bit since it is not technically Almond and it is the nutty-ness on the nose that I like.

I would increase your Cointreau to close to 3/4 ounce. I find it to be less sweet than Curacao.

I like my drinks to stay on the tart side so I wouldn't adjust your bar syrup at all, but that is my taste.

And then, more specifically to your question as to what it 'should' taste like.... That's tough to explain if you don't have a reference point. Let's try this....

A Mai-Tai should look good in the glass, smell good on the nose, taste balanced and exotic on the tounge. And the whole experience should evoke images of far-away places with exotic people serving you drinks. A good Mai-Tai always makes me think of Bora-Bora or some similar deep pacific island. I have never been to any of those islands, but I like to imagine them while I enjoy a Mai-Tai.

And, the Mai-Tai is sort of a Holy-Grail of drinks around here. Search Mai-Tai and you will find LOTS of threads discussing this very question. And more importantly, you must keep trying to make a good Mai-Tai. And even more importantly, you have to report back your findings!

If you can't find orange curacao, use blue. Taste exactly the same. You can find links to Orgeat and Falernum in the Grogalizer. Just log in.

A Mai Tai the way most make it is a sour drink. That's the main note. The way I make it, its about the rum, with sour and other flavors balanced. If you get it at TV, it'll be a pretty sour drink, so that may not be the standard you want to achieve.

AND FRESH MINT!

Welp.. I got Appletons X/V, and fresh limes, and orange Curacao.. and BOY does it make a difference!

I still cant find Orgeat locally.. but I did find natural almond extract.. that and some simple syrup should come pretty bloody close to orgeat!

So here it is.. attempt #2..

It were YUMMY! And I'm not usually a lime fan.. I found myself sucking on the lime when I was done.. strangely. :)

I couldn't find orgeat locally (on my bike) so I just asked my local chinese restaurant to sell me a bottle (10 bucks - no shipping charge)! On the ride home I pedaled by the liquorstore for the Orange curacao (had the rums already) and then stopped by the local grocer for the lime juice and limes. mmmmmmmm! delicious!

On 2007-07-26 17:05, ootwoods wrote:

Yummy!

Nice touch with the umbrella.

Hot Rod Hula Hop III!

[ Edited by: Chip and Andy 2007-07-26 18:58 ]

That is a niice lookin mai tai.
I was using something called "Attitude" almond-flavouring in mine, up until about a month ago when local tiki-shop Funhauser started stocking the Trader Vic brand syrups and I finally got ahold of some orgeat.
I'm assuming they taste better with the Vic's, as I make more of them, but I'm in no state of mind afterwards to make comparisons, and my notes (variations in recipe etc) are hopeless scrawls trailing off the notepad...
And since a general rule here - that I just made up - is that if you post to a mai tai thread, you must then go make a mai tai, I am off to the home-bar!
Cheers!