Mai Tai (Trader Vic’s)
Shake ∙ 3 min ∙ 21.7% ABV ∙
The Mai Tai is a rum tiki cocktail of aged rum, orange curaçao, lime, and orgeat, shaken and served over crushed ice — the drink that crowned Trader Vic. Rich aged rum leads, framed by tart lime, a hint of orange, and orgeat's nutty sweetness; balanced rather than sugary, it drinks like a grown-up tropical pour.
Ingredients
1
Servings
Garnish
Instructions for 1 serving
- Pre-chill a glass
- Shake all ingredients with ice: Caribbean aged rum 60 mlOrange curaçao liqueur 15 mlLime juice 20 mlOrgeat (almond) syrup 10 mlSugar syrup 10 ml
- Strain into the glass filled with crushed ice
- Garnish with a lime twist, a mint sprig and a fruit skewer
Tips
- Use a full-flavored aged rum — a flat, light rum leaves the drink thin and lets the orgeat run sweet.
- Save the spent lime shell and drop it in — it adds oil and color and is the traditional finishing touch.
- Taste before adding all the sugar syrup; a robust rum needs less than a mellow one to stay balanced.
History
The Mai Tai is credited to Victor Jules Bergeron — Trader Vic — who opened his first restaurant in Oakland, California in 1934 and built his reputation on rum drinks. By his own account in his 1972 Bartender's Guide, he mixed the drink in 1944 at his Oakland service bar using seventeen-year-old J. Wray & Nephew Jamaican rum, and served it to Tahitian friends Ham and Carrie Guild; Carrie's exclamation "mai tai-roa aé" — Tahitian for "out of this world" — gave it its name.
Ernest Raymond Beaumont-Gantt, of Don the Beachcomber's, also claimed to have created it, and the origin remains disputed. Bergeron carried the drink to Hawaii in 1953 for the Matson Steamship Lines hotels, where it spread widely.
FAQ
What's in a Trader Vic's Mai Tai?
Aged Caribbean rum, orange curaçao, fresh lime juice, orgeat (almond) syrup, and a little sugar syrup, shaken and strained over crushed ice. It is garnished with a lime twist, a mint sprig, and a fruit skewer.
Did Trader Vic's invent the Mai Tai?
Trader Vic — Victor Bergeron — claimed to have created it in 1944 in Oakland and defended the claim fiercely. Don the Beachcomber's owner also claimed it, so the true origin is disputed, though Bergeron's version is the most widely repeated.
What is the best rum for a Mai Tai?
A flavorful aged Caribbean rum is best; Trader Vic's original used a seventeen-year-old Jamaican rum. Many bartenders blend an aged Jamaican rum with another aged rum for depth, and some float a dark rum on top.
Is a Mai Tai shaken or stirred?
Shaken. The lime, orgeat, and sugar need the aeration and quick chill of a shake; it is then strained over crushed ice, which continues to chill and dilute the drink.
What glass is a Mai Tai served in?
A double old-fashioned glass filled with crushed ice, garnished with a lime twist, a mint sprig, and a fruit skewer.
