Reddit reviews Beach Bum Berry Remixed

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Original

This is the recipe that I am most familiar with, it was originally found in a notebook of Dick Santiago, one of Don’s bartenders. I first found this recipe in the PDT book and have made it many times. I’ve always enjoyed this cocktail, although I have some variations of my own. The original Zombie is a must try for everyone, even if Tiki drinks are not your thing. This version starts out with mint and lime on the nose, obviously coming from the garnish of mint. At first sip, sweet rummy goodness, the Puerto Rican rum and Jamaican rum marry here and bring each other’s best features forward. What’s great about this version is that, unlike some of the recipes we will look at, there is not a lot of fruit juices, which really allows the rum to come forward and be enhanced by all the other syrups and spices. More drinks need Don’s Mix, there is lots of grapefruit flavor here, more so than the lime. I used 2 day old grapefruit juice. The book Craft Cocktails at Home by Kevin Liu, suggests this as optimal for best flavor. With the stronger grapefruit flavor, the Don’s Mix might benefit from a 1.5:1 ratio of grapefruit to cinnamon syrup. Whether or not this truly is the original Zombie, we may never know, however it is safe to say, this is definitely the Zombie for todays cocktailian palate.

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Simplified

A great Zombie, though Berry wasn’t kidding when he called it simplified. Two juices, two rums, and syrup; pretty simple…for a Zombie. The nose is very similar to the Original, with just a little more citrus. The cinnamon syrup and Angostura help bring the complexity to this cocktail, and the citrus juices are more prominent here than the Original. This version is not too sweet, too sour, or too boozey. This a great all around Tiki drink and alternative to the Original Zombie if you want a lower poof drink. The Jamaican rum really comes through here, the 151 amber rum doesn’t offer much flavor, and without the Puerto Rican rum the Jamaican shines through. Jamaican rum is not my favorite type of rum, but it works so well here in this Zombie, you can tell it is really the cornerstone of the Original Zombie. I would however choose an Original Zombie over a Simplified Zombie if I had all the ingredients, just for the additional complexity and rum blend. But I would mix up a Simplified first if I were missing the other ingredients over some of the other recipes.

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Mid-Century

This recipe came from Louis Spievak’s 1950 book, Barbecue Chef, in which Don Beach provided the recipe. Beachbum Berry notes that since this Zombie differs so much from other recipes, he speculates that Don used this to trick his competitors, and give Spievak’s readers a more simplified recipe that would be easier for them to make. This Zombie is best for the summer months and its a whole different cocktail compared to the previous two. I made my own pineapple juice and passion fruit syrup for this. I have never had passion fruit syrup before, and I honestly did not really like the flavor by itself. However when you build this Tiki drink, all the different fruit and citrus juices come together really well, and blend into a great summer cocktail. The nose is all citrus and sweet, with mint from the garnish coming up first. As you sip the Mid-Century Zombie, it’s sweet and sour, all the juice and syrups make for an extremely easy sipper. I might scale down the 1 oz of passion fruit syrup to ½ oz to make the drink a little less sweet. The rum? It’s in there somewhere, but you cannot really tell, which is a feat of its own considering 1/3rd of the rum is 151 proof. The blend of light, gold, and Demerara rum all seem to lose some of their distinct flavor in the midst of all the juices, and that is either good or bad depending on your own preference. This one is ideal if you’re spending a day at the beach or by the pool, no place too fancy, and just want a cool refreshing Zombie.

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South Seas

Firstly, this drink put me off when I read Italian vermouth in the recipe. Secondly, the only open sweet vermouth I have is Carpano Antica, which seemed like a waste. However, it only calls for ½ oz and I really liked the subtle complexity it added to the drink, and I mean subtle, I might kick it up to ¾ oz to bring it forward in the drink. In this Zombie the orange and pineapple are king, the rum comes through second. On the nose, as with all 151 floats, is alcohol; second comes the pineapple and orange only showing up at the end. This is a good cocktail, just not up to some of the other Zombie recipes. I really think this cocktail could benefit from the addition of a complex syrup, like Demerara syrup or Falernum syrup, with this I would put it up against almost all other Zombie recipes. Beachbum Berry’s Remixed notes that Don’s Hawaiian rival, Spence Weaver, created this Zombie for his Polynesian themed restaurant South Seas. In this drink we can see where Spence got his inspiration, yet he always seemed to live in the shadow of the Beachcomber. I think he was a skilled bartender, but not as in love with Tiki as Don.

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Tonga Room

I really didn’t have much for notes on this one, it comes from the Tonga Room at the Fairmont Hotel in San Francisco. Ok, ok, I seriously failed on the garnish on this one, but I used all my pineapple for the pineapple juice, and forgot to set some aside for garnish. The Tonga Room Zombie is sweet and sour, the pineapple and lime come through strong on the nose and with each sip. For a Zombie, there is not a whole lot of alcohol in this one. The second one I made I added a dash of Angostura (and forgot to photograph), which really helps this one come alive. This is a great example of what bitters can add to a drink.

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Aku-Aku

This recipe comes from an ex-employee of Aku-Aku, from the late Stardust Hotel in Las Vegas. The Stardust hired Don the Beachcomber to create their cocktail menu in 1959, which is why this recipe is so similar to the Original Zombie. The Absinthe, Grenadine, Falernum, and Curacao are to be combined beforehand, this was to create Zombie Mix and help speed up creation of the drink. Besides the Zombie Mix and dash of Angostura, all other ingredients are ¾ oz.The Aku-Aku Zombie is very similar to the original recipe, just with different proportions and the addition of Orange Liqueur. If you enjoyed the Original Zombie, but want something that is sweeter and less strong than this is your Zombie. The nose is mint first, then cinnamon second, which continues as you drink. The cinnamon is definitely more prominent here, and I cannot help but think it overpowers some of the nuances of the rums. The Cointreau helps sweetens up the drink but I found that the orange flavor is lost. As with the original the Absinthe, Falernum, and Grenadine add a distinct sticky spiciness that is quite enjoyable here as with the Original Zombie.

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Modern

This is one of the many variations of the modern – pre-cocktail renaissance- Zombie that you can find at most beach bars. Most recipes I found are very similar to this, they might add some orange juice or papaya juice, and might not have the Jamaican rum. What is surprising about this recipe is the lack of sugar as there is no syrup, instead all the sugar comes from the juice. I think some Demerara syrup would help sweeten this cocktail up nicely, with the raw sugar adding an additional flavor. Another aspect of this drink that I noticed is how bright yellow the cocktail is compared to the other Zombies (the Tonga Room is the exception), which come in more around an orangish red color. I decided to use Bacardi 151 since many of the modern Zombie recipes I found online called for it or amber 151 rum. I’d love to try this again with Lemon Hart, since I find that Bacardi 151 adds nothing more than alcohol to a drink. I found the nose of the drink to have strong pineapple and alcohol aroma. This drink is very pineapple forward, which mixes unbelievably well with the apricot brandy! Perhaps finding another drink with pineapple juice and apricot brandy would be worthwhile; it’s a delicious combination. I dashed some Angostura on top just for good measure, and enjoyed the addition.

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Okole Maluna! (The Hawaiian word for cheers)

Wow, that was a lot of rum! I hope you enjoyed this weeks NCotW post, I certainly enjoyed learning a little bit about one of the pioneers of Tiki drinks, Don Beach, and trying all these different variations of the Zombie, although it put quite a hurt on my rum collection. I hope you’ll give at least one of these recipes a try, if not multiple. It was enjoyable to go through and taste how the recipe has changed over time from our “original” recipe to the “modern” version any beach front cabana bar would mix up for you. Again, a lot of this information and recipes come from Beachbum Berry’s Remixed. It’s a great book, if you don’t have it, buy it, but it’ll only hurt your rum reserves. Please feel free to post any Zombie recipes you guys know, or any other information that I left out. I don’t have a copy of the Bum’s Sippin’ Safari, but it’s suppose to go into detail on how he reverse engineered some of his Zombie recipes. So if you have a copy I would love to know the story. Special thanks to /u/hebug for letting me do a guest post, and my wife for putting up with Zombie-fied me for many weekends.


I’ll leave you guys with a thought from Trader Vic on the Zombie.
"Why people drink them I don't know.... Personally, I think it's too damn strong, but people seem to like it that way"

The tiki drink bible aka Beachbum Berry Remixed: https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/1593621396/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?qid=1465275504&sr=8-1&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&keywords=beachbum+berry+remixed

If you have not picked up Beach bum Berry Remixed or his Total Tiki App. I highly suggest it!

Jeff Berry did a ton of research tracking down old recipes, secret formulas and ancient booze to put these together. They are the gold standard for tiki recipes.

Here are the only books you need:

1. Smuggler's Cove: Exotic Cocktails, Rum, and the Cult of Tiki
   
   
2. Beachbum Berry's Potions of the Caribbean
   
   
3. Beachbum Berry Remixed
   
   
4. Beachbum Berry's Sippin' Safari
   
   They're all fantastic. But if you only buy one, start with Smuggler's Cove. It's just an incredible wealth of information and it's a lot more current than the others. It's also very useful if you're looking to expand your tiki repertoire since it has a lot of information on bar equipment, rums, syrups, etc. that the other books lack.

continued

Homemade Soda by Andrew Schloss

Mix Shake Stir: Recipes from Danny Meyer's Acclaimed New York City Restaurants compiled by Danny Meyer

Jim Murray's Whisky Bible 2010 by Jim Murray

And a Bottle of Rum: A History of the New World in Ten Cocktails by Wayne Curtis

Trader Vic's Bartender's Guide, Revised by Victor "Trader Vic" Bergeron

Great Beer Guide: 500 Classic Brews by Michael Jackson

Old Mr. Boston DeLuxe Official Bartender's Guide 4th Edition

The Seasonal Cocktail Companion: 100 Recipes and Projects for Four Seasons of Drinking by Maggie Savarino

The Essential Cocktail: The Art of Mixing Perfect Drinks by Dale Degroff

Iconic Spirits: An Intoxicating History by Mark Spivak

Bottom Row:

The Wine Bible by Karen MacNeil

Absinthe, Sip of Seduction: A Contemporary Guide by Betina Wittels & Robert Hermesch

The Complete Bartender: Art of Mixing Plain and Fancy Drinks by Albert Barnes (Espresso Book Machine Reprint)

Michael Jackson's Beer Companion by Michael Jackson

The Drunken Botanist: The Plants that Create the World's Great Drinks by Amy Stewart

Food & Wine Cocktails 2013 edited by Jim Meehan

Food & Wine Cocktails 2012 edited by Jim Meehan

Food & Wine Cocktails 2011 edited by Jim Meehan

The Craft of the Cocktail: Everything You Need to Know to be a Master Bartender, with 500 Recipes by Dale DeGroff

Cocktail Techniques by Kazuo Uyeda

Shake, Stir, Pour: Fresh Homegrown Cocktails by Katie Loeb

Everyday Drinking: The Distilled Kingsley Amis by Kingsley Amis

Tequila: A Traditional Art of Mexico edited by Alberto Ruy Sanchez & Magarita de Orellana

The New York Times Book of Wine: More than 30 Years of Vintage Writing edited by Howard G. Goldberg (pre-release copy)

The Northern California Craft Beer Guide by Ken Weaver

A Field Guide to Hendrick's Gin

The Oxford Companion to Beer edited by Garrett Oliver

The Book of Gin: A Spirited World History from Alchemists' Stills and Colonial Outposts to Gin Palaces, Bathtub Gin, and Artisanal Cocktails by Richard Barnett (pre-release copy)

Modern American Drinks: How to Mix and Serve All Kinds of Cups, Cocktails, and Fancy Mixed Drinks by George J. Kappeler (Espresso Book Machine Printing)

Edible Cocktails: From Garden to Glass - Seasonal Cocktails with a Fresh Twist by Natalie Bovis

Straight Up or On the Rocks: The Story of the American Cocktail by William Grimes

Brewed Awakening: Behind the Beers and Brewers Leading the World's Craft Brewing Revolution by Joshua M. Bernstein

The Savoy Cocktail Book by Harry Craddock

Extreme Brewing: An Enthusiast's Guide to Brewing Craft Beer at Home by Sam Calagione

Wine for Dummies by Ed McCarthy & Mary Ewing-Mulligan

Radical Brewing: Recipes, Tales and World-Altering Meditations in a Glass by Randy Mosher

Not Pictured:

On Food and Cooking: The Science and Lore of the Kitchen by Harold McGee

Craft Cocktails at Home: Offbeat Techniques, Contemporary Crowd-Pleasers, and Classics Hacked with Science by Kevin Liu

Beachbum Berry Remixed by Jeff Berry

How's Your Drink?: Cocktails, Culture, and the Art of Drinking Well by Eric Felten

Let me know if you have any questions about any of the books.