The Mango Mai Tai is one of the most popular drinks in the world. The drink was likely invented by either Victor “Trader Vic” Bergeron, or by Donn Beach back in the 1930s ; 40s.
The popularity of the drink has fluctuated over the years, but a recent revival of interest in Tiki drinks has brought the drink roaring back. This drink is popular because it gives a bartender a chance to showcase the different flavors of rum.
Mai Tais are made by blending rums to find the best combination of taste, detail, and complexity. There’s no one right way to make a Mai Tai, but there are a few things you should consider to get the perfect blend of rum. You should consider raw materials, age, ABV (Alcoholic Beverage Volume), and production methods.
What’s a Mai Tai?
A Mai Tai is a classic tropical drink made of rum, liqueur, orgeat syrup, and lime juice, and other additions. There’s some controversy about where the drink comes from. Victor Bergeron, owner of Trader Vic’s, claims to have invented the drink in the 1940s. However, his rival Donn Beach also claims to have invented the drink at his bar back in the 1930s.
Regardless of whoever invented the Mai Tai, the drink remains one of the most popular alcoholic beverages available. Read on to learn how to make this yourself for your next pool party.
Captain Morgan Parrot Bay Mango Rum Recipe
This first recipe is based on Captain Morgan Parrot Bay Mango Rum.
You need 1.25 ounces of Captain Morgan and you also need an ounce and a half of pineapple juice, and the same amount of margarita mix. You also need pineapple slices, and a quarter ounce of both grenadine and orgeat syrup. You also need a cocktail shaker to shake your drink up.
To make this drink, you need to put your Captain Morgan, margarita mix, pineapple juice, orgeat syrup, and grenadine into your cocktail shaker. Then you add ice and start shaking. Once you’ve shaken the drink up well, it’s time to pour the drink out into your glass. Garnish your beverage with cherry and a pineapple slice.
Enjoy! Your Mango Mai Tai is ready to serve!
Fresh Mango Mai Tai Recipe
With this recipe, you need a few more ingredients than the last one.
This recipe from The Spruce Eats stands out from others on this list, because it calls for actual fresh mango, rather than just mango flavored rum. You also need freshly squeezed lime juice. This adds a tropical fruit flavored twist to your favorite cocktail. This is the perfect drink for a pool party or summer trip to the beach.
To make this mango flavored version of the classic Mai Tai, you need half a cup of fresh, cubed mango. You also need a quarter ounce of orgeat syrup, half an ounce of orange curacao liqueor, a quarter ounce of pineapple juice, and mango slices for garnish.
You also need some fresh mint sprig, and half an ounce of freshly squeezed lime juice. Last but obviously not least, you need an ounce and a half of aged rum.
First, gather your ingredients and start putting things in the shaker. Start with the cubed mango and orgeat syrup. Muddle them until the fruit is broken up and well juiced. Next, you need to add the rum, orange curacao, lime, and pineapple juice.
Once you’ve done this, it’s time to fill the shaker with ice. After this, shake the container vigorously for at least thirty seconds, and then strain the mix into an old-fashioned glass over crushed ice. When you’re done, garnish the drink with the mango slices and fresh mint sprig.
Many people feel that this version of the drink works best with a nice, aged rum. People feel that the oakiness of an aged barrel adds more depth to the flavor of their favorite fruity drink.
People also feel that freshly squeezed lime juice is an important ingredient for any tropical drink. Bottled juice is normally sweetened and has unnatural, artificial flavors. This makes it an inferior choice.
Crushed ice is seen as an important part of any Mai Tai cocktail because crushed ice gives the drink a frosty quality that cubed ice never can. The best way to crush ice is with either a manual or electric ice crushing machine.
If you don’t have either of these, you can always put your ice cubes in a bag and then beat them with a hammer. This obviously requires more work though.
Mango Mai Tai with 2 Different Rums
With this variation of the classic Mai Tai recipe, you need two different rums. For this one you need an ounce of spiced rum and an ounce of mango rum. Additionally, you also need three ounces of mango nectar, grenadine, strawberry slices, and mango slices.
This version of the Mango Mai Tai is different not just because of the added strawberry fruit flavor, but because you don’t need a shaker. Instead, you mix the drink right there in the glass.
To start off, you need crushed ice. You can make this with an electric or manual ice crusher. You can also crush your ice by hand. Once you’ve crushed your ice, put both the crushed ice and the strawberry slices in a glass. From here, it’s time to add in the spiced rum, the mango rum, and the mango nectar.
After this, top the drink off with grenadine. Then it’s time to garnish the glass with mango slices. Enjoy! Your drink is ready to serve. Because you are not using a shaker, it’s important to remember to mix everything together very well.
Tropical Mai Tai with Pineapple
This version of the classic mango Mai Tai has an added dash of pineapple to give your tropical treat a tasty island twist. For this recipe you need two types of rum. You need an ounce of spiced rum and an ounce of light or coconut rum. You also need half an ounce of Cointreau or orange curacao.
You also need two ounces of pineapple juice, two ounces of ceres mango puree, and two ounces of orange juice. It’s also important to have lime juice, grenadine, sliced pineapple, and maraschino cherry for garnish.
To start, you bust out your cocktail shaker and start adding ingredients into it. First you need to add the rum, Cointreau, pineapple juice, orange juice, lime juice, and the mango puree. As always, it’s better to use freshly squeezed lime juice than anything that comes in a bottle. Add all of this into your cocktail shaker and start shaking.
After you are done shaking, it’s time to add crushed ice into your glass. This can be done with an ice crusher (manual or electric), or it can also be done by hand. It’s good to use crushed ice instead of ice cubes for the frosty feel it gives.
Strain your drink out of the shaker and into the glass, over the crushed ice. Then it’s time to slowly pour the grenadine over the top of your beverages. This gives the drink a pretty gradient effect. After this, it’s time to garnish your drink, with maraschino cherry and chunks of pineapple.
Pineapple Mai Tai Recipe
This is a fun and simple way to make a mango Mai Tai at home with added pineapple and nutmeg flavor. For this one you need an ounce and a half of your favorite rum, it doesn’t matter what kind.
You also need a bit of nutmeg, an ounce of orgeat, a half ounce of triple sec, a mint sprig, and a slice of pineapple for your garnish. Finally, you also need an ounce and a half of Tropicana Pineapple Mango Splash Drink.
When you’ve gathered all of your ingredients, combine them all into your cocktail shaker. Add ice into the shaker and shake it well. Then, make crushed ice and put it into either a rocks or tiki glass.
When you’ve finished shaking the contents of the cocktail shaker, strain the beverage out of the shaker and into your glass. Stir it a bit and then garnish it by adding in your mint sprig and pineapple slices.
Juicy Mango Mai Tai
This recipe is a little different because it uses either plain or flavored vodkas instead of rum. You can use a cabob stick to stir the drink.
For this recipe you need a half cup of crushed ice cubes, four ounces of chilled pineapple juice, three fluid ounces of chilled mango nectar, and one and a half fluid ounces of coconut milk. You also need one fluid ounce of chilled orange juice.
To make this drink, fill your glass with crushed ice. Then pour mango nectar, pineapple juice, coconut milk, orange juice, and vodka over the crushed ice. After you pour all of your ingredients over the ice, it’s important to stir the drink well.
Mango Mai Tai by Stella Rosa Wines
For this drink, you need crushed ice, one ounce of orgeat syrup, Stella Rose Pineapple, Stella Rose Tropicana Mango, a mint sprig, and pineapple slices for garnish. You also need one and a half ounces of rum.
Combine all of the ingredients except for the Stella Rose Pineapple and Stella Rose Tropical Mango into your cocktail shaker. Add ice into the cocktail shaker and shake well. Then, make crushed ice and fill the tiki glass with it.
After you are done shaking the cocktail shakers, strain the drink into your tiki glass. After this, pour the Stella Rosa Pineapple and the Stella Rosa Tropical Mango over the drink. Then stir with a cabo stick to blend it a little more. Finally, add a slice of pineapple and mint sprig to garnish the beverage.
Then, it’s ready to serve. Enjoy!
Mango Mai Tai Recipe by Craftlog
For this version of the classic Mango Mai Tai, you need one and a half fluid ounces of margarita mix, one and a half fluid ounces of pineapple juice, and one quarter fluid ounce of orgeat syrup, as well as one quarter fluid ounce of grenadine.
You also need pineapple slices, and one and a quarter fluid ounces of Captain Morgan Parrot Bay Mango Rum.
Once you’ve assembled all of your ingredients, you need to make crushed ice. You can do this with a manual or electric ice crusher, or you can also do it by hand with a bag and hammer. Once you have made your crushed ice, fill your tiki glass with the crushed ice.
To make this drink, you need to start by putting all of the ingredients into a cocktail shaker. Shake the drink up very well. Once you have shaken the drink up, pour it out into your tiki glass over the crushed ice.
Food.com
This variation on the Mango Mai Tai calls for one and a quarter fluid ounces of Captain Morgan Parrot Bay Mango Rum. You also need one and a half fluid ounces of margarita mix, and one and a half fluid ounces of mango juice.
Additionally, make sure you get a quarter fluid ounces of grenadine and orgeat syrup, as well as pineapple slices for garnish.
To make this drink, combine all of the ingredients you have assembled into your cocktail shaker. Add ice and shake well. Make crushed ice with your ice crusher (manual or electric) or by hand, and use it to fill your tiki glass.
Then pour the contents of the cocktail shaker into the tiki glass, over the crushed ice. Once you do this, it’s time to garnish the drink with your pineapple slices and your cherry.
Conclusion
Mango Mai Tais are some of the most popular drinks in the world. They are popular because they are fun tropical drinks, and they give bartenders the opportunity to showcase the flavors and complexities of different kinds of rum.
There’s no one right way to make a Mai Tai but this collection of recipes should give you a few ideas on where to get started. To get the perfect blend with your rum, you should consider the age of the rum, the raw materials, the production message, and the ABV (Alcoholic Beverage Volume).
