The 1970s were not kind to the tiki cocktail genre. Instead of the layered, complex drinks that originally defined tiki – often involving two different rums, fresh fruit juices and warm baking spices such as nutmeg, clove and cinnamon – bartenders started churning out syrupy Mai Tais and sugar-bomb Singapore Slings. Thankfully, modern cocktail revivalists such as David Muhlstein at The Captain’s Cabin, the retro tiki bar adjacent to sister restaurant HULA’S Modern Tiki Uptown, are reversing those ills. Consider The Wench, a sassy little number that combines funky, grassy Wray & Nephew Overproof Rum with herbal Amaro Montenegro, zesty Pierre Ferrand Dry Curaçao and a host of other traditional tiki players for a perfect spring cocktail – aromatic, eye-pleasing and dry enough to be truly refreshing.
Once you’ve rounded up the liquor, it’s a snap to make. In a cocktail shaker filled with crushed ice, add 1 oz. Amaro Montenegro, ½ oz. Wray & Nephew Overproof Rum, ½ oz. Pierre Ferrand Dry Curaçao, ½ oz. John D. Taylor’s Velvet Falernum, ¾ oz. lime juice, 1 oz. pineapple juice and 2 dashes Angostura bitters. Shake for 20 seconds, pour in a highball glass and garnish with a lime wheel and an orchid to complete your own perfect tiki time machine.
