Rum

Mutiny

Name: Mutiny
Yield: 1 servings

Glass: Snifter

The Mai-Kai's dark-and-tropical hybrid, coffee, passion fruit, and three rums under a frothy blend.

rum tiki tropical mid-century coffee passion-fruit blended

Ingredients

Herbsaint (0.25 tsp)
falernum (1 tbsp)
chilled brewed Colombian coffee (1 oz)
fresh orange juice (1 oz)
fresh lime juice (1.5 oz)
fresh grapefruit juice (1 oz)
rich honey mix (0.5 oz)
passion fruit syrup (0.75 oz)
Angostura bitters (2 dash)
Pernod (3 drop)
light Puerto Rican rum (1 oz)
gold Puerto Rican rum (1 oz)
dark Jamaican rum (2 oz)
crushed ice (2 cup)
mint sprig (1)

The authentic Mai-Kai recipe is a closely guarded secret; this is The Atomic Grog's reconstruction informed by Beachbum Berry's research and Mariano Licudine's documented technique.¹ The drink combines the dark/coffee profile of the Mai-Kai's Black Magic with the tropical sour profile of the Barrel O' Rum, leaning on three rums and chilled coffee for backbone. "Mariano's Mix #7" is itself a reconstruction (Herbsaint plus falernum) standing in for one of Licudine's house mixes.²

Brand recommendations. Best: Don Q Cristal for the light Puerto Rican, Don Q Añejo for the gold Puerto Rican, Smith & Cross or Hamilton Jamaican Pot Still Black for the dark Jamaican; Herbsaint Original; Velvet Falernum or homemade falernum; B.G. Reynolds passion fruit syrup; freshly brewed Colombian coffee. Economical: Bacardi Superior, Bacardi Gold, and Coruba or Myers's for the rums; Pernod for the absinthe note; Fee Brothers Falernum (per the spec) or John D. Taylor's Velvet Falernum; Liber & Co. passion fruit syrup; supermarket Colombian drip coffee.

Instructions

Prepare Mariano's Mix 7 in advance by combining Herbsaint with falernum (Fee Brothers preferred).
In a blender combine chilled brewed Colombian coffee, fresh orange juice, fresh lime juice, fresh grapefruit juice, rich honey mix (2:1 honey to water), passion fruit syrup, Angostura bitters, Pernod, the prepared Mariano's Mix 7, light Puerto Rican rum, gold Puerto Rican rum, and dark Jamaican rum.
Add up to crushed ice and blend for at least 8 seconds, until frothy.
Pour into a large snifter or goblet with additional crushed ice to fill.
Garnish with a mint sprig.

Sources

Hurricane Hayward, "Mai-Kai cocktail review: The Mutiny is a worthy foe in the battle of the tropical titans." The Atomic Grog. https://www.slammie.com/atomicgrog/blog/2012/04/13/mai-kai-cocktail-review-the-mutiny-is-a-worthy-foe-in-the-battle-of-the-tropical-titans/ (accessed 2026-05-03), tribute reconstruction (Version 3.0, 2021); the source for this file's measurement bill. Atomic Grog dates Licudine's likely creation to the 1970s, blending Black Magic and Barrel O' Rum elements. ↩
Berry, Sippin' Safari (2017 ed.), Mai-Kai chapter, Berry's Licudine research underlying the Atomic Grog spec; Mariano's Mix #7 (Herbsaint + Fee Brothers falernum) is documented as a reconstructed stand-in for a lost house mix. ↩