Trader Tiki’s Exotic Syrups was the theme this last Thursday Drink Night – a new line of syrups from CSOWG’s own Blair Reynolds AKA Trader Tiki.  Perfect for those too lazy to make their own orgeat, vanilla syrup, Don’s Mix (grapefruit and cinnamon) and cinnamon syrup but too picky to use the other commercial varieties.  The prize for best drink is a case of Trader Tiki’s Exotic Syrups, a glorious pufferfish lamp, and an 8×11 picture of beautiful desert landscape signed by Trader Tiki himself!

Check out the recipes then vote! (Poll below recipes)

Lagoon of Aitutaki: 2 oz aged agricole rhum, 3/4 oz pineapple juice, 3/4 oz grapefruit juice, 1/2 oz lime juice, 1/4 oz Trader Tiki orgeat, 1/4 oz Trader Tiki Don´s Mix

Wandering Italian: 1 oz pisco, 1 oz lemon juice, 3/4 oz Combier, 1/2 oz sloe gin, 1/3 oz Trader Tiki Don’s Mix, 3 dashes Angostura, 1t Carpano Antica float.

Frost Arrow’s Quiver: 2 oz spiced rum (Kraken), 1 oz LH151, 1 oz lime, 3/4 oz Trader Tiki vanilla, 1 dash Angostura, 2 oz ginger beer.

Cupid’s Day Off: 2 oz añejo tequila, 3/4 oz Campari, 1/2 oz kirschwasser, 1/4 oz vanilla syrup, 1/2 oz hibiscus grenadine, 1/2 oz pink grapefruit juice, shake, serve over crushed ice, float crema de mezcal.

Smoke Gets In Your Mai Tai: 1 1/2 oz mezcal, 3/4 oz Royal Combier, 1/2 oz lemon juice, 2 tsp Trader Tiki orgeat. Shake, serve up.

Ali Raja: 1 1/2 oz aged Trinidad rum, 3/4 oz Don’s Mix, 1/2 oz Demerara rum, 1/2 oz Smith&Cross rum, 1/2 oz Orange curacao, 1/4 oz grapefruit juice, 2d Whiskey Barrel Aged bitters, 4 drops Herbsaint, swizzle all with crushed ice and float 1/2 oz tawny port.

Lift-off!: 1/2 oz orange juice, 1/2 oz lime juice, 1 1/2 oz dark rum, 1/2 oz 151 Demerara rum, 1/2 oz cinnamon syrup, 1/4 oz falernum, 1d Angostura. Shake w/crushed ice-serve in double old-fashioned glass.

Sherwin’s Punch: 1 oz Calvados, 1 oz Appleton Extra, 3/4 lemon juice, 1/2 Grand Marnier, 1/2 oz Don’s Mix, 3-4 dashes mole bitters,  3-4 dashes Angostura. Shake w/ coarse crushed ice, strain into double old-fashioned glass over coarse crushed ice, orange wheel garnish.

TraderTiki’s Witch Hazel: 1 1/2 oz Laird’s Bonded applejack, 1 oz Zacapa rum, 1/2 oz Strega, 1/2 oz Trader Tiki cinnamon syrup, 1/2 oz lime juice, 2d Angostura, shaken/strained.

Voltron: 1 1/2 oz rye whiskey, 1/2 oz grenadine, 3/4 oz orange juice, 1/4 oz Don’s Mix. Shake and double strain into a pastis rinsed cocktail glass.

There is a syrup i like to make sometimes, its made with ancho chile. The ancho chile is a dried blackish/reddish brown chile. Flat and wrinkled, it looks almost like a big flat raisin in a way. Its actually a poblano that is dried, then its called ancho. It’s a not very hot to medium hot chili – the scoville units is 1000-1500.

This is the sweetest of the dried chiles originating from Mexico.The word ancho means “wide” in Spanish. Fresh poblanos are also sold under the name pasilla to confuse it a bit more. This chile is often mixed up with the darker and sweeter mulato chile – another variety of the dried poblano with hints of chocolate, cherry and tobacco in its flavour profile.

Ancho chile is great in soups and stews and in syrup.The ancho chile syrup has a sweet slightly hot, earthy and musky flavour and naturally pairs well with agave spirits. Its wonderful with mezcal for instance.

To such a chile i think a dark sugar is very fitting and last time i made this syrup i used raw light brown sugar 2:1 to water and a pinch of molasses.

ANCHO CHILI SYRUP

1 large dried ancho chili
1 cup light raw sugar
pinch of molasses
0.5 cup water

What you need to make one bottle of syrup is one large ancho chile to 0.5 cup water and 1 cup sugar. Bing to boil and boil lightly for about 10 minutes to get the flavours out of the dried chili, taste it and adjust the cooking time. Strain out the seeds when you think its hot enough.

Then take off the heat and leave to cool. Strain and bottle.

Syrup cooling in the window.