I have had this at several places recently (Hale Pele, Trader Vic’s Tokyo, Trader Sams), and it was finally when I had the Trader Sams version that I realized that this one is making a comeback as a popular rum drink. Incidentally, the drink is called the Safari Swizzle at Trader Sams if you ever try to look it up. Anyway, I again came across this drink at a, sadly, temporarily closed new restaurant at Mandalay Bay called Libertine Social. They in fact had a bunch of different swizzles, including this one. Hopefully I’ll be able to try them out if they ever open back up. The sign out front said reopening 11/30/17 but we’ll see.

So again what makes this drink fun is the method you use to make it properly. It will result in a nice thick frost on the outside of your Collins glass. The best presentation usually includes a cocktail napkin bib to keep your hands from freezing. Okay, enough of all that – On to the Recipe!

I admit it takes a while to get the right amount of frost going on the glass, but spend the time, it makes the drink that much better to enjoy!

Queens Park Swizzle ala Badgersan

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This had to be a pretty powerful and deadly beverage, but as with my favorite drinks, I wanted it to have a mix of good flavors in there. This shouldn’t be a simple concoction, because helloooo, the Fett is not simple. I played with mixing a couple different beverages – the Cobra Fang and a Zombie. The Cobra Fang on its own is a lethal concoction that has only 151 overproof rum as its base with very little to cut it into something a little softer. I took some of the spicy and gentle citrus and cinnamon flavors out of the Zombie and crossed it with this guy. This turned into a really tasty homage to our favorite assassin for hire.

Beware with this guy though. I’d give him 5 on the potency scale. Here’s the recipe:

What this now makes is a lethal and tasty combination that definitely has a bite but just a little sweetness and aroma that takes a bit of the edge off. But look at this drink! So fun… but beware!

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So, the Zombie is the grandaddy of all tiki drinks. They typically have no less than 3oz of rum in them, usually a mix of different types; Most places will limit you to only having two of them, because yeah that whole over 3oz of rum each thing – and one of them will be a 151 overproof – yipes!

This is in my top five favorite tiki drinks. But boy is it powerful so be careful and show it some respect. It’s no wonder this drink got it’s name after Don The Beachcomber made one for a friend of his (or maybe three) before the friend went on a trip. When the friend returned he noted that he felt like a Zombie for the days after because of it!

Here’s the recipe that I use:

Some things to note:
What’s Falernum? Well, it’s the magic tiki elixir that is found in many of the best drinks – you’ll recognize it’s familiar smell if you have ever had a tiki drink. I have three different Falernums that I cycle through and they are all  similar but, for example, one is a little more boozy than the others – the particular one I use for this recipe has a more pronounced smell.

What is Don’s Mix? It’s one of Donn Beach’s secret ingredients which turned out to be a syrup made of grapefruit and cinnamon. I buy it pre-made.

Finally, the Overproof rum: The big thing that we all (tiki aficionados) wish we had was the ever elusive Lemon Hart 151 Demerara Rum, which is what this drink should really be using for it’s Overproof rum. While the lemon hart name looks like it was bought up by someone and it seems like they are ramping up production, I don’t know of anyone who has seen it come out to the greater U.S. yet – so in the meantime, a rum enthusiast has made their own and it’s pretty great (that’s the Hamilton Ministry of Rum brand).

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