$1400 Mai Tai

[Troy]

Wow. That's about all I can say.

http://www.forbes.com/forbeslife/wine/2007/04/05/cocktail-expensive-decadent-forbeslife-cx_pl_0406cocktail.html

http://images.forbes.com/media/lifestyle/2007/04/09/1_0409wine.jpg

[anguswinchester]

So I thought I would post on this one as I have some involvement with the concept.

I used to run some training for Appleton Rum in the UK and was always bugging them to consider re-issuing a 17 year old rum in order to make an Original Mai Tai a al Trader Vic... they had a 21 year old so my theory went they must have a 17 year...

But they always said no until one day a few years ago I got a call from Appleton to say would I like to make a Mai Tai at the London Bar Show? They would bring me a present...

So lo and behold if Joy Spence, Master Blender, does not roll up with a dusty and unlabbeled bottle of Trader Vic Special Selection 17 year old Wray and Nephew! They had apparently found some of it bottled in the head offices/warehouses and thought of me! Bless them.

Having tasted it I can see why they could not reproduce it... it is heavy red colour with an intensely smokey taste... not unlike a scotch. It made a truly heavenly Mai Tai and has spoiled me for them ever since. Since that I have read that many Islands have changed their 'styles' of rum to compete in the international market and Jamaica changed it's around the 50's with more Continuous Still distillate being produced...

Now my chum Sean Muldoon managed to get his hands on a bottle of it tho by this stage they were now saying it was valued at 10,000 pounds a bottle and so he put it in a Mai Tai for 750 pounds and managed to sell 3 of them, thus officialy being the World's Most Expensive Cocktail!

In an addendum I recently did an event for Appleton here in Canada and they used the 3 bottles they had 20 let me make 40 of them to the original recipe Sean uses... except that i used crushed ice rather than the (double frozen) block ice Sean does... they say the Toronto Star are putting their piece out on it tomorrow so will repost then if it appears...

fyi... the recipe for Sean's (directly from his post which also refers to the picture posted) is:

40mls Wray & Nephew 17yr (or "Trader Vics Blend" as it says on the
label)
20mls DeKuyper Orange Curacao
25mls fresh lime juice
10mls French orgeat syrup
5mls Monin Bon-bon syrup (are still awaiting
arrival of Fee Bros Rock Candy syrup from the States)

Served in a rocks glass with a block of ice, garnished with a spent
lime wedge and mint sprig tip (picture enclosed).

*This drink in this picture is made using Appleton Extra.The Bon Bon
syrup is what gives the drink it's particular colour in the photograph
...but the real drink is much more brownish in colour than this one.

mmmai tai!

aw

[Troy]

Very cool story. I would love to try one.

[IPBmac]

We're into our second bottle of 17 Year Old at the IPBartenders office. Stunning, priceless and irreplaceable product.


www.rumfest.co.uk

www.ipbartenders.com

[Edward Hamilton]

With all the effort to make the original mai tai, I hope the bartender is using the DeKuyper Orange Curacao from Europe which although it has changed in the last 50 years, is undoubtedly more authentic than the product now being bottled in the US under the KeKuyper name.

[anguswinchester]

So I am glad that IPBartenders are here as they can maybe help with the 'mystery' of the 17 year...

I got the first bottle at the 2005 BarShow (amybe it was 2004.. I can't totally remember).

It was 75% alcohol. and I was told it was one of only 6.

Merchants Hotel were also told theirs was one of 6 and hence the pricing.

Now for the Canada event I had 3 bottles, plus the 5 I know about makes 8 and now IPB say they have a second so that makes 9 but now at 60%...

I fear we are being misled in some way... Paul, as WIRSPA and Appleton people, whats the score?

aw

[IPBmac]

A,

Not sure we've been mislead - this is the story we've always been told.

We understood there were 12 bottles found in the inventory. The excess spill over from an old order.

6 were originally given to the UK - Glen Hooper, You, IPB, Ian Burrell, 200ml given to Trader Vic and the remains of that bottle kept at W&N UK, and the one that accidentally found it's way to the Merchant Hotel.

Ben Reed was also given one seperately by Joy making 7.

Your mammoth Canadian round eliminated 3 more so there should be 2 back in JA - although I'm pretty sure that Dre Redleffsen of Elements 8 has one too.

Where did you get this 60%; from though, mate? All the bottles we've seen are 77.2%

Paul

[anguswinchester]

trying something new here...


from the label mate...

aw

[IPBmac]

Maybe you have the '17yr Lite'

3

[anguswinchester]

maybe I do but it does throw the whole story into some doubt does it not?

12 bottles? But nopt all of them the same...

aw

[aryan-rastafarian]

ok, so here my take on the whole thing...

back in my days with Appleton i remember Angus mentioning the 17YO and how wicked it would be to get his hands on some. I gave it some thought and contacted Joy before I went home to Jamaica one X-mas, asking her if there is any chance of getting my hands on a few - a couple actually - bottles. she came back to me and said that she found some stock collecting dust and that I should pass by her blending hall while back on the rock...

so I did, and I got the 2 bottles that I asked for - 1 I kept, and still have it, no ABV statement on in but i was told 77.6%, labeled as 'Trader Vic's Personal Selection' - and the other I (think) i donated to NHRC. Realizing the 'buzz' that it created I asked joy if there was any more 17YO lying around, because if so, I would definitely like to get my hands on some more - and she told me there were 6 more, which were all brought to the UK around 2004/2005 - cant remember exactly. hey, i drink rum..!

I therefor must agree with Angus - It seems a bit dubious to me that new bottles are continually creeping up everywhere, and I hope it doesnt destroy the authenticity of the original 8 bottles that were found. that would be a real shame. i have not done any counting as to who has what, where, when, how and why as the bottles were handed over when I left Appleton UK and worked for the European office, but I do know that the original 8 bottles were brought in to the UK - at first 2 and then an additional 6.

Hope this sheds some light on the issue. I may just go ahead and 'kill' my bottle soon and when I do I will invite you all over for what may be the last batch of true Trader Vic Mai Tai's..

a-r

[aryan-rastafarian]

Quickly wanted to add that I of course do not know all the rum stores that W&N have in Jamaica, so there could well be more 17YO lying around.

In no way did or do I mean to discredit Joy - who is an amazing person & I consider a good friend, a master blender par none and a person of the highest integrity - but I also know that marketing departments sometimes get carried away, and like I said, just wanted to see if I can help shed some light on the issue. but the discrepancies in ABV's does raise some questions..

[anguswinchester]

My Canadian Appleton says that they cut our bottles to 60% but interestingly says that this does not affect the total number of bottles in the world (huh?)

But this is getting hinky... I did not know that Andreas has one so that makes

1 for me
2 for IPB
1 for Merchants Hotel
1 for Ian Burrell
1 for Glen Hooper
1 for Trader Vic London /James Robinson
1 for Andreas
3 in Canada...

hum...

aw

[The Rum Ambassador]

What about the one that we (Angus, Ben Reed Glen Hooper and myself) used at the Soho Hotel for that press afternoon with Joy ? Or was that one of the bottles that ended up at IPB ?

[anguswinchester]

this from Jamaica

"The reason for the difference in strength between the UK and the Canadian stock and the stock for our private collection is that the courier companies (DHL FEDEX etc.) are not allowed to carry spirits at a strength higher than 60% so we had to reduce the rum from the barrel strength to 60% in order to ship it to Canada (and at the time we reduced all the liquid that we had left so the 3 remaining bottles are also at 60%). The Trader Vics Rum that was sent to the UK was sent in a sea shipment, where they do not have the 60% strength requirement, so we were able to send it out at the strength that it came out at barrel strength."

aw

[Squad 701]

this from Jamaica

"The reason for the difference in strength between the UK and the Canadian stock and the stock for our private collection is that the courier companies (DHL FEDEX etc.) are not allowed to carry spirits at a strength higher than 60% so we had to reduce the rum from the barrel strength to 60% in order to ship it to Canada (and at the time we reduced all the liquid that we had left so the 3 remaining bottles are also at 60%). The Trader Vics Rum that was sent to the UK was sent in a sea shipment, where they do not have the 60% strength requirement, so we were able to send it out at the strength that it came out at barrel strength."

aw

Hi all,
Can anyone tell me what the original strength of the 17 YO was ???
I'm guessing it weighed in at about 40+,
If so how can an original TVs 'Mai Tai' be recreated with a sample of 77% rum ?
Cheers.

[Edward Hamilton]

To the best of my knowledge the original 17 year old Appleton rum was bottled at 77%ABV.

[Squad 701]

To the best of my knowledge the original 17 year old Appleton rum was bottled at 77%ABV.

So the original TV 'Mai Tai' had 2 ounces of 77% rum in it - wow,
that seem's fairly hefty for the average punter,
just as well it ran out after a couple of years :-)
Cheers.

[leisure master]

Holy crap!

This stuff is everywhere - I just found one under my bed!

http://i214.photobucket.com/albums/cc114/desmojo/piesmiley.gif