disgruntled mai tai

1 oz Smith & Cross Rum
1 oz Aperol
1 oz Lime Juice
1/2 oz Orgeat
1/2 oz Curaçao (Pierre Ferrand Dry)

Whip shake with crushed ice, pour into an old fashioned glass (Tiki mug), and top with crushed ice. Up end an opened 2/3 oz Underberg bottle and insert into the ice, and garnish with a mint sprig, grated nutmeg, a lime wedge (omit), and a paper umbrella. Punch has all 4 garnishes but the Bartender's Choice app lacks the umbrella and lime wedge (I garnished with Punch's list minus the lime wedge).After seeing a few Disgruntled Mai Tais on Instagram recently, I picked up a three pack of mini Underberg bottles at my local store and hunted out various sources of the recipe. I had previously only tinkered with Underberg in cocktails with the Red Light in Beta Cocktails, but this riff on the Bitter Mai Tai made it seem worth a revisit. While Punch attributed it to Sam Ross at Attaboy in Manhattan (most likely where he was when the article was published), the Bartender's Choice app offered up the creation while Sam was working at Las Vegas' Electric Cocktail Club in 2018. In the Tiki mug, the Disgruntled Mai Tai gave forth a minty and woody spice bouquet to the nose. Next, a creamy lime and orange sip gave way to funky rum, orange, bitter herbal, and almond flavors on the swallow. As the Underberg entered into the equation through the bottom of a straw, the balance became increasingly more caramel, licorice, and bitter herbal.