wayward mariner

1 1/2 oz Islay Scotch (Laphroaig 10 Year)
1/2 oz Oloroso Sherry (Lustau)
3/4 oz Lime Juice
1/2 oz Don's Spices #2 (1/4 oz each Vanilla Syrup + Hamilton's Allspice Dram)
1/2 oz Pineapple Syrup

Shake with ice, strain into an old fashioned glass with ice (large cube), and garnish with a mint sprig and a pineapple wedge (mint only). Two Fridays ago, I returned to the Kindred Cocktails database to make the Wayward Mariner by New York City bartender Rafa Garcia Febles in 2015. The serving style was vague, and since it was late and I was more in the mood for something a bit more somber, I went with a big ice cube serving instead of crushed or cubed ice. Overall, the combination reminded me of the Crooked Kilt that the Accomplice Bar served me at a pop-up last Fall where they split the Scotch with sherry in NoMad's creation to work better with the pineapple and lime. Moreover, the combination of pineapple syrup with Don's Spices #2 was one that I utilized in a Jet Pilot riff, the Nuku Hiva. Here, the Wayward Mariner set off with a mint, peat smoke, lime, and allspice aroma. Next, lime and grape notes on the sip sailed into smoky Scotch, nutty sherry, pineapple, and allspice flavors on the swallow.

pineapple peat

1 1/2 oz Great King Street Glasgow Blend (Ardmore Traditional Cask)
1 oz Pineapple Juice
3/4 oz Martelletti Dry Vermouth (Noilly Prat)
1/2 oz Lemon Juice
1/2 oz Pineapple Syrup

Whip shake with crushed ice, pour into a bucket glass, and top with crushed ice. Two Tuesdays ago, I returned to the online recipe flashcards for the Liholiho Yacht Club in San Francisco that I last utilized in November with the Spice Oddity. Here, the Pineapple Peat called out to me and made me think of a Scotch Algonquin – a drink that I made a lot the summer of 2007 of rye, pineapple juice, and dry vermouth. The citrus aspect was something that I saw in the dry vermouthless Far East Algonquin by Ryan Fitzgerald of San Francisco's Beretta at a Tales of the Cocktail 2011 happy hour, but here, the pineapple aspect is amplified. As for a timeframe, Yelp has photos of the drink at the Liholiho Yacht Club as early as 2015, and a 2015 blog post has a photo and specifies the Scotch. It is unclear if it was named after a Pineapple Pete character: the two most famous ones, a Fortnight outfit and Six Flags mascot, came after 2015, but there are some instances like the restaurant in St. Marten that came before that. In the glass, the Pineapple Peat came forth with a peat and pineapple aroma true to its name. Next, lemon, malt, and pineapple notes on the sip switched into smoky Scotch, herbal, and pineapple flavors on the swallow.

no. 39

1 1/2 oz Cognac (Courvoisier VS)
3/4 oz Pineapple Syrup
3/4 oz Lime Juice
1/2 oz Green Chartreuse

Shake with ice and strain into a coupe glass. Serving it in an old fashioned glass on crushed ice was recommended to provide a drier experience (here, served up). Two Tuesdays prior, I looked through the recipes from the Kindred Cocktails database that I had bookmarked and landed on the No. 39. The recipe was crafted by New York City bartender Rafa Garcia Febles in 2013, and the name reminded me of the menu convention at the old Hungry Mother in Cambridge, Massachusetts, with drinks like No. 64 and No. 43. The recipe itself made me think of a lime and pineapple syrup riff on the lemon, simple syrup, and Angostura Bitters Champs Élysées though. Once prepared, the No. 39 donated a pineapple and herbaceous bouquet to the nose. Next, a lime-driven sip set up Cognac, herbaceous, and pineapple flavors on the swallow.

the king's shilling

1 oz Bourbon (Evan Williams Bonded)
1 oz Aged Rum (Doorly's 12 Year)
1/4 oz Coffee Liqueur (Borghetti)
1/4 oz Pineapple Syrup
2 dash Aromatic Bitters (Angostura)

Stir with ice, strain into an old fashioned glass with ice, and garnish with an orange twist and pineapple frond (omit the latter). Two Wednesday ago, I received my copy of the Let's Do Drinks book by Elliott Clark who runs the Apartment Bartender account on Instagram. There, I selected the King's Shilling by Sean Traynor, now a bar owner in Phoenix, when he was at a bar called Counter Intuitive. Overall, the recipe reminds me of Shore Leave's Dawn of Hospitality that took the coffee-pineapple syrup concept in a Sazerac direction. In the glass, the King's Shilling served up an orange, caramel, and roast bouquet to the senses. Next, pineapple and roast notes on the sip shuffled into Bourbon, rum, coffee, tropical fruit, and allspice flavors on the swallow.

testarossa collins

1 1/2 oz Rhum Barbancourt Blanc (110°)
1/4 oz Fernet Branca
1/2 oz Ginger Syrup 2:1 (1/2 oz Ginger Syrup 1:1 + 1/4 oz Simple Syrup)
3/4 oz Lime Juice
3/4 oz Pineapple Juice

Shake with ice, strain into a Collins glass with 1 oz soda water, fill with ice, and garnish with a pineapple wedge (lime wheel). Two Wednesdays ago, I reached for my copy of the Cuban Cocktails: 100 Classic and Modern Drinks book from the Cienfuegos crew of Alla Lapushchik, Jane Danger, and Ravi DeRossi, and I happened on the Testarossa Collins by Tom Chadwick of Cienfuegos and Dram Bar. The book claims that Tom was inspired by the French house musician Kavinsky who crashed his Ferrari Testarossa in 1986 and then "mysteriously came back to life as a Zombie" with the Fernet representing the Italian sports car. Wikipedia declares that "The concept behind OutRun [Kavinsky's 2013 debut album named after a video game featuring a Ferrari] follows Kavinsky's backstory of a young man who crashed his Testarossa in 1986 and reappeared in 2006 as a zombie who produces electronic music." Overall, the recipe read like a rum and soda instead of completely Fernet-driven Cure for Immorality, so it seemed worthy of a go. In the glass, the Testarossa Collins opened up with a lime, grassy rhum funk, and ginger aroma. Next, a carbonated lime and pineapple sip drove into grassy rum, ginger, and menthol flavors on the swallow.

ned king's gem

1 oz Pierre Ferrand 1840 Cognac (Courvoisier VS)
1 oz Appleton Signature Rum (Appleton 8 Year)
3/4 oz Lime Juice
1/2 oz Pineapple Syrup 2:1 (3/4 oz 1:1)
1 dash Angostura Bitters

Shake with ice, strain into a Nick & Nora (coupe) glass, and garnish with freshly grated cinnamon. When we were in Easthampton a few weeks ago, we visited Lauren Clarke's store, Tip Top Wine Shop. Lauren used to run the seminal DrinkBoston blog from 2006 to 2014 that captured the players. places, and some of the recipes of the Boston cocktail renaissance in parallel (but with an earlier head start) with this blog. During our visit, she recommended a few nearby cocktail bars; however, we had an intinerary of breweries and a restaurant to visit and did not make it out for mixed drinks. One of those bars was Gigantic in Easthampton, and I found their recipe for Ned King's Gem in a 2022 Punch article. His riff on William Schmidt's The Gem from the 1891 The Flowing Bowl Book added bitters, removed the lemon slice garnish, changed the rum origin from Santa Cruz (Virgin Islands) to Jamaica, and replaced the sugar with the pineapple syrup to all pineapple syrup to modernize the classic. Once prepared, Ned King's Gem proffered cinnamon, barrel-aged, and vaguely fruity aromas to the nose. Next, lime and pineapple notes on the sip revealed rum, Cognac, tropical, clove, and allspice flavors on the swallow.

washington cocktail

50% Gin (1 1/2 oz Ford's)
50% Sherry (1 1/2 oz Lustau Manzanilla)
1 bsp Pineapple Syrup (1/4 oz)

Stir with ice, strain into a coupe, and garnish with an orange twist. Two Mondays ago, I spotted the Washington Cocktail in the 1936 Italian book 1000 Misture that referenced Adolphe Torelli's 1927 book 900 Recettes de Cocktails et Boissons Américanes. The combination of gin, sherry, and pineapple syrup reminded me of the dry vermouth for sherry Madame Lou from Boothby's 1934 World Drinks and How to Mix Them that inspired me to create the Diamond Queen for Tales of the Cocktail's Martini-themed competition in 2017. Here, the Washington Cocktail donated orange, pine, almond, and pineapple aromas to the nose. Next, a crisp wine sip with a hint of pineapple sweetness flowed into juniper, almond, and pineapple flavors on the swallow.

the capricorn

1 1/2 oz Aged Dark Rum (Planteray Original Dark)
1/2 oz Batavia Arrack (von Oosten)
3/4 oz Lime Juice
1/2 oz Falernum (Velvet)
1/2 oz Pineapple Syrup

Shake with ice, strain into a cocktail coupe, and garnish with lime oil (lime twist). Two Tuesdays ago, I reached for The Madrusan Cocktail Companion and spied an Erick Castro recipe that I had never made before – namely, the Capricorn that he created at Rickhouse in San Francisco circa 2009. It was reminescent of the Wray of Light with Jamaican rum instead of the dark rum and Batavia Arrack here, and with Becherovka as the clove source instead of falernum, it reminded me of Hop, Skip, and Jump. Once prepared, the Capricorn galloped to the nose with floral pineapple-lime melding into Batavia Arrack funk aromas. Next, lime with a hint of pineapple on the sip ushered in dark rum, Batavia Arrack's earthy funk, pineapple, and clove flavors on the swallow.

tuxedo no. 3

2 oz Probitas Rum (1 3/4 oz Hamilton's White 'Shache + 1/4 oz Wray & Nephew)
1/2 oz Dolin Dry Vermouth
1/4 oz Lazzaroni Maraschino Liqueur (Maraska)
1 tsp Pineapple Oleo Saccharum (Pineapple Syrup)
21 drop Chartreuse Elixir Vegetal
3 drop Salt Solution

Stir with ice and strain into a coupe. Two Mondays ago, my Instagram friend Darren Marks posted a recipe called the Tuxedo No. 3 that he created in 2025. It is also what he made for writer Robert Simonson when Robert visited Ruby's Lagoon Bar, Darren's home bar in Kansas City. Darren took the gin and absinthe of the Tuxedo No. 2 and replaced it with rum and Elixir Vegetal, and he added pineapple oleo akin to the Velvet Tuxedo No. 2 adding sloe gin. Once prepared, the Tuxedo No. 3 addressed the senses with a cherry and white rum with a hint of funk aroma. Next, white wine with a touch of pineapple and cherry on the sip opened up into rum with a little Jamaican funk, nutty cherry, pineapple, and herbaceous flavors on the swallow.

spice oddity

2 oz Cognac (Courvoisier VS)
1/2 oz Pineapple Juice
1/2 oz Lemon Juice
1/2 oz Allspice Dram (Hamilton)
1/2 oz Pineapple Syrup

Shake with ice and strain into a coupe glass. Two Wednesdays ago, I was looking through an online recipe flashcard set from the Liholiho Yacht Club in San Francisco and found the David Bowie pun of a drink called the Spice Oddity. I was able to get an approximate date through Yelp menu photos from December 2018 to March 2019 and a photo of the cocktail on Instagram from early 2019. The combination of pineapple juice and pineapple syrup was utilized before in the Swamp Water Fix and the Pineapple Margarita, and Cognac and allspice have appeared plenty including classics like None But the Brave and modern ones like Decadence & Elegance. Therefore, I set to work, and the end result generated a pineapple and allspice aroma. Next, pineapple and lemon on the sip drifted into Cognac, pineapple, and allspice flavors on the swallow.

caracara

1 oz Sazerac Rye
1 oz Jung & Wulff Trinidad Rum (Raising Glasses 8 Year Cask Strength)
1/2 oz Pineapple Syrup
4 dash Peychaud's Bitters

Stir with ice, strain into an old fashioned glass rinsed with Herbsaint, and garnish with a lemon twist. Two Saturdays ago, I had spotted an interesting recipe called the Caracara from the A Quick Drink book in my Instagram feed, and I noticed that it was one of the recipes that I had written on my bookmark that I never got around to making. The drink was created by Kitty Corbo for the dealer's choice round of Speedrack 2019 as a Sazerac riff. Indeed, there have been a few pineapple syrup-sweetened Sazerac variations that I have tried including the Bounty, Harbourmaster, and Dawn of Hospitality, so I was curious to try this one. In the glass, the Caracara gave forth a lemon and anise bouquet like a good Sazerac will. Next, a semi-sweet sip with hints of tropical notes on the sip opened up into rye, dark rum, pineapple, cherry, and anise flavors on the swallow.

wray of light

1 1/2 oz Wray & Nnephew Overproof White Rum
3/4 oz Lime Juice
1/2 oz Pineapple Syrup
1/2 oz Falernum (Velvet)

Shake with ice, strain into rocks glass with ice, and garnish with a mint sprig (lime wheel with mint tips). Another of the pineapple syrup recipes that I had saved up was the Wray of Light by New York City bartender Rafa Garcia Febles in 2014 via the KindredCocktails database. Rafa described how he was inspired by Beachbum Berry's Hart of Darkness, and it reminded me of a Jamaican rum for mezcal version of the Pineapple Death Squad. Moreover, it seemed like an interesting companion piece to the Death Daiquiri from a few days before that had a more complex robust and darker rum base in place of some spice intrigue from the falernum here. Shaken and strained, the Wray of Light set upon mint, lime, and pineapple aromas. Next, lime and pineapple notes on the sip were eclipsed by funky rum, lime, and clove flavors on the swallow.

the parakeet

2 oz Privateer Rum (Privateer Tres Aromatique)
1/2 oz Aperol
1/2 oz Pineapple Syrup
1/2 oz Lime Juice
1/2 oz Grapefruit Juice
1/4 oz Cinnamon Syrup
2 dash DeGroff's Pimento Bitters

Shake with ice, strain into a Collins glass (Tiki mug), fill with crushed ice, and garnish with a pineapple frond and grapefruit twist (grapefruit twist only). Two Saturdays prior, I delved back into the Eastern Standard pre-Pandemic bar bible and latched on to The Parakeet. Overall, it appeared like a Jungle Bird riff that calls for pineapple syrup instead of juice akin to the Mocking Bird, Unique Bird, and other variations but with a name that reminded me of the Lorikeet. Once assembled in the Tiki mug, The Parakeet soared to the nose with a grapefruit oil aroma. Next, lime, grapefruit, orange, and pineapple notes on the sip roosted upon rum, cinnamon, and allspice flavors on the swallow.

mother's medicine

1 1/2 oz Jack Daniel's Rye (Rittenhouse)
1/2 oz Cynar
3/4 oz Pineapple Syrup
3/4 oz Lemon Juice

Shake with ice, strain into an old fashioned glass, fill with crushed ice, and garnish with a mint sprig. Two Tuesdays, I was perusing my to-make list and spotted a recipe that I reserved for when I had more pineapple syrup – namely, the Mother's Medicine. The drink was created by Amber Carregal at Willa's in Tampa that she made for her dad, and it was posted on the Alcohol Professor site in an article about Father's Day cocktails. Pineapple syrup and Cynar have worked well together in the Surfing Valhalla, Tres Piñas, and other drinks, so I was eager to try a rye variation of that theme. In the glass, the Mother's Medicine began with mint over rye and lemon aromas. Next, lemon and caramel notes on the sip blossomed into rye, bitter herbal, and pineapple flavors on the swallow.

harbourmaster

2 oz Appleton Reserve Rum (Appleton Signature)
1/2 oz Pineapple Syrup
1/4 oz Velvet Falernum
1 dash Fee's Black Walnut Bitters (3 dash Strongwater Mountain Elixirs Walnut)
1 dash Angostura Orange Bitters

Stir with ice and strain into an old fashioned glass rinsed with St. Elizabeth Allspice Dram (Hamilton's Allspice Dram). Two Sundays ago, I finished processing a batch of pineapple syrup from the pineapple half left over from my competition, and I sought out a use. From the pre-Pandemic Eastern Standard bar bible, I latched on to the Harbourmaster that had a curious Sazerac-like build to it. It had the pineapple syrup-falernum of the Pineapple Death Squad, and that in a trio with allspice dram like the Tiger's Tale and Colonial Bastard. Moreover, I have seen the allspice dram rinse in a number of recipes such as the Harvard Yard #2, Heart of Stone, and The Keenan. Once prepared, the Harbourmaster welcomed the senses with an allspice aroma. Next, a pineapple-driven sip flowed into rum, pineapple, walnut, clove and allspice flavors on the swallow. Overall, it was a touch sweet but a tasty combination.

tiger's tale

1 1/2 oz Sazerac Rye
3/4 oz Lemon Juice
1/2 oz Pineapple Syrup
1/2 oz Falernum
1/4 oz Allspice Dram

Shake with ice and strain into a coupe glass. Garnish with lemon oil from a twist and dehydrated orange dust (orange twist).Two week ago, I flew down to Atlanta to attend the USBG national conference. On Tuesday, I opted to attend the Sazerac-sponsored event from the two that were offered on the schedule that evening, and it was at a woodsy lodge speakeasy called the Ranger Station up a staircase and above the Ladybird Grove & Mess Hall. For a first drink, I requested the Tiger's Tale that was attributed to San Diego bartender Gabe Fonseca as a riff of the 1937 Lion's Tail that was reminscent of the Tropical Lion's Tail given the pineapple syrup element. Perhaps the drink was named after the book by Colleen Houck or one of the movies by that name. In the glass, the Tiger's Tale lept to the nose with an orange oil bouquet. Next, pineapple and lemon notes on the sip were hunted down by whiskey, allspice, ginger, and clove flavors on the swallow.

surfing valhalla

1 1/2 oz Aquavit (Linie)
1 oz Lime Juice
3/4 oz Pineapple Syrup
1/2 oz Cynar

Shake with ice, strain to a coupe, and garnish with a lime wedge (omit the garnish; also it was not observed in a Yelp drink photo in 2018).Two Tuesdays ago, I returned to the online recipe flashcards for Rosewater in Houston and spotted their Surfing Valhalla that seemed intriguing. The restaurant's website describes it as "A sort of Nordic-inspired Daiquiri variation. We introduced this one in the Spring of 2017, and it's long been a favorite of the owner, but he's obsessed with aquavit and Genever." The obsession of aquavit and Genever reminded me of Vandaag in Manhattan which I had the chance to visit back in 2011. Once prepared, the Surfing Valhalla paddled out to the nose with caraway, lime, and herbal aromas. Next, lime and pineapple notes on the sip crested into caraway, grapefruit pith, and herbal flavors on the swallow.

ticonderoga club

1 1/2 oz Planteray Mister Fogg Navy Rum
1 oz Pierre Ferrand 1840 Cognac
1/2 oz Lustau East India Solera Sherry
1/2 oz Pineapple Syrup
1/2 oz Lemon Juice
Shake with ice, strain into a Julep cup, fill with crushed ice, and garnish with mint sprigs. Two Mondays ago, I attended the book launch event for The Bartender's Pantry at Equal Measure and sponsored by Pierre Ferrand. For a welcome drinks made by bar principle Liza Hoar and passed around by beverage director Jackson Cannon was the Ticonderoga Cup created by Paul Calvert at the Ticonderoga Club in Atlanta. The book itself does not contain this recipe but utilized the bar's pineapple syrup found within the book's pages. My guess is that book illustrator Bart Sasso who was in attendance and works at that bar suggested this one (the Cup sans recipe is mentioned in the syrup's description though). The presentation's side deck included the recipe as served to us; the recipes that I found online only specify the rum as English style, so Planteray's British Naval-style rum re-creation worked perfectly. However, in those sources, the sherry is listed as a drier Oloroso instead of the semi-sweet cream sherry that is an Eastern Standard/Equal Measure sherry house style. With the Oloroso, the recipe is akin to a rum and Cognac version of the American whiskey Izzy Bizzy Highball by Tom Bullock in his 1917 Ideal Bartender book.

tropical lion's tail

3/4 oz Bourbon (Evan Williams Bonded)
3/4 oz Lime Juice
1/2 oz Appletone Reserve Rum (Appleton Signature)
1/2 oz Pineapple Syrup
1/4 oz Smith & Cross Rum
1/4 oz Allspice Dram (Hamilton's)
1 dash Angostura Bitters

Shake with ice, strain into an old fashioned glass with a large ice cube, and garnish with a lime wheel.Two Sundays ago, I found a note on my phone to make the Tropical Lion's Tail from an October 2023 article in Imbibe Magazine. This riff of the 1937 classic Lion's Tail was crafted by Brandon Ristaino at Test Pilot in Santa Barbara. Along with the Junior, the Lion's Tail is one of the few classic American whiskey drinks paired with lime instead of lemon for it can often create a flavor clash as described by Donny Clutterbuck in his talk Life Gives You Limes. In those drinks, the Benedictine and rum-based allspice dram perhaps act like bridges between the new charred barrel flavors of Bourbon and rye, and I tried to soften things in this classic with a lemon-driven riff called the Lion's Share. Here, the Bourbon was split with rums which is a technique I previous experienced in the Lion's Fang which also took things in a Tiki direction with additional sweeteners like pineapple syrup here and falernum there. Once prepared, the Tropical Lion's Tail began with a lime, caramel, and allspice bouquet. Next, lime, pineapple, and caramel on the sip wagged its way into Bourbon, funky rums, pineapple, and allspice flavors on the swallow.

lock & load

1 oz Bols Genever (Bols Barrel-Aged)
1/2 oz Benedictine
1/2 oz Pineapple Gomme Syrup (Pineapple Syrup)
1/2 oz Lime Juice
1 dash Angostura Bitters

Shake with ice, strain into a Nick & Nora glass, and garnish with freshly grated nutmeg.Two Tuesdays prior, I revisited the online recipe flashcards for Teardrop Lounge in Portland, Oregon, and I selected the Lock & Load. Yelp has a mention of this drink as early as 2013, and a menu description read "earth & soft, with a tropical bounce." I have had Benedictine paired with pineapple syrup in the rum-based Rainmaker and the Cognac-sherry Burnished Brass, and I utilized it in The Phrasemaker after studying recipes of my #SecretSanté back in 2022. Once shaken and strained, the Lock & Load showcased a lime, pineapple, and woody spice bouquet. Next, lime and pineapple notes on the sip flowed into malty, herbal, pineapple, and allspice flavors on the swallow.