Shhh,it’s a secret…

‘Don’s Mix’ is a secret ingredient used in many Tiki drinks. That is,it used to be a secret until it was unearthed by Jeff “Beachbum” Berry. Donn Beach used to encode all his recipes to prevent rivals from stealing them,so for the longest time no-one knew what his drink and syrup recipes actually contained. Beachbum played Tiki archaeologist and was able to discover that Don’s Mix was a two-to-one ratio of white grapefruit juice and cinnamon syrup. Because of this,many classic Tiki drinks can be properly made as intended. It also features in many modern recipes. White grapefruit can be a bit hard to find,so I’ve used regular red grapefruit and think it tastes just fine. I’ve used Don’s Mix to make classic Zombies,and here are three modern Tiki drinks that feature it.

Mix #184 Arkham Kula

1.5oz Plantation Xaymaca rum
1/2oz Plantation OFTD rum
3/4oz lime juice
3/4oz orange juice
3/4oz Don’s Mix
1/2oz honey syrup
1/2oz passionfruit syrup

Shake or blend with ice and pour into zombie glass.

From the book Minimalist Tiki and created by Jason Alexander,this is a sweet drink with a bit of cinnamon burn to finish. The OFTD gives it a bit of kick. A nice classic-styled Tiki drink.

Mix #185 Commando Life

2oz Plantation Stiggins’ pineapple rum
1oz Don’s Mix
3/4oz Giffard Banane Du Bresil liqueur
3/4oz lime juice
1/2oz passionfruit syrup

Shake with plenty of ice and pour into snifter.

Another Jason Alexander creation from Minimalist Tiki(this guy knows how to make a drink) it’s sweet with a banana/cinnamon finish. A nice summer-y drink.

Mix #186 Muertito Vivo

1.5oz aged(8yrs+) dark rum
1/2oz 151 Demerara rum
3/4oz Jagermeister
3/4oz Don’s Mix
3/4oz lime juice

Shake with ice and pour into mug.

From the book,Tiki: Modern Tropical Cocktails,I decided to try it after reading a posting on Facebook. It turned out to be super tart and very Jager forward. I wound up adding Demerara syrup to finish it. If you like sour and licorice,give this a try,but one-and-done is plenty for me.

So remember the secret formula to add to your Tiki drinks. Don’t worry,I won’t tell(rule #2).

Don’s Mix = 2:1 white grapefruit juice to cinnamon syrup