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Today is National Piña Colada Day. Naturally it makes sense to focus on the Colada for this installment of "Properly Sauced." Originally, the piña colada was nothing more than ripe pineapple juice, either strained (colada) or unstrained (sin colar). Visitors to Pilsen's Fiesta del Sol sample it in this version annually. According to Wikipedia, the earliest known reference to the piña colada as a rum-based cocktail was in a Travel magazine article about Cuba from 1922:
"(T)he juice of a perfectly ripe pineapple—a delicious drink in itself—rapidly shaken up with ice, sugar, lime and Bacardi rum in delicate proportions. What could be more luscious, more mellow and more fragrant?"
Accounts vary as to when coconut cream entered the equation, but it most likely started in Puerto Rico. The most popular colada recipe to take hold came from a San Juan restaurant called Barrachina and its celebrated bartender Ramon Portas Mingot. Mingot mixed pineapple juice, rum, crushed ice, coconut cream and condensed milk in a blender.
Our personal recipe (which we perfected at HotHouse over the years) replaces the condensed milk with heavy cream. We've found that the addition of heavy cream helps the cocktail maintain its consistency as the ice melts and slows dilution of the drink. White rum is essential; we highly recommend picking up a bottle of J. Wray & Nephew Jamaican Overproof rum or Ron Matusalem from the Dominican Republic. Wray & Nephew is the best white rum for mixing cocktails around, while Ron Matusalem white rum is the closest we've come in the States to approximating the flavor of real Havana Club.
Chuck's Piña Colada
- 3 ounces white rum
- 3 tablespoons pineapple puree (or 2 ounces pineapple juice)
- 3 tablespoons cream of coconut
- 1/2 ounce heavy cream
- crushed ice (about 2 ounces)
Place all ingredients in a blender. Mix until thickened. Pour into a cocktail glass of your choice. Screw the umbrella and do NOT play any Jimmy Buffet while imbibing.
You can replace the white rum with dark, if you wish. Dark rum, however, tends to add a spicier element to the mix. If you aren't a rum drinker, replace with vodka and you have a chi-chi on your hands.
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dammit, dammit, dammit. this sounds sooooo good. why must you torture me so, Sudo??
btw, can you recommend a rum for people who don't know if they like rum or not?
Shannon: In lieu of Bacardi, for a starter white rum I would recommend Ron Rico or Barbancourt. The white rum versions of those (particularly the Barbancourt) have a bite from the sugar cane that could take some acclimatizing. But I've always found the best thing to do is to jump into the deep end of the pool headfirst.
Of the two I listed in the post, Ron Matusalem is the most accessible. It's very smooth and has a clean flavor that I find appeals to vodka drinkers. Last I checked, it's part of the Skyy/Campari portfolio, which is known for spirits of unassumingly good quality. The Matusalem rum line is one of their sleepers.
Nice -- the cream is the secret ingredient that really brings it all together. I usually use an extra splash but not too much cause the drink is heavy enough as it is.
Kick ass, Chuck.
Wow, that looks like it would really hit the spot. I may have to run out and pick some stuff up, the glory of working from home.
I ate at Barrachina a couple of years ago and was extremely disappointed to see the pina colada premixed in a Bunn Ultra machine instead of being made by hand by the bartender. The machine didn't look all that clean, either.
Chuck, thanks! now if only i still lived across the street from Binny's... *sniff*
Great, now I have Rupert Holmes stuck in my brain.
DAMN YOU, SUDO!!
I have not had a pina colada in years. YEARS!!!!
But this is just tempting me....I can either finish that leftover bottle of wine tonight or dash to Binny's and get some ingredients.
The frugal part of me is leaning towards the old wine. I mean, if I don't drink it tonight then I will toss it tomorrow....but the part of me that hasn't had a pina colada in years is telling me
to make that Binny's run and frugality be damned.
And I am just so thirsty now. One should never go into a Binny's while thirsty. What to do? What to do?
Ingrid: I've been giving advice to friends and foes alike for the better part of a week on everything from gluten-free beer to where to take someone on a first date.
In that spirit, use the wine for cooking a nice reduction and buy the fixings for a piña colada.
Prescott: I inoculated myself from Rupert Holmes this morning by listening to Patty Griffin. I've been singing "Mil Besos" in Spanish throughout the office all day. That's the Faustian bargain I had to make in order to write this.
Just got back from the store with all the fixins. I'm going to make some chicken and shrimp fajitas to go along with the fine tropical drink. Not Puerto Rican, but I had everything I needed for the fajitas and don't feel like busting out anything new tonight,.
I think I'll just go to Zack's.
Chuck, you seem like a man who knows his rums. What's your opinion of these whities?
-- Tommy Bahama White Sand
-- Rubi Rey
-- Cruzan Light
-- Myers Platinum
Thanks!