D&C Pina Colada

One of the funny things about taking a break from blogging is how hard it is to get back into the swing of things. It’s not that there hasn’t been any blogging going on – and there has still been plenty of drinking, recipe-development and photography – but just that sometimes you need to take a break to finally check some offline items off the to-do list. Those items included a bathroom renovation and taxes this time around. But we’re back with an easy recipe, a twist on the Pina Colada from Death & Company.

The Death & Co. cocktail, like many of the cocktails in their book, calls for an unusual ingredient. In this case, it is Kalani Ron de Coco liqueur, a coconut liqueur that can be a bit hard to find. After making the drink a few times, we settled on the less-sweet Clement Mahina Coco liqueur as a substitute that was more readily available (to us, anyway). We stuck with a blend of three rums, albeit slightly different from the rums suggested (we opted for Plantation over El Dorado since we’re a bit better stocked on the former, and kept the funky Smith and Cross), and added generous dashes of Angostua for a little spice. The D&C Pina Colada ends up being a fun variation on the blended drink that you can easily make on a whim without pulling out the blender.

D&C Pina Colada
1 oz Smith and Cross Rum
1/2 oz Plantation OFTD overproof rum
1/2 oz Plantation Stiggins Fancy pineapple rum
1/4 oz Clement Mahina Coco liqueur
1 oz pineapple juice
1/2 oz fresh lime juice
3/4 oz Coco Lopez
2-3 dashes Angostura bitters

In a mixing glass, combine all ingredients. Stir to dissolve the Coco Lopez before filling the shaker with ice. Shake vigorously until well-chilled, then strain into a double rocks glass (or a coconut mug) filled with crushed ice. Garnish with a handful of mint or pineapple fronds.