Tiki Death Punch

Tiki drinks are known for having great names, names that tell a story and make you want to order that drink – even if you don’t know all of the secret ingredients that have gone into it. Give us a drink with a fun, funny or creative name and we’ll show you a drink that we’re going to order.

We had a lot of fun creating this Tiki Death Punch. You’re not going to find the name in too many tiki books, but thanks to an episode of Friends, it’s a drink that more people might be familiar with than a Fog Cutter or a Navy Grog. The punch showed up in an episode where Monica, Rachel and Phoebe were getting together for a sleepover. Monica made a blended drink and called it the Tiki Death Punch. When Rachel asked what was in it, Monica responded “rum…”, but didn’t have a chance to list any more ingredients before it was slurped down through a straw straight out of the blender jar.

Now. This is not that drink. But we couldn’t resist taking on the inspiring name of this fictional beverage and turning it into an awesome party drink. This is the kind of punch that will sneak up on you do some damage if you’re not careful. And if that’s not the description of a Tiki Death Punch, then we don’t know what is.

The punch uses a blend of white rum, overproof rum, bourbon and gin – and they all blend surprisingly well together to create a base that has a good rum foundation, a little vanilla and some refreshing herbaciousness. Once you add in the Giffard Pamplemousse, orgeat, lime and simple syrup, everything blends beautifully and all you’ll be able to taste is how delicious the mix is. We topped the drink with a couple of Luxardo cherries and let the syrup drip down into the drink, both for a touch of cherry flavor and for a few drips of “blood” to give the drink a suitably spooky look. We’ve included notes about the brands that we used in the recipe below, but as this is a punch, feel free to play around with the brands to use what you have on hand or to try some new flavor combinations.

Tiki Death Punch
1/2 oz overproof rum (we used Lemom Hart 151)
1/2 oz bourbon (we used 4 Roses)
1/2 oz white rum (we used Cana Brava)
1/2 oz gin (we used 209)
1/2 oz Giffard Pamplemousse
1/4 oz Giffard orgeat
3/4 oz lime
3/4 oz simple
mint + 2 Luxardo cherries, for garnish.

Combine all ingredients in a mixing glass or shaker, fill with ice and shake vigorously until cold. Strain into a poco grande glass filled with crushed ice. Garnish with mint and two cherries, letting a barspoon full of syrup drip into the drink.