Naked Ape
Recipe:
- 45ml black blended rum (Gosling's here)
- 15ml pot still lightly aged rum (S&C here)
- 15ml Giffard Banane du Brésil banana liqueur
- 15ml SC cinnamon syrup
- 15ml fresh lemon juice
- 1 dash Angostura bitters
Add all the ingredients to a drink mixer tin. Fill with 12 ounces of crushed ice and 4 to 6 "agitator" cubes. Flash blend and open pour with gated finish into a tiki mug or double old fashioned glass.
Created in honor of the San Francisco exotica band Ape and for one of their rare concerts at the legendary Smuggler's Cove.
It's just a really nice, absolutely typical “banana tiki” drink. Nowadays, or for my preferences, it just lacks a bit of a contrasting note. Not because it's too sweet, simply because rum + banana, that's it, ok, seen that a lot. Well-balanced, also good for introducing people to tiki, nicely wedged between black rum with its licorice and coffee notes and a bit of funk.
In the original recipe, it has no decoration, because it was served in a (very cool) mug in the shape of a monkey's head that was virtually closed at the top except for the straw hole. With an open tiki mug, I would at least add a little cinnamon and banana chips/slices or similar.
Source: Martin Cate, Smuggler's Cove, p. 134
