We’ll never reveal Mai-Kai’s mysterious recipes. But here are the amazing cocktails our fans have created with Rum No. 1. See how close you can come to our recipes, or invent your own classic.
By Chris Stromberg
Chrisstromberg2002@msn.comOf Denver, CO, United States
Recipe
- 1 1/2 oz Mai-Kai Rum NO 1
- 3/4 oz Merlot
- 1 1/2 oz Pineapple juice
- 1/2 oz Fresh lime juice
- 1/2 oz Demerara syrup,
- 1–2 dashes Angostura bitters
- Ice: Crushed Ice
- Glass: Tiki
- Preparation: Shaken
- Special instruction: Flash Blend in a Hamilton Beach for 5-8 Seconds.
- Garnish: Pineapple wedge, mint sprig, and a cocktail umbrella
Description
The Trashy Pigeon is what happens when the Jungle Bird falls out of the canopy and starts living behind the bar. The classic Jungle Bird is a suave, jet-setting tropical cocktail—born in the 1970s, usually made with blackstrap or dark rum, Campari, pineapple, and lime. It’s the elegant, slightly bitter cousin of tiki drinks: feathers brushed, passport stamped, always Instagram-ready. It soars through the palm trees, balanced and refined. The Trashy Pigeon, on the other hand, is that bird’s chaotic urban relative. Same bloodline—rum, pineapple, lime, demerara—but somewhere along the way, the bitter Campari got swapped for a half-abandoned glass of Merlot. Suddenly the drink shifts: darker, moodier, a little fruity and rough around the edges. It’s less “resort pool bar” and more “back alley behind the tiki joint where the staff smoke on break.” Where the Jungle Bird glides gracefully over the jungle canopy, the Trashy Pigeon is down on the pavement, strutting through spilled beer, stealing garnishes, and somehow still looking proud. The Merlot gives it this bruised-fruit, slightly wine-stained attitude—like the Jungle Bird went out too late, made some questionable decisions, and woke up with a story. So if the Jungle Bird is the polished, vacation version of you… The Trashy Pigeon is the version that stays out for “just one more,” befriends the bartender, and ends the night with pineapple on your shirt and zero regrets.