Kayahara.ca

With summer now in full swing, I decided to whip up another batch of passion fruit syrup. While I could never truly tire of Hurricanes, sometimes I’m in the mood for something other than rum. Fortunately, my husband – a confirmed rum-lover – has recently discovered the merits of bourbon as well. I’m thrilled that […]

In a Canadian winter, it’s sometimes fun to mix up a tropical concoction to briefly ease the pain of these dark, snowy months. Few things transport you from white snowdrifts to white sandy beaches as quickly as a glass filled with fruit juice and rum. And sometimes the name even fits the condition, as is […]

So far, all the cocktail syrups I’ve discussed in my Summer Syrup Series have come from the classic bartending tradition. Today’s, however, is drawn from an altogether different branch of the mixological family tree: Tiki drinks. The Tiki tradition calls on a wide array of different syrups, from plain old simple syrup to orgeat to […]

Is it possible for a blue drink to be good? People in some quarters spend a lot of time debating what, exactly, constitutes a craft cocktail. There’s lots of debate, but I’m sure most would agree that any drink that’s blue probably doesn’t qualify. But, as Jeff “Beachbum” Berry points out in his book, Beachbum […]

When I first became interested in craft cocktails, orgeat was one of the first syrups on my “to buy” list. (Actually, the very first time I heard about it was when watching Amélie, in which one of the customers orders a Mauresque.) Strangely, though, I had never made it myself until recently. Originally made from […]

With the weather being so unusually warm this spring, I’ve been drinking a lot of rum cocktails lately. Among rum drinks, none are tastier or more complicated than the family known as faux-Polynesian, or “Tiki,” drinks. And among Tiki drinks, none packs a bigger punch than the Zombie. Originally devised by Don the Beachcomber in […]