Making pitchers of some tropical drinks. Considering Bahama Mammas

Dark rum
Coconut rum
Orange juice
Pineapple juice
Grenadine.

Maybe pineapple margaritas?

Hurricanes?

Simpler the better. Am going to make in pitchers and pour over crushed ice.

I'm a fan of Jungle Birds. A bartender's choice punch is always popular.

Found it easiest to preslice and attach my garnishes for larger events.

Painkiller ftw

jcbaggie04 said:

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Painkiller ftw

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Oooh, like at Cheddars?? Great idea.

If you're making large batches I would stick with cocktails that are easy to make a large amount of. You might want to stay away from anything with lime, because you'll be squeezing a lot of them if you're making drinks by the pitcher. You can get fresh squeezed juices easily like orange, grapefruit, and pineapple...if you can find fresh squeezed lime juice at your local grocery store that would open up a huge number of options to you.

As already stated, the Painkiller would be a great one to go with.

Santa Cruz organic lime juice is really good for batch drinks.
https://images.albertsons-media.com/is/image/ABS/970028658?$ecom-pdp-mobile$&defaultImage=Not_Available&defaultImage=Not_Available

Mai-tai

For a punch you want a ratio of 2:1 mixer:booze. Else people will get wasted fast. Problem with a lot of tiki drinks is they 3-5oz and contain a min of 2oz of booze, so scaling up mai tai's etc...can be dangerous if people start pouring 6oz+ drinks. Trick around it to making the cocktails seem 'full' is to use the pebble ice from ChikfilA or Sonic, that wall a tall collins glass will be full at 6-7oz, yet only be 1/2 drink.

Squeezing limes is part of the tiki life, so get a juicer like this:

https://www.amazon.com/ZEYUAN-Squeezer-Professional-Kitchen-yellow%EF%BC%89/dp/B07SSYVGR4/ref=asc_df_B07SSYVGR4?tag=bingshoppinga-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=79989551467150&hvnetw=o&hvqmt=e&hvbmt=be&hvdev=c&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=&hvtargid=pla-4583589106301442&psc=1

Makes it go much faster and you can get through a lot of limes quickly. But lime juice does oxidize, so you need to press them day of, otherwise they'll just become bitter and lose their citrus qualities.

Make whatever your guests want. Add a cocktail umbrella and call it a day.

Pina coladas

Caprinha

I always make Caribbean Martinis by the pitcher. Everyone loves them, and they're easy and cheap to batch.

Makes 64oz pitcher:
32 oz Pineapple juice
13 oz Malibu coconut rum
13 oz vanilla vodka
6 oz grenadine

By the glass:
2 1/2 oz Pineapple juice
1 oz Malibu coconut rum
1 oz vanilla vodka
1/2 oz grenadine

ETA: I highly recommend Smirnoff vanilla vodka. Don't be tempted by Absolut vanilla. Smirnoff's is smoother.

Have you heard of the Bartesian?

2 oranges
2 limes
2 lemons

Slice all six, put in a freezer bag and toss in the freezer the day before

1 Frozen limeade
1 Frozen lemonade
I prefer MinuteMaid products. If you want color in your punch, you can buy pink lemonade.


1 Big bottle of Seagram's Lime Gin
2 Large bottles of Fresca - I use 1.5

Mix everything well before adding the fruit.

Red Solo Cups and and a bucket of ice. Take everyone's keys before serving.

Max Power said:

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If you're making large batches I would stick with cocktails that are easy to make a large amount of. You might want to stay away from anything with lime, because you'll be squeezing a lot of them if you're making drinks by the pitcher. You can get fresh squeezed juices easily like orange, grapefruit, and pineapple...if you can find fresh squeezed lime juice at your local grocery store that would open up a huge number of options to you.

As already stated, the Painkiller would be a great one to go with.

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Large batch is the answer. We do a Christmas party on our street and go from house to house with different appetizers and drinks at each house. I did about 1.5 gallons of a green punch and called it "grinch juice" put it on the counter in a fancy jug with a dispenser. We buy the small clear party type cups that don't hold much when you put ice in them. Everyone helped themselves and all the work was done before everyone got here. A couple of folks spent a good part of their time making individual drinks at their house and not hanging out.

Maybe put out two smaller batches with something different in each with a Tiki theme on or around the dispenser and you are good to go. Most tiki drinks are really sweet, so 2-4 per person is about all they want. I enjoy making drinks and cooking for people, but making drinks all night for a large group of friends while they party at your place is not my perfect evening. I know this because we made frozen drinks at one and I thought the machine was going to explode.

Punch is the answer. It's relatively easy to do, and as your guests drink and the ice melts, they're getting more water and less booze which will keep your house from looking like Jonestown in the morning.

To add on to this, here's Dave Wondrich's Rum Punch recipe. If you want to up the booze some, substitute a dry sparkling wine and a cup of water for the quart of water.

4 large lemons, peeled with little to no pith
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup strained lemon juice from the 4 lemons above
1 750ml bottle rum (use something funky like a Jamaican rum, white rum won't work for this)
1 quart of water (or 1 750ml bottle dry sparkling wine and 1 cup of water)
Lots of ice
Nutmeg

Add the lemon peels and sugar to a quart mason jar. Let it sit for 4-8 hours. Then add the lemon juice, and shake to dissolve the sugar. Dump the entire contents into your punch bowl, and add the rum, water (or sparkling wine and water), and the ice. Grate nutmeg over the top, and serve.