Formidable Dragon

The most common fruit juice used in cocktails. This citrus juice is about 6% acid; pure citric acid. Lemon juice should be used the day it is squeezed, some like it freshly squeezed and others like it a few hours old.

The second most common juice used in cocktails. This citrus juice is about 6% acid; 4% from citric and 2% from malic, with small amounts of succinic acid (this is what gives it a little bloody taste). Lime juice should be used the day it is squeezed, some like it freshly squeezed and others like it a few hours old.

A syrup produced by bees (apis). Pure honey is 82% sugar and very viscous, if you add 64g water to every 100g honey you can make a thinner honey syrup that will substitute (with respect to sweetness) for simple syrup in any recipe, equivalent to 1.1:1 honey to water by volume. We try to always use 1:1 syrups by mass. However, most sources measure honey syrups by volume, this tends to make comparing recipes across sources that use honey syrups complicated, we tried to state what the original source uses in the recipe text. If no extra information is given, assume the syrup to be 1:1 by volume (eq ~1.4:1 by mass). Proteins in natural honey provide structure to bubbles in shaken drinks.

A super thick and dark by-product made form refining sugar cane or sugar beets into sugar syrup. It is also a component of refined brown sugar. Molasses has a very distinct, almost pot-still like funk, that pairs well in rum-based tiki drinks.

An amaro made by the founders of Angostura bitters. This secret recipe is distilled in the West Indies and can be described as 'Christmas spice.' 35% ABV.

Lengthy aging (8+ years) lends some color and lots of flavor to the rum. Most often bottled as a blend of pot and column-distilled rums ('Blended' category). Varieties are available from all over the Carribean and the world.

These rich rums get their dark color from added caramel, not necessarily aging. Flavors are caramel and brown-sugar forward. Common examples are Meyers's and Coruba (Jamaican) or Gosling's Black Seal (Bermuda). A key ingredient in many classic tiki-era cocktails.

Produced and aged at the historic distilleries of Jamaica, these rums are highly regarded for their funky notes of tropical fruit. They are either comprised of a blend of pot and column-still rums (Appleton Estate) or a heavy 100% pot still rum (Smith & Cross, Hampden Estate, Worthy Park, and others).

Water into which carbon dioxide gas under pressure has been dissolved, creating a fizzy texture. We treat soda water, club soda, seltzer and sparkling water the same.

Aromatic plants used in cocktails as a garnish or muddled into the liquor to add a light fresh taste. Common in the Mint Julep.