 |
Best Blender |
CheekyGirl
Grand Member (6 years) 
Joined: May 21, 2003
Posts: 975
From: Like Oh My Gawd..San Fernando Valley
|  Posted: 2008-01-18 6:17 pm
Yummy rock candy swizzle sticks -- can't have a Navy Grog without one!
I love my Oster Osterizer blender, one switch, easy, strong, gets the job done.
$50 at the Swap Meet.
Although I prefer to shake, I know it's blasphemy, but I loved a blended Marqarita every now and then in the summer.
|
bigbrotiki
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Mar 25, 2002
Posts: 7827
From: Tiki Island, above the Silverlake
| Posted: 2008-01-19 12:54 am
There we hear it: Blenders are GO for the Margarita lovers! 
I did ask the two Mikes (in person), AND the Bum (via the telephone), and here are the verdicts:
Mike Sr.: "The blenders are stronger and make the ice too slushy, the mixers are more gentle and give the ice the perfect consistency" (he conceded that that might be a function of the TIME spent blending) and "We would not get the same frothy texture that our drinks always had"
Mike Jr. agreed and added to that: "Top mixers are the best way for OUR style of cocktails. I guess it is a matter of preference"
Here is Jr. getting two Lapu Lapus ready on his double Hamilton Beach mixer. Hmm they were goood!
The Tiki Ti was in Tiki folks hands tonight, it was great: Bora Boris, JP Ballack, Tiki Kate, Miles Thompson, Conga Mike, Squid, Humu, Big Tiki Dude....and more!
As I thought, the reasons for the Bum not insisting on the top mixer were complex, one being that he felt it was too much to ask to get the old ones, he feels the new remakes are too flimsy. The PROS are that it aerates the cocktail more, and makes it frothier. But then he shared his observation that at any of the Trader Vic's he had been to, including the Beverly Hills one, he had only seen BLENDERS being used. -And those cocktails were some of the best I ever had! So it seems that it is part of the mixologist's personal style. Tony Ramos of Don The Beachcomber and Madame Wu's only used Hamilton Beach mixers.
Here is a little urban archeology: The big Hamilton Beach at the back bar station at the Chin Tiki, Detroit:
....the top mixer, soon another outdated relic.
|
uncle trav
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Apr 27, 2005
Posts: 1193
From: Kalamazoo
| Posted: 2008-01-19 06:43 am
That top mixer at the Chin Tiki looks like some thing from War Of The Worlds. I see the old top mixers for sale now and then in my travels. I may have to give one a test drive. Thanks for all the great info. Good thread.
_________________
"Anyone who has ever seen them is thereafter haunted as if by a feverish dream" Karl Woermann
|
DJ HawaiianShirt
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Feb 04, 2006
Posts: 143
From: NoVA, DC
| Posted: 2008-01-19 06:48 am
So now let me ask a question that could only be answered here on these boards. And please, I'd like to have at least several opinions.
Is there any "slushie" drink that a tiki snob accepts? A follow-up to that, I guess, would be: Are any of the vintage recipes supposed to be slushie in consistency?
_________________
Spirited Remix - cocktails and spirits blog
http://spiritedremix.blogspot.com
|
GatorRob
Grand Member (4 years) 
Joined: Aug 20, 2004
Posts: 1604
From: FL
| Posted: 2008-01-19 08:37 am
Quote:
|
On 2008-01-18 16:08, Little fragrant Tiare wrote:
The red drink..what is it?
|
|
Don't get too excited. That's a Shirley Temple for my daughter. Dad is in front, wife is on the left, son is in the back left and daughter is in the back right. My kids get exposed to a LOT of great tiki.
|
Little fragrant Tiare
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Oct 12, 2007
Posts: 139
From: Sweden
| Posted: 2008-01-19 08:58 am
Ah...nice kiddie cocktail! but the parents Mai Tais looks very tasty too..(are both Mai Tais?)
I love those TVs Mai Tai glasses, i have been to the web page to see if i could order one (very pricey..)but they don`t seem to ship out of the States..
I also wanted to try their Rock Candy syrup just to make a comparaison to my home made stuff.
[ This Message was edited by: Little fragrant Tiare 2008-01-19 09:01 ]
|
Chip and Andy
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Jul 13, 2004
Posts: 1860
From: Corner table, Molokai Lounge, Mai-Kai.
| Posted: 2008-01-19 09:34 am
Quote:
|
On 2008-01-19 06:48, DJ HawaiianShirt wrote:
...Is there any "slushie" drink that a tiki snob accepts? A follow-up to that, I guess, would be: Are any of the vintage recipes supposed to be slushie in consistency? |
|
For me? Lots.....
Derby Daiquiri come to mind first. Not originally a Slushy drink, but if you order one from the Mai-Kai now that is what you get and it is very tasty!
Coconauts are slushy and very tasty.
Pina Colada's, while not a tiki drink, are very slushy and tasty when done well.
There are more, but this is a good start for the conversation....
|
GatorRob
Grand Member (4 years)
Joined: Aug 20, 2004
Posts: 1604
From: FL
| Posted: 2008-01-19 10:31 am
If you trust the Don the Beachcomber book (Hawai'i Tropical Rums Drinks), many of the recipes in there are of the frozen (i.e., slushy) variety.
I thought of the Derby Daiquiri too, but wasn't sure if that technically qualified as a frozen drink.
Here's Mariano Licudine's invention in all its vintage glory and served in the appropriate glassware:
|
TraderPeg
Tiki Centralite
Joined: Aug 10, 2006
Posts: 84
From: Gulf Coast of Florida
| Posted: 2008-01-20 12:52 pm
I have to agree with C&A that the Coconaut is a slushy drink with much to recommend it -- tasty, simple and really cold on a hot day.
I'd also like to reflect that what we Tikiphiles resent about the Margarita, if I've got it right, is not this venerable cocktail, but the brilliant green, blue, pink frozen variations and the Buffettization of what was once the territory of a darker exotica.
A good Margarita is a wonderful thing. It has to be made with decent tequila, Cointreau and fresh lime and it has to be shaken and strained. If you haven't had one this way, you haven't had one. The frozen thingies in the TGI Fridays are not Margaritas.
As for blenders, mine is a Waring Pro basic black bartender's blender with two settings, high and low. It has out-blended every kitchen model I've ever owned and the ones I had weren't cheap. I got the Waring new on eBay for about $70. I also use a hand-cranked IKEA Groggy ice crusher to crush the ice first if that's what the Bum says to do; he's mixed and drank a lot more Tiki drinks than I have and I defer to his experience and adherence to quality.
I also defer to the guys behind the bar at the Mai Kai as to provenance. Their drinks are similar in consistency to what I get when I follow the instructions of the Bum and the Trader. So no, I don't think we're drinking any devolved, heathen version of the original Tiki texture because we have left the top mixer behind. But that's just my opinion.
[ This Message was edited by: TraderPeg 2008-01-20 15:22 ]
|
Tikimonkey is now Tiki Trader
Deleted
Joined: Feb 22, 2005
Posts: 0 | Posted: 2008-01-21 09:51 am
After watching over this thread for a bit, I decided I had to see if there was a difference for my own self.
I picked up a Hamilton Beach DRINKMASTER Number Thirty with the 4-fold Aerator, with the Jade base, that was used in a restaurant here in Portland that closed down many many years ago.
I'll be throwing together some cocktails throughout the week for experimentation, and putting up results on my site and here.
_________________
TraderTiki.com
Cocktails, Slinging Booze, original drinks, and Tiki
|
Bongo Bungalow
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Aug 20, 2007
Posts: 883
From: Indiana
| Posted: 2008-01-21 11:48 am
Quote:
|
On 2008-01-20 12:52, TraderPeg wrote:
A good Margarita is a wonderful thing. It has to be made with decent tequila, Cointreau and fresh lime and it has to be shaken and strained. If you haven't had one this way, you haven't had one. The frozen thingies in the TGI Fridays are not Margaritas.
[ This Message was edited by: TraderPeg 2008-01-20 15:22 ]
|
|
A bit off-topic:
Couldn't agree more. As some know, I am part-owner and operate some Mexican-themed restaurants in the midwest and while we have wonderful frozen margaritas, (and sell a hell of a lot of them), we also offer fabulous made from scratch margs we call Arriba Margaritas. They're made to order with fresh lime juice, simple sugar, Cointreau or Grand Marinier and your favorite premium tequila. Guests choose from a list of 25 tequilas including personal favorites such as Patron, Cabo Wabo, and Paradiso.
Over the course of 2008, I'll be introducing made from scratch, premium tropical drinks at our restaurants, including the Mai Tai and Zombie. IT'S GONNA BE A GREAT YEAR!
A bit on-topic:
I picked up the Breville blender over the week-end. Really great on ice and everything I've thrown in it so far. Got so much to learn. (Looks and acts more refined than the commercial blenders IMO) Haven't picked up a Hamilton top mixer, but I'll get one of those too.
|
thejab
Grand Member (first year) 
Joined: Mar 25, 2002
Posts: 2960
From: Forbidden Island, CA
| Posted: 2008-01-21 1:30 pm
Interesting topic.
I use a Ice-o-Mat hand crank ice crusher for cracked ice (for cocktail shaker drinks), and in the other direction for finer ice (when the recipe calls for crushed ice as in Sippin' Safari). However, I don't think it makes good crushed ice (like they use in the best tiki bars) because the pieces vary in size. Wen I blend Sippin' Safari tropical drinks for a few seconds in my Waring Blendor single speed like this one:
using the exact quantity of ice called for and briefly blended, there are just some larger chunks of ice left, and the rest of the ice disappears. I am inclined to believe a top mixer would be more effective as it wouldn't pulverize the ice as much, thus diluting the drink less. But I have not compared both methods.
Someone send me a top mixer and I'll do some testing. 
|
thejab
Grand Member (first year)
Joined: Mar 25, 2002
Posts: 2960
From: Forbidden Island, CA
| Posted: 2008-01-21 1:30 pm
Interesting topic.
I use a Ice-o-Mat hand crank ice crusher for cracked ice (for cocktail shaker drinks), and in the other direction for finer ice (when the recipe calls for crushed ice as in Sippin' Safari). However, I don't think it makes good crushed ice (like they use in the best tiki bars) because the pieces vary in size. Wen I blend Sippin' Safari tropical drinks for a few seconds in my Waring Blendor single speed like this one:
using the exact quantity of ice called for and briefly blended, there are just some larger chunks of ice left, and the rest of the ice disappears. I am inclined to believe a top mixer would be more effective as it wouldn't pulverize the ice as much, thus diluting the drink less. But I have not compared both methods.
Someone send me a top mixer and I'll do some testing.
|
bigbrotiki
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Mar 25, 2002
Posts: 7827
From: Tiki Island, above the Silverlake
| Posted: 2008-01-21 5:16 pm
I am looking forward to the results of the Blender/Top mixer comparison tests!
I like a good Margarita (or two, or three) as much as the next guy. I was not dissing them, just reminding people that they are an indicator of the time line of Tiki ending, and the rise of the Margarita coinciding with the rise of the MACHINES!!!.. RUN!...THEY WILL DESTROY US ALL...! ...err, sorry, I mean blenders. (Terminator is on tonight. Tiki Test: WHERE was John Connor conceived?)
I really have no idea if the mixer yields more authentic results than the blender, I just get suspicious when classic Tiki tools are nonchalantly cast aside and not mentioned anywhere...no one was recommending one here.
All this might not ever yield conclusive results, I just wanted to raise a cautious call of "Remember the Mixer!"
|
Tikimonkey is now Tiki Trader
Deleted
Joined: Feb 22, 2005
Posts: 0 | Posted: 2008-01-21 7:00 pm
Okay, just finished round one. Admittedly, this is a very preliminary round, as I'm playing around with different cuts of ice as well (fine vs. coarse, machine vs. crank vs. hammer in a burlap sack, etc).
The Drink: Navy Grog
The Ice: Fine, Machine-grind
Technique 5-second count blend/mix
The Machines...
Blender: Oster Osterizer, Contemporary Classic Beehive Blender
Mixer: Hamilton Beach Number Thirty Drinkmaster, mfg. 1927
Initial results:
Use of the machine ground fine ice was a bit of a mistake, as the drinks were a touch watery, with a only about 1/4 of the glass containing ice in the served cocktail.
At first sip, the drinks were fairly similar, except for a bit of large bubbling on the top of the mixer-made drink. The visuals of the drink are noticeably different, in that the mixer made drink is slightly less transparent, and the ice has a more natural iceberg shape, with variations in the ice-chunk size. The blender made drink is more of a solid band around the top of the drink.
After 10 minutes or so, the drinks were becoming different. The blender made drink was a bit colder, with smaller condensation droplets, and seemed to be lasting in its initial flavors longer, not succumbing to the melting ice. For test two, I'll need to bring down a thermometer for more concrete data.
At the end of the drinks... well, 9 ounces of rum into a test (had to try out the mixer first... for fun), and see how well you fare. I'll have to make something different, and with a coarser cut of ice tomorrow evening. I'm considering Zombies. Any TCers in the Portland Area who want a free drink (tips welcome, encouraged, and graciously returned with a fancier garnish) send me a PM for an invite and directions.
So far, I'm concluding that the Drinkmaster has some superior connotations for a few reasons. The first, being that it gets hand-hurtingly cold, like a good Ramos Fizz, within SECONDS. The second being that instead of the specialized fitting and cleaning of the glass bottom-blender, even a standard shaker can be used in the Drinkmaster. It is also quieter, and if you can get the triple-capacity model (as at the Chin-Tiki), just looks damned cool behind the bar. The blender doesn't seem to be any bit more sluggish, I just have the natural fear that the difference of one second of the ice in those sharp blades can turn a Mai Tai into a blended drink within seconds (though, seriously, shake your Mai Tais).
I took pictures, which will be on the site soon, after tonight's recovery.
_________________
TraderTiki.com
Cocktails, Slinging Booze, original drinks, and Tiki
|
|
