The Cruz Bay Crawl: 18 Degrees of Celebration

Last week I channel surfed into a program on rum drinks, and I was reminded of some intense mixological research I helped conduct in the Virgin Islands around 10 years ago. Our goal was to answer two questions commonly on the parched lips of visitors to St. John’s bustling little main port of Cruz Bay: 1) Where can I get a good drink? and, 2) How many bars are in this town, anyway?

Stacking a handful of official-looking survey forms on a clipboard, then-island residents Jim and Denise Gentile and I went to town shortly after lunch, with the goal of rating rum drinks in every watering hole within two blocks of the water. The only other criteria were that it had to have at least three barstools, and it had to be open when we arrived. Qualifying establishments would range from some of the best restaurants in the Virgin Islands to places where the main draw is ice cubes, so we leveled the field by giving all bartenders the same simple challenge: make us your best rum drink. How they defined “best” was up to them. It could be their most popular, their personal favorite, or some spectacular production. We would rate taste, presentation and atmosphere (how much fun it was to be there). Since some of the bars’ clientele routinely overflow onto the beaches and streets, plastic cups weren’t held against anyone’s presentation score.

Many of the 18 bars (coincidentally clumped on the latitude of 18°N) and bartenders have changed since then, so I won’t get into the places and personalities. On the other hand, the five winning concoctions, though not exotic by today's Food Network standards, are timeless.


BBC (Bailey’s Banana Colada)
For two BBCs, cover a couple scoops of ice in a blender with:
4 oz. light rum
4 oz. Bailey’s Irish Cream
4 oz. Coco Lopez
1 fresh banana

Blend until the blades slide into overdrive.


Mango Painkiller
2 oz. mango rum
Splash of Coco Lopez
3 oz. pineapple juice
3 oz. orange juice

Shake with ice, top with nutmeg


Limin Coconut Martini
1-1/2 oz. coconut rum
1-1/2 oz. citrus rum
1/2 oz. Rose’s lime juice
1/2 oz. Coco Lopez

Shake with ice, strain, and garnish with a lime twist

 
Mango Mamba
2 oz. mango rum
2 oz. mango puree
Splash Rose’s lime juice
Splash dark rum
½ oz. simple syrup

Shake with ice and strain.


Bushwhacker
2 parts Bailey’s Irish Cream
1 part amaretto
1 part dark rum
1 part dark cacao liqueur
1 part coffee liqueur
1 part hazelnut liqueur
1 part Coco Lopez

Blend with ice until smooth, top with nutmeg

 
NOTE: The original list of winners included Teddy's Mojito, but by the time we returned for the recipes, the bartender and his formula had left the island.