The Hurricane
Born in New Orleans in the 1940s out of a surplus of rum, the Hurricane SHOULD be a simple combination of citrus, passionfruit and rum (lots of rum), and it got its name from the signature ‘Hurricane’ glassware it was served in. Unfortunately it became jumbled up with bad tiki drinks, and is often served with at least 2 more ingredients than necessary. Let me show you how to make it in keeping with the original and I'm sure you'll agree, it's a drink worthy of another chance. Word of caution though, it is VERY boozy!
Ingredients
40ml (1 & 1/3oz) light rum
40ml (1 & 1/3oz) dark rum
30ml (1oz) passionfruit syrup*
30ml (1oz) fresh lemon juice (lemon juice was the original here, even though lime and rum are the obvious partners- I actually like the softer acid here, since the passionfruit is also providing some tang)
Orange wedge to garnish
Cherry to garnish
Cocktail umbrella to garnish (optional!)
Equipment
A jigger
Shaker tins
A Hurricane glass, or regular rocks or highball is fine (the only problem is that Hurricane glasses are usually HUGE- as was the original recipe which calls for 2 full shots of each rum i.e. a 4 shot cocktail. You’d have to enlarge this recipe by at least half if you want to fill your glass up and really make a night of it!)
Method
Add all of your ingredients to your shaker tins, fill with ice, and shake hard!
Pop your tins open and we’re just going to ‘shake and dump’ i.e. pour the entire contents of your shaker into the glass.
This will obviously leave little bits of passionfruit in there, which I enjoy, but if you don’t then double strain.
It is traditionally served on crushed ice, and I find the shake and dump method the easiest (laziest!) way to achieve a similar effect without a crushed ice machine, but of course if you have one (or just want to take out some frustration!) then go for it! Garnish – the cheesier the better – and enjoy.
*Passionfruit Syrup: Mix equal parts 1:1 sugar syrup and passionfruit pulp or purée. Leave to sit for at least two hours, preferably overnight, then strain (or not, if you like the crunchy seeds).
Suggested Spirits
Although the blending in this particular cocktail was more likely born from using up whatever rums were lying about, blending is a well-respected practice in tiki bartending to get the best from different styles of rum and achieve balance. Plantation make great rums for cocktails- interesting and bold enough to stand up and be the hero, but nice and smooth from further ageing in cognac barrels. We’ve used their spicy Original Dark for our dark rum and while we could have used their fruity 3 Star, we’ve gone for Pampero Blanco for our light rum.
