Shingle Stain

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Cocktail History

The Shingle Stain is a classic tiki cocktail that was originally created by Victor Bergeron at his bar Trader Vic’s in San Francisco, California. The recipe first appeared in 1946 in Victor’s book Trader Vic’s Book of Food & Drink and, at the time, it was made with two types of rum, pomegranate, pimento dram, and citrus. Over the years, the list of ingredients evolved to include more fruit juices, but this version by David Kinsey at Kindred in San Diego, California harkens back to Trader Vic’s classic.

Cocktail Ingredients

To make this cocktail, you’ll need the following ingredients:

Dark Rum: This is a type of rum made with molasses or sugarcane juice, spices, and alcohol that has been barrel aged for a long period of time. We used J. Wray & Nephew Gold Jamaican Rum because it’s high quality yet still affordable, full flavored while still being lighter than other rums, and lends exotic spice flavors to the finish of the drink. For a mocktail version of this drink, try Caleño Non-Alcoholic Dark & Spicy Tropical Spirit in place of the dark rum.

Rhum Agricole: This is a type of rum made in the French Caribbean Islands that is distilled from freshly squeezed sugarcane juice. We used Clément Rhum Vieux Agricole VSOP because it has a distinct taste with notes of brown sugar and cocoa. For a mocktail version of this drink, try Caleño Non-Alcoholic Dark & Spicy Tropical Spirit in place of the rhum agricole.

Grenadine: This is a sweetener made with pomegranate juice and white sugar. We made ours at home using Alex’s stovetop recipe.

Lime Juice: This is the liquid juice of a lime. We used freshly squeezed lime juice.

Allspice Liqueur: This is a liqueur made with allspice berries, spices, sugar, and rum. We used St. Elizabeth’s Allspice Dram. For a mocktail version of this drink, try homemade allspice Demerara syrup in place of the allspice liqueur.

Aromatic Bitters: This is a food product made with botanicals, herbs, and alcohol. We used Angostura Aromatic Bitters. For a mocktail version of this drink, try All The Bitter Alcohol-Free Aromatic Bitters in place of the aromatic bitters.

Mint Sprig: This is an herb. We used Mojito mint.

Bartending Tools

To make this cocktail, you’ll need the following bar tools:

Jigger: This is used to measure and pour ingredients. We used the Japanese jigger from the A Bar Above 14-Piece Silver Bar Set.

Boston Shaker: This is used to shake ingredients. We used the Boston shaker from the A Bar Above 14-Piece Silver Bar Set.

Hawthorne Strainer: This is used to strain out ice and solid ingredients after the cocktail is shaken. We used the A Bar Above Hawthorne Strainer.

Paring Knife: This is used to cut citrus into slices or wheels. We used the OXO Good Grips 3.5 Inch Paring Knife.

Juicer: This is used to juice citrus. We used the ALEEHAI Manual Fruit Juicer.

Tasting Notes

The Shingle Stain features aromas of cool mint and bitter pomegranate and has a sip that starts with the sweetness of grenadine balanced with lime tartness and a funky rum note, and it all goes down accompanied by the various spice notes from the pimento dram and bitters and leaves grenadine’s bright flavor and the overripe fruit note of rum on the tongue.

Our Opinion of This Cocktail Recipe: Despite essentially being a souped-up Daiquiri with a different sweetener and more spices, the Shingle Stain is a delightfully complex combination. We were both huge fans of it for its simple yet effective recipe and exotic flavors!

Alex’s Take: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
“This drink was surprisingly good even though it’s fairy simple for a tiki drink. The substitution of grenadine and the addition of allspice dram and bitters made the recipe slightly more complex while still allowing it to go down easily. I really enjoyed the taste of the drink, but I do wish that it went a bit further. I could’ve finished this in four sips if I hadn’t been careful.”

Kendall’s Take: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
“This is another fascinating tiki drink made with a pretty interesting mix of ingredients. I didn’t know what to expect when I saw allspice dram, pomegranate, and rum mixed together, but they make a delightful and slightly tart pairing that nods to beachy themes but not as much as other tiki concoctions do. And as far as those tiki drinks go, it’s also very easy to make since it doesn’t have a long list of necessities. I will be requesting this one again!”

Recipe

This cocktail recipe was adapted from Easy Tiki: A Modern Revival with 60 Recipes by Chloe Frechette.

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More Tiki Cocktails

If you like this tiki-inspired cocktail recipe, here are a few others we’ve tried that you may enjoy: