I attempted to create my first Zombie based as near as possible on the original recipe of Don the Beachcomer (Donn Beach born Ernest Raymond Beaumont Gantt) from 1934 as figured out by Jeff Berry (Beachbum Berry). The recipe as quoted by the Beachbum:
| 1 ½ oz |
45 ml |
Gold or dark Jamaican Rum |
| 1 ½ oz |
45 ml |
Gold Puerto Rican Rum |
| 1 oz |
30 ml |
151-proof Lemon Hart Demerara Rum |
| ½ oz |
15 ml |
Falernum |
| ¾ oz |
22 ½ ml |
Fresh lime juice |
| 1 tsp |
5 ml |
Grenadine |
| 6 drops / 1/8 tsp |
|
Pernod or absinthe |
| 1 dash |
|
Angostura Bitters |
| ½ oz |
15 ml |
Don’s Mix
(2 parts grapefruit to 1 part cinnamon syrup) |
6 oz /
¾ cup |
180 ml |
Crushed ice |
Place in a blender, adding the ice last, and blend at high speed for no more than 5 seconds. Pour into a tall glass. Add ice cubes to fill. Garnish with a mint sprig.
Cinnamon syrup:
| 16 oz |
454 g |
Sugar |
| 8 oz |
226 g |
Water |
| 3 |
3 |
Cinnamon sticks |
Combine the sugar with water in a saucepan and then whisk over a medium heat until the sugar has dissolved. Add the cinnamon sticks (coarsely crushed). Simmer for 5 minutes, then cover and remove from heat. Let cool and strain into a bottle.
Unfortunately, I was not able to source Lemon Hart 151 Proof in Germany in February 2016 as it was out-of-stock at all the online suppliers that I frequent. Once it comes back in stock, I try a Zombie with it. Instead of the Lemon Hart, I used El Dorado Superior Overproof Demerara Rum 151. Not a dark rum like Lemon Hart, but at least a demerara rum. Would also be interesting to try using Wray & Nephews Overproof Jamaican Rum, which I have in my cabinet.
For the Jamaica rum I used Myer’s Original Dark Jamaican Rum. Since I had no gold Puerto Rican rum, I used Ron Palma Mulata de Cuba Añejo Reserva 5, which I had in my drinks cabinet. For the Pernod or absinthe, I used Absinthe Libertine 55, which I also had to hand. The 6 drops were a bit difficult to measure, so after initially trying 1 ml absinthe, which made the Zombie taste too unbalanced in the favour of absinthe, I settled on 0.5 ml.
Since I have a Vitamix Professional Series 300 blender that simply turned the crushed ice to water at high speed after 5 seconds, I decided to change tactics and use ice cubs and settled on blending the drink at medium speed for 5 seconds. This resulted in a much more pleasing consistency of the drink.
So here is my take on the original Zombie. I must emphasize that it is really important is to use really fresh grapefruit juice. My initial attempts using a rather old grapefruit that was lying around the kitchen at the time were completely overshadowed when I bought and used a fresh pink grapefruit. Since many recipes call for white grapefruits, which I couldn’t source at short notice, I will have to see if using a white grapefruit will make a big difference in some future attempt.
| 1 ½ oz |
45 ml |
Myer’s Original Dark Jamaican Rum, 40% ABV** |
| 1 ½ oz |
45 ml |
Ron Palma Mulata de Cuba Añejo Reserva 5, 38% ABV** |
| 1 oz |
30 ml |
El Dorado Superior Overproof Demerara Rum 151, 75.5% ABV |
| ½ oz |
15 ml |
John D. Taylor’s Velvet Falernum Liqueur, 11% ABV |
| ¾ oz |
22 ½ ml |
Fresh lime juice |
| 1 tsp |
5 ml |
Grenadine |
| 6 drops / 1/8 tsp |
0.5 ml |
Absinthe Libertine 55, 55% ABV |
| 1 dash |
|
Angostura Bitters |
| 2 tsp |
10 ml |
Fresh grapefruit juice* |
| 1 tsp |
5 ml |
Cinnamon syrup* |
6 oz /
¾ cup |
180 g |
Ice cubes |
Place all but the overproof demerara rum in a blender, adding the ice last, and blend at medium speed for no more than 5 seconds. Pour into a tall glass. Add ice cubes to fill. Garnish with a mint sprig and/or a wedge of fresh pineapple sandwiched between 2 maraschino cherries. Layer the overproof demerara rum over the ice at the top of the drink. Serve.
* Don’s Mix.
** The amount of rum can be reduced to 30 ml (1 oz) without a serious loss of enjoyment, if you wish to minimize the impact of the Zombie.