Piña Colada
Rum, sweetened coconut cream and pineapple blended with ice into a thick, cold, tropical shake. Puerto Rico's official drink.
- MethodBlended
- GlassHurricane or poco grande glass
- IceCrushed
- Strengthabout 7.0% ABV
- BaseRum
- Tastesweet, creamy, fruity
Recipe
| 60 ml 2 oz | White rum (light, Spanish-style) or Aged rum |
| 45 ml 1½ oz | Sweetened cream of coconut |
| 90 ml 3 oz | Pineapple juice |
| 7.5 ml ¼ oz | Fresh lime juice (optional) |
Garnish. A wedge of fresh pineapple on the rim with a cocktail cherry pinned to it.
Method
- Put the rum, cream of coconut, pineapple juice and lime (if using) in a blender.
- Add about a cup (150 g) of crushed ice and blend until smooth and thick, around 15 to 20 seconds.
- Pour into a chilled hurricane glass.
- Garnish with pineapple and a cherry and serve with a straw.
About the Piña Colada
The Piña Colada is rum, pineapple and coconut blended into a smooth, frosty drink, sweet and rich but lifted by the acidity of the pineapple. It is a holiday drink without apology. A small squeeze of lime and a rum with a little age on it keep it from tasting like dessert.
History
Documented
"Piña colada" simply means strained pineapple, and drinks of that name made from pineapple juice existed in the Spanish-speaking Caribbean well before the modern recipe. The version with coconut became possible on a large scale after Ramón López Irizarry, in Puerto Rico, developed a canned sweetened cream of coconut in the early 1950s. The drink became firmly associated with San Juan, and in 1978 Puerto Rico declared it the island's official drink.
Legend and lore
The Caribe Hilton hotel in San Juan says its bartender Ramón "Monchito" Marrero created the drink there in 1954; a colleague at the same hotel, Ricardo García, made his own claim. The Barrachina restaurant in Old San Juan credits Ramón Portas Mingot with inventing it in 1963. None of these claims comes with contemporary written evidence, and recipes do not appear in cocktail books until well after.
Disputed or unclear: The inventor and date are disputed between the Caribe Hilton (1954) and the Barrachina restaurant (1963); the timeline uses the hotel's date.
Variations
- Dark rum and orange. Swap in dark rum, add a little orange juice and grate nutmeg over the top for a heavier, spicier drink.
- Shaken Piña Colada. Shake with crushed ice instead of blending for a lighter, less slushy drink.
- Mai Tai. If you want a tropical rum drink that is tart rather than creamy.
Bartender's notes
- Use sweetened cream of coconut, not coconut milk or unsweetened coconut cream; the recipe depends on its sugar and body.
- Do not over-blend. Stop as soon as it is smooth, or the ice melts and the drink turns thin.
