cocktail review no. 58 - Piña Colada

I had second thoughts about reviewing this. The piña colada is a pretty common drink. Moreover there are as many recipes for it as there are grains of sand on a beach, and sifting through them to find best one seemed like a tall order.

But hey, I've gone out on a limb many times in my reviews (Swirling to the Beat of the Haggis Wings, anyone?). I figured that, every so often, my readers will appreciate me sticking with something simple and familiar.

...so long as I put a new spin on it, anyway.

I purchased my first bottle of coconut cream not long ago, anyway, and I have to find some use for it.

So here you go:

• 2 ounces light rum
• 5 ounces pineapple juice
• 1½ ounces coconut cream
• 1 cup crushed ice
• 1 maraschino cherry
• 1 pineapple slice

In a blender, combine the rum, pineapple juice, coconut cream and crushed ice. Blend well and pour into a collins glass. Garnish with the cherry and pineapple slice.

If you're really feeling festive, double the recipe and pour into a hurricane glass. Now it's a party.

I'm not going to tell you what it tastes like. You ought to know by now, if you're human. Besides, tropical drinks aren't really meant to be dissected; the flavors are supposed to meld into one big stress-relieving bundle of joy.

I'll simply state that this recipe, in my opinion, makes the best piña colada around.

Or you could try this one. Whatever.

It's a tropical drink. Mix it however you want. Go with the flow, man.

P.S. Piña colada is Spanish for "strained pineapple." Betcha didn't know that, Dr. Bamboo.