Mai Tai glasses

Count on at least 40 cl. A mai tai itself contains about twelve centiliters of liquid, but crushed ice fills the remaining space, and you still want room at the top for mint, a lime wheel, and a straw. In a 30 cl glass, the garnish sits crooked and the ice melts too quickly.

Then choose based on character. A heavy cocktail glass or 45 cl tumbler shows off the drink's color and suits any bar, even if you pour the rest of the menu from it. tiki mug made of ceramic or treated glass conceals the contents and turns it into theater, which was precisely the intention when this drink was created in 1944. The hurricane sits somewhere in between: tall, curved, and built on a foot, so it remains stable while still standing out.

Also pay attention to the wall thickness. Crushed ice knocks hard against glass, and a thin rim will not survive long on a busy bar.

Shake the rum, lime, orgeat, and curaçao briefly with a few ice cubes, then pour everything unstrained over fresh crushed ice. Top up until the glass is full, because a mai tai should have a mound of ice rising above the rim. Push the sprig of mint right next to the straw so your guest smells it with every sip.

For dark rum that you float on top, pour it slowly over the convex side of a bar spoon. This keeps the layer visible instead of letting it mix in immediately, so your guest tastes the heavier rum first. The same glass works for a dark 'n stormy, where ginger beer takes the place of the ice, and the shorter version with just rum, lime, and sugar is known as a daiquiri. The proportions for the classic itself are on the recipe page for the mai tai.

Crushed ice, lime juice and sticky orgeat together make the toughest combination a cocktail glass has to put up with. So rinse straight after use, because almond-based orgeat dries into a layer that survives the dishwasher.

Tempered glass can go on a short glassware programme and copes fine with a daily trip through the dishwasher. Ceramic tiki mugs with glaze and hand-painted details are better washed by hand, because the colours go dull over time in a hot dishwasher and the relief loses its contrast. Put glasses away upright rather than inverted, so the rim rests on nothing. A limescale haze on clear glass comes off with a dash of vinegar in the rinsing water.

If you're looking for the entire tiki section rather than just this one recipe, the tiki mugs and hurricanes mentioned above are also available separately in the menu. If you want similar tall glasses for drinks topped up with soda or tonic, check out the highball glasses. For an overview of all the cocktail glass shapes side by side, start with the cocktail glasses. And if you still need the ice bag, hammer, or scoop to make crushed ice, you'll find them under ice tools.