Goombay Smash
4.2 79 ratings
Ingredients
How to make
Serve in a sling glass
Prepare
- 1 Select and pre-chill a SLING GLASS.
- 2 Prepare garnish of pineapple wedge and orange slice wheel.
Method
- 3 SHAKE all ingredients with ice.
- 4 STRAIN into ice-filled glass.
Garnish
- 5 Garnish with pineapple wedge and orange slice wheel.
Flavour profile
40.0% alc./vol. · 1.6 standard drinks · 194 calories
History
The classic pineapple and coconut combination, with a touch of rum funk and subdued apricot. Smashes are typically short drinks with muddled mint. Strictly by family rules, this drink may be misnamed, but like fruit "Martinis" that aren't Martinis, it's tasty and has mass-market appeal.
Emily Cooper, known widely as "Miss Emily", created this drink at the Blue Bee Bar in New Plymouth, Green Turtle Cay, Bahamas. Though Miss Emily passed away in 1977, her daughter, Violet Smith, still operates the renowned bar and serves her famous cocktail to patrons from across the globe. Miss Emily Cooper is credited with creating a contemporary classic cocktail found on menus throughout the Bahamas and internationally. Notably, she never consumed alcohol in her life and had a pineapple allergy, providing two clear reasons to avoid tasting her own creation. On a rainy day when she developed her now-famous cocktail, she relied on the reactions of men playing dominoes outside to judge its success, receiving the feedback, "that is very good." The drink became so popular that she devised increasingly efficient methods for preparing larger quantities, eventually mixing it in a gallon bottle, a practice still followed at the bar today. Miss Emily's potent cocktail was developed around the time of the annual Goombay Summer Festival in the Bahamas, which inspired its name. While the original recipe is a closely guarded secret, the Blue Bee Bar uses Rico Bay Coconut Rum for their version. This rum has an alcohol content of 40% (80° proof), meaning a low-alcohol, sweet coconut liqueur would be unsuitable for this cocktail. Miss Emily's preference was for "dirty rum", indicating a dark, characterful rum rather than a lighter, charcoal-filtered style. Other known components include apricot brandy and pineapple juice, though orange juice is frequently included in most renditions of the original. A "secret ingredient" is rumored to exist, and given the location, a few dashes of bitters are a likely candidate.
Created by Mrs Emily Cooper