A Mai Tai for the 4th of July

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Why should you make a Mai Tai for the Fourth of July? What about this Tiki classic synonymous with tropical escape relates to the celebration of Independence Day? Am I simply too infatuated with rum and will find any excuse to feature a Tiki drink? As much as that may be a warranted accusation, I genuinely feel that the Mai Tai can function as a representation of everything that Independence Day should signify.

The history of the Mai Tai deserves a blog post in its own right, but right now, we’ll look into it as it relates to the themes of the holiday. The cocktail was originally created in 1944 in Oakland, California by Victor “Trader Vic” Bergeron. As the Trader told the story, it was a fateful night at the service bar of his Tiki restaurant, he had been conceptualizing a new drink for some time and it came to fruition in the company of his two friends visiting from Tahiti - Eastham and Carrie Guild. Creating a relatively simple build to complement the character of an exceptional rum, Wray & Nephew 17 Year, Bergeron mixed the drink, served it to his friends, and Carrie exclaimed, “Mai Tai - Roa Ae.” He writes, “In Tahitian this means ‘Out of this World - The Best.’ Well, that was that. I named the drink ‘Mai Tai.’”

What’s more, as he tells the tale, he mixed this for his friends visiting from abroad. Some of America’s best qualities through its existence has been as a community for global friendship and collaboration. Vic, the son of a French immigrant mother, mixed this for his friends from across the globe.

Furthermore, the drink itself is built on ingredients sourced from around the world, with an important connection to the better qualities of America. First and foremost, it was built around an outstanding Jamaican rum. Jamaica rum was prized in the United States well before July 4th, 1776, with such figures as Benjamin Franklin calling for it specifically in punch recipes and more. Rum such as this only existed because of the distilling skill and backbreaking forced labor of enslaved people, a terrible lack of liberty that must never be understated for its inextricable role in the history of the Americas. Although slavery had been abolished in Jamaica by 1838, a new constitution to provide further self-determination was only granted that same year as Bergeron mixed the first Mai Tai, 1944. And it would be nearly 20 years after that before Jamaica gained the same level of independence as the United States. Bergeron notes his orange curacao came from Holland, a valuable trading partner and a country whose expats were instrumental in making the United States what it is today. Orgeat, one of the most defining ingredients of the blend, is an almond syrup that comes from France, just as Vic’s mother did. Without French financial and military support, the American colonies never would have won their independence.

The Mai Tai was mixed by a charismatic American storyteller, its creation contingent on ingredients from across the world working in harmony. Just like the United States itself, it could not have existed without the support of other nations. The history of drink is human history, with the choices people make about what they drink and how they drink it having deep ramifications. Trader Vic created this drink, a libation that would become synonymous with paradisical escapism, in 1944, as the United States was locked in a global existential crisis. Democracy was experiencing its most palpable threat from authoritarian forces bent on subjugation and persecution. Given the context of his creation, Bergeron demonstrated that at its least, the Mai Tai can provide a respite from these kind of anxieties. At its most, it showcases the best opposition to such forces - a work of art, built on the human skill of people from diverse and global backgrounds. If there’s a glass to be raised on the Fourth of July, that’s the one I want.

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