The Paper Umbrella of Colonization: Tiki Culture

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The tiki drink Three Dots and a Dash signifies ‘victory’ for the Allies in WWII.

The name of the cocktail refers to the Morse code sign for ‘V’, which was often used to mean ‘Victory’ during the war. This rum-based with falernum and allspice dram also uses three brandied cherries on a pick (for the dots) and a pineapple wedge (for the ‘v’) to emphasize the drink’s namesake.  

For some, ‘tiki’ conjures up visions of grass skirts, sandy beaches, and elaborate cocktails served in carved, Polynesian-style mugs. For others, it’s a reminder of how certain aspects of their culture have been co-opted into kitschy escapism. Tropical flavors, island imagery, and nostalgia for a time that never really existed have kept tiki afloat for over 80 years of bar history.

Just as the Depression began to grip America, one traveling barman brought flavors and experiences he’d found in the Caribbean and Pacific Islands to Hollywood. Ernest Gantt electrified an otherwise downtrodden town with visions of lush tropical islands, bronzed skin, and neverending supplies of rum and exotic spices. He cherrypicked aspects of all that he’d encountered to eventually create Tiki culture. This was a movement of rum-based, tropically-flavored drinks surrounded by island-inspired elements to transport bargoers to a sun-soaked beach somewhere else. In its recent revival, the discourse surrounding tiki takes into account its naive, sometimes racist depictions and tries to craft a new, better relationship with its history.

What Is A Tiki Drink? 

Tiki culture is a style of drink and bar decor that dates back to 1933, when Ernest Raymond Beaumont Gantt opened Don the Beachcomber near Hollywood. Changing his name to Donn Beach, he brought tropical flavors and an island aesthetic to the bar scene following years of travel in the Caribbean and Oceania. His ‘Rhum Rhapsodies’ combined Caribbean or Jamaican rum with fresh fruit juices and exotic syrups into carved tiki mugs. 

The recipes are complex and time-consuming, using multi-ingredient handmade syrups and usually a few spirits in one drink. Important ingredients in tiki drinks include pineapple, guava, cinnamon, allspice, and orgeat. You’ll also find fassionola, a syrup of several fruit juices and hibiscus, as well as dry Curacao, Velvet Falernum, Campari,  and, of course, quality rum.

Donn Beach created many of the cocktails that would come to define tiki culture himself, including the Pearl Diver, the Missionary’s Downfall, and the Zombie. These drinks are often served with a large and/or colorful garnish in a fanciful vessel – oftentimes a carved tiki mug (but more on that later). Patrons frequently underestimated the strength of Donn’s cocktail recipes, with the fruit juices masking the powerful sting of alcohol. 

While it’s tempting to include any rum-based drink in a hurricane glass under the tiki umbrella, cocktails like Piña Coladas, Daiquiris, and Painkillers are not part of tiki culture. These three originate in Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, and Cuba respectively, with no relationship to Donn Beach or The Beachcomber. Still, these drinks will often be found alongside Mai Tais or Zombies on a bar menu.

The History of ‘Tiki’

Tiki culture as it relates to cocktails and bars has little to do with the reality of the Māori history of tiki. In Māori tradition, the word refers to the ‘first man’, similar to Adam of Judeo-Christian belief. Wood carvings and statues depicting Polynesian gods are some of the oldest art forms known to man, and these representations hold an important space in the history of the many islands of Oceania. 

Donn Beach used these carvings as the inspiration behind the mugs he would serve certain drinks in, which lent an exotic flair to his establishment. A few years later, Vic Bergeron of Trader Vic’s would adopt a similar tropical aesthetic and even rewarded patrons who brought him Polynesian artifacts with free food and drinks. He’d use these pieces to decorate his bar. 

The first wave of Tiki hit full swing as World War II was ending and American GIs went home. A romanticized view of their time in the Pacific theater fueled consumption of tiki drinks and tropical iconography. Tiki enjoyed celebrity bar status for years until the disco era of the 1970s, which nearly relegated ‘umbrella drinks’ to the dustbin of history. 

Cocktail historian Jeff ‘Beachbum’ Berry began restoring these drinks to the larger bar culture in the late 1990s with his recipe book Beachbum Berry’s Grog Log. The revival not only brought back recipes and an aesthetic that was long thought to be dead but also opened the door for further discussions surrounding the impact of tiki culture. Colonialism and problematic depictions of indigenous cultures darken the mood of tiki’s playful veneer. 

The Changing Tide

While some may disagree that tiki represents an oversimplified and caricatured version of Polynesia and its people, others say we can reckon with that damage by using careful language to honor the history of Oceania. For starters, many bars have traded ‘tiki’ for ‘tropical’ in drink descriptors. This language shift prevents an entire culture from being distilled into a kind of drink category conceived by Americans. 

Secondly, learning more about Polynesian and Oceanic history, including the impact of American military personnel and missionaries on native populations, can help change the story around tiki. Misspelled and misused indigenous words on menus are particularly disrespectful, as missionaries would routinely punish native children for speaking their own language rather than English. 

While many bartenders say tiki can’t be erased, others believe that these small steps and more (ditch the mugs and leave tiki to the Māori, for one!) can bridge the gap between racism and a culturally-sensitive, historically-contextualized bar scene.

While tiki has problematic roots, there’s no denying its lasting power in the cocktail world. Respecting the history of Polynesia and Oceania, as well as understanding the ongoing effects of colonialism on indigenous populations, can expand tiki’s influence in a positive way. Reconsidering the complicated biography of these playfully delicious drinks makes tiki culture even more alluring to history buffs and cocktail enthusiasts alike. 

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