The Blue Hawaiian
Your essential guide to this tropical classic
A summer favourite, the Blue Hawaiian epitomises our ideal of what a tropical drink should be – it’s pineapple flavoured, it’s blended (most of the time). And it’s the colour of holiday brochure skies. What more do you need? Alcohol of course!
However this easy going drink has a more complicated nature than it first seems. When looking around you’ll have no doubt encountered at least two versions of this drink…
The Blue Hawaiian vs. The Blue Hawaii
What’s the difference you ask? Quite a lot really.
These two cocktails have become slightly confused over time, merging both their names, their origins and their ingredients. But when you peel back the layers surrounding them, you find that one originates from the 70’s and has a cream of coconut and rum base, whilst the other uses sweet and sour mix with vodka, was invented in 1957 and is only ever built in the glass. So no, they’re definitely not the same drink though they share a similar colour and pineapple flavour.
In this article we’ll cover 3 easy recipes, starting with the 70’s coconut classic, a mocktail version of the same and then the original drink invented by Harry Yee.
In each recipe we give ingredient variations and substitutions (not everyone has Cream of Coconut and Blue Curacao to hand), plus as a bonus we’ve thrown in a simple DIY Sweet and Sour Mix, as this ingredient isn’t always the easiest to come by.
Now… less talk, pass me the rum and let’s crack on!
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The Blue Hawaiian
If you like Pina Colada then this bad boy in blue is the drink for you. It’s a super coconut and pineapple flavoured drink with a hint of orange. And with an option to blend or shake with ice, it's a party drink for any occasion.
Servings 1
Ingredients
- 1 oz Light/White Rum
- 1 oz Blue Curacao
- 2 oz Pineapple Juice
- 1 oz Cream of Coconut
- 1 Fresh Pineapple Wedge
- 2 Pineapple Leaves - choose the greenest, nicest fronds you can find
- 2 Maraschino Cherries - with stems if possible
- 1 Flower - preferably edible, such as a Pansy
Method
- Pour all ingredients into a shaker, then add enough ice to show above the surface of the liquid.
- Shake vigorously for at least 20 seconds to ensure the cream of coconut is fully mixed, strain and pour into a chilled Hurricane or Highball glass filled with ice cubes.
- OR - If you prefer this cocktail extra cold or ‘slushy like’ pour all your ingredients into a blender along with a cup of ice and blitz till the sound of ice cracking stops.
- To make your garnish cut fresh pineapple into a wedge (leave the outer skin on for a nice contrast), place two cherries onto a cocktail stick and push into the pineapple, make a slit in the bottom of the wedge and place onto the side of the glass.
- Finish the garnish by working two pineapple leaves down the side of the glass into the ice. Then place your edible flower on top of the drink in whatever space is left!
Notes
Bartender's Top Tip: to create the perfect blended drink (ie. if you're going down the route of making this a 'slushy') always make sure that your liquid line is equal to your ice line in the blender. This will create the best consistency and texture for your frozen cocktail. Too much ice and it will be hard to blend and less tasty, too much liquid and it will be too runny.
Substitutes
- No Blue Curacao handy? If you've got a colourless Orange Curacao or a Triple Sec these will give you the same orange flavour. Grand Marnier could be used in a pinch, but as it's made with cognac it'll have a different flavour profile to Curacao and Triple Sec, which tend to be made with alcohol derived from sugar cane. And of course, don't forget the key element to this drink - its colour. Simply add a few drops of blue food colouring and you're good to go!
- No Cream of Coconut in the cupboard? Coconut rum can be used to replace both the white rum and the coconut cream, or if that's not available use a dash of coconut syrup to replace just the cream of coconut. Whatever you do, never use coconut milk as a replacement, the flavour profile and mouthfeel are completely different.
Variations
- Not Strong enough? Individual tastes vary and if you prefer a stronger Tiki drink and a bigger rum hit, simply add 2oz of rum instead of 1oz. It'll cut through the coconut sweetness of this drink with ease.
- Run out of White/Light rum? You could use gold instead of white, or even use a Pusser Navy for a stronger depth of rum flavour, (think Pusser's Painkiller) just bear in mind that the dark rum would change the bright blue colour of the drink. But don't worry, it won't hurt the flavour to mix it up!
- Too sweet? If you find this drink too sugary, add a half ounce of fresh lime to balance it out.
- Not overly keen on rum? You can use vodka instead. This brings it a step closer to the German version of this cocktail, known as the ‘Swimming Pool’.
- Watching the calories? Use less Cream of Coconut or a try a coconut flavoured rum instead of the white rum and then take out the calorie-laden cream of coconut.
Origin
The origin of this 70’s classic is a little blurry. It would seem that although it’s derivative (both in name and in colour) of the original 50’s 'Blue Hawaii', there are some claims that the combination of ingredients was formalised in 1979 in Munich by Charles Schumann when he created the aptly named 'Swimming Pool'. However, the use of cream and vodka in his recipe and the way the blue curacao is applied as a 'float', means that the look and feel of the drink is technically quite different to that of the Blue Hawaiian - although equally delicious! If you'd like to give the Swimming Pool a try, head on over to our article to find out everything you'll ever need to know about this swirling blue beauty.Blue Hawaiian - Non-Alcoholic
Longing for that ocean blue smoothness but don't want the alcoholic hit? This two ingredient, refreshing mocktail is a party pleaser for both adults and children alike.
Servings 1
Ingredients
- 4 oz Pineapple and Coconut Juice
- 1 oz Blue Curacao Syrup
- 1 Orange Slice - a smaller orange works well for this garnish
- 2 Pineapple Leaves - choose the greenest, nicest fronds you can find
- 2 Maraschino Cherries - with stems if possible
Method
- Pour all ingredients into a shaker, then add enough ice to show above the surface of the liquid.
- Shake vigorously for 15 seconds, strain and pour into a chilled Double Old Fashioned or Highball glass filled with ice cubes.
- OR - If you prefer this cocktail extra cold or ‘slushy like’ pour all your ingredients into a blender along with a cup of ice and blitz till the sound of ice cracking stops.
- To make your garnish cut a slice of fresh orange (use the whole wheel, but try and get it close to the end so that it's not too big), place two cherries onto a cocktail stick and push into the orange through the skin. Make a slit in the bottom of the slice and place onto the side of the glass.
- Finish the garnish by working two pineapple leaves down the side of the glass into the ice.
Notes
This mocktail is super simple to make, but with an intelligent choice in ingredients, it's also super tasty.
Many non-alcoholic versions of this drink use blue soda or food colouring to get the colour right, but we prefer Blue Curacao Syrup as it maintains that all important orange flavouring.
We've also used a blend of pineapple and coconut juice (you can buy this ready mixed from the supermarket) rather than coconut cream, as it helps counter the sweetness of the syrup.
A quick tip - if it's still too sweet for your taste, simply top up the glass with a dash of club soda for additional lightness.
Harry Yee's Original Blue Hawaii
The Blue Hawaii uses a sweet and sour mix instead of the cream of coconut favoured by the Blue 'Hawaiian’. It’s also more of a turquoise color and is never blended, rather it's built in the glass, making it a much easier drink to prepare.
Servings 1
Ingredients
- 3/4 oz Vodka
- 3/4 oz Light Puerto Rican Rum
- 1/2 oz Blue Bols Curacao
- 3 oz Pineapple Juice
- 1 oz Sweet and Sour mix
- 1 Fresh Pineapple Wedge
- 2 Maraschino Cherries - with stems if possible
- 1 Flower - either an orchid or an edible alternative
Method
- Fill a Hurricane glass with ice, then add the pineapple juice and sweet and sour mix.
- Pour in the liquor and stir to bring all the ingredients together.
- To make your garnish cut fresh pineapple into a wedge (leave the outer skin on for a nice contrast), place two cherries onto a cocktail stick and push into the pineapple, make a slit in the bottom of the wedge and place onto the side of the glass.
- Finish by placing your flower on top of the drink. Harry's signature flourish, he garnished every drink with an orchid, but we also love using edible alternatives like pansies.
Notes
If you've a preference for vodka over rum or vice versa, feel free to switch out the other spirit for your favourite.
In terms of Sweet and Sour, there are various brands on the market but if you don’t have one to hand it’s really easy to make your own with only 3 household ingredients.
The Blue Hawaii was created in 1957 by Harry Yee, the head bartender at the Hawaiian village hotel on Waikiki beach in Honolulu (which is now the hugely popular Hilton Hawaiian Village). A sales representative from Bols visited the hotel and asked bartender Yee to create a cocktail containing their new Blue Curacao drink, to help promote and boost sales of it.
Inspired by the beautiful color of the Pacific Ocean that he looked upon each day, Yee came up with the tropical wonder that is still being served over sixty years later (although recipes have been tweaked and changed over the years).
It’s said that Yee would hold up each drink he made to make sure the color looked just like the ocean behind. This is why the drink is more of a sea green turquoise color rather than the blue that you might have expected.
Yee intended the Blue Hawaii to be a built in the glass, not shaken and certainly not blended. It was designed this way for two reasons - speed and taste:
Homemade Sweet and Sour Mix
Ingredients
- 1 part each of freshly squeezed lime juice, freshly squeezed lemon juice and simple syrup.
- So for example, if you have 6 guests and they all want one Blue Hawaii each (which calls for 1 oz of sweet and sour mix per serving), you'll need 6 ounces in total - which means you should use 2oz of each ingredient.
Method
- A couple of hours before your guests arrive, combine all ingredients in a bottle with a lid and shake. You can make it earlier than this but the fresher the citrus the zingier the taste.
- Store in the fridge and give the bottle a little shake before using.
Origin
Inspired by the beautiful color of the Pacific Ocean that he looked upon each day, Yee came up with the tropical wonder that is still being served over sixty years later (although recipes have been tweaked and changed over the years).
It’s said that Yee would hold up each drink he made to make sure the color looked just like the ocean behind. This is why the drink is more of a sea green turquoise color rather than the blue that you might have expected.
Yee intended the Blue Hawaii to be a built in the glass, not shaken and certainly not blended. It was designed this way for two reasons - speed and taste:
- In a high volume environment, the time it takes to make a cocktail has a big impact on both sales and customer satisfaction.
- And in terms of taste, the drink in its stirred form is the perfect balance of mixers to alcohol, with a flavour that evolves slowly as the ice melts. But if shaken, the taste of the alcohol comes to the fore, overwhelming the pineapple and creating far more bite. (Now hey, that doesn’t sound that bad a deal does it? 😉 )
We put a whole lotta love, lime and rum into our work, so if you think your friends would find this article useful, we’d be thrilled if you could share it with them!
Thank you. Mahalo.
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