An Effervescent Tiki Drink With Gin and Brandy
Another way to use ginger beer in a summer cocktail.
It’s July, again. And that means it’s time for tiki drinks, again.
I like tiki drinks at all times of year. (Somewhat weirdly, my personal cocktail preferences run toward boozy and bitter on the one hand and elaborate tiki concoctions on the other. It’s always time for a Negroni — or a Mai Tai.) But tiki really shines in the oozy depths of summer, when stepping outside feels like walking through warm egg yolk.
Typically when we think of tiki, we think of boozy, rich, annoyingly complex drinks made with rum. But as we discussed last year, not all tiki drinks are made with rum. And not all are brutally boozy and rich, either. Some are comparatively light and effervescent — like this week’s drink, the Suffering Bastard.
The Suffering Bastard is a tiki drink for folks who like spritzes, highballs, and Beer Margaritas. It’s relatively low-ABV, at least as far as tiki classics go, and, as a bonus, it uses ginger beer as a lengthening agent — so it gives you another way to use any extra ginger beer you may have leftover after making last week’s lemonade.
Not Recommended as a Hangover Cure
The Suffering Bastard earns its spot in the ranks of the classics simply by virtue of its name. At times it has been offered as a hangover cure, though I don’t recommend this particular use case (try a short run, a tall glass of water, and some ibuprofen).
But the name evokes a common and relatable archetype of evening drinking. Surely everyone who makes and consumes alcoholic drinks has thought of themselves this way at one time or another. There’s even a special tiki mug for the drink, made to look like a sad, hungover fella with a headache curled up into himself. Poor dude.
You, on the other hand, do not need to feel so bummed out in order to enjoy this drink. Despite its name, the Suffering Bastard packs less of a punch than most tiki standards, and it has the character of an afternoon party drink, not a brooding, downer concoction.