Kingston Soundsystem

Shannon Mustipher | New York City

kingston soundsystem

To explore the overlap between the worlds of drinks and music, we challenged bartenders to translate a song of their choice from a given genre into cocktail form. Here, Shannon Mustipher takes on reggae.

Of the inspiration behind this drink, Mustipher explains: “My favorite reggae song is ‘Skylarking’ by Horace Andy, one of the genre’s most influential artists, whose music dominated Dub in the ’70s and went on to inspire Dance Hall…. In keeping with the bird motif in the song’s title, I decided to base my recipe on the Jungle Bird, one of my favorite tiki cocktails to riff on. 

“The end result—a ‘trickster’ of a drink that blends unlikely elements, looks more innocent than it turns out to be in the end (the overproof rum, whose heat is barely detectable sees to that), and, hopefully, is a great accessory to an afternoon—or evening—of hanging and pranking around.”

Ingredients

Serving: 1

  • 1 ounce aged pot still Jamaican rum
  • 1 ounce aged pot still Jamaican rum
  • 1/2 ounce overproof rum, preferably Rum Fire
  • 1/2 ounce overproof rum, preferably Rum Fire
  • 1/2 ounce Suze
  • 1/2 ounce Suze
  • 1/2 ounce Soursop (or pineapple) juice
  • 1/2 ounce Soursop (or pineapple) juice
  • 3/4 ounce lime juice
  • 3/4 ounce lime juice

Garnish: pineapple fronds, lime wheel

Directions
  1. Combine all ingredients in a mixing tin and shake with ice.
  2. Strain into a double rocks glass over ice.
  3. Garnish with two pineapple fronds and a lime wheel.