The Jungle Bird was created in 1973 at the Aviary Bar of the Kuala Lumpur Hilton, where the beverage manager Jeffrey Ong served it as the hotel's welcome drink. It pairs dark rum and a bitter Italian red aperitivo with pineapple juice and lime, an unlikely combination that tastes tropical, bitter and fresh all at once. It drifted into obscurity, was rediscovered by cocktail historians, and in 2024 was named an official cocktail by the International Bartenders Association, which makes it one of very few modern classics born in Southeast Asia.

Malaysia is a Muslim majority country where many people do not drink alcohol, and its hawker culture runs on brilliant soft drinks. So the zero proof version below is not an afterthought; it keeps the dark, bitter and fruity structure of the original, and it is the one to pour for the whole table in Sepang's tropical heat.

Demerara syrup

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup (100 g) demerara sugar
• 1/2 cup (120 ml) water

Method

1. Heat the sugar and water in the small saucepan over medium heat, stirring, until the sugar dissolves, about 3 minutes. Do not boil. Cool completely.

The Jungle Bird

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 oz (45 ml) dark or blackstrap rum
• 3/4 oz (22 ml) red bitter aperitivo
• 1 1/2 oz (45 ml) unsweetened pineapple juice
• 1/2 oz (15 ml) fresh lime juice
• 1/2 oz (15 ml) demerara syrup
• 1 cup ice cubes
• 1 pineapple wedge and a few pineapple leaves

Method

1. Put the rum, aperitivo, pineapple juice, lime juice and syrup in the shaker. Fill with ice, close firmly and shake hard for 12 to 15 seconds.
2. Strain over fresh ice in the tumbler. Garnish with a pineapple wedge and two or three pineapple leaves tucked in like feathers.

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