In 1941, Don Beach added a new drink to the Don the Beachcomber cocktail menu. The Navy Grog, along with the Mai Tai and the Zombie, represented the three most popular drinks of Don Beach’s considerable contributions to the tiki movement. Per the New York Times:

It’s a throwback, as all New York cocktails are these days, but from what cocktail historians would deem more “recent” history: the 1930’s. That’s when Ernest Raymond Beaumont-Gantt, as Donn Beach, started serving dolled-up rum drinks at his Polynesian-themed restaurants, kicking off the decades-long “tiki” phase of American drinking. Along with the Mai Tai and Zombie, the Navy Grog was part of his holy trinity of tiki drinks. “These are truly classic cocktails,” Mr. Miller said. “They’re bright, refreshing, with tastes that really pop in your mouth. They’re relics that people should get to know.”

The Recipe

The Navy Grog recipe is a relatively simple one. As with with the Zombie, it is one stiff cocktail.

• 1 ounce Demerara rum (El Dorado Dark)
• 1 ounce dark rum (Gosling’s Black Seal or Captain Morgan)
• 1 ounce light rum (Cruzan Estate Light or Bacardi Carta Blanca)
• ¾ ounce freshly squeezed lime juice
• ¾ ounce freshly squeezed grapefruit juice
• 1 ounce honey syrup (2 parts honey with 1 part warm water, then cool)
• ¾ ounce club soda

Shake all liquid ingredients except club soda together with ice in cocktail shaker. Strain into Collins glass or your favorite tiki mug filled with ice, top with soda and garnish with fresh fruit or flower.