The Jungle Bird cocktail is such a showstopper; it’s no wonder it’s Malaysia’s national drink. While it contains Campari, it differs from the classically bitter cocktails featuring Campari, such as the Negroni, as the recipe yields a much sweeter sip. With caramel tones of rum, fresh sweet pineapple, and lime juice, this drink is perfect for those who enjoy a sweeter drink.
Jungle Bird Cocktail
PREP TIME 5 min
QUICK TIPS
INSTRUCTIONS
01
1.
Add all your ingredients to a jug or shaker
02
2.
Add a handful of ice and shake until ice-cold
03
3.
Strain into a tumbler over fresh ice
04
4.
Garnish with pineapple triangles and fronds
What is a Jungle Bird?
The history of this captivating drink unfolded at the Hilton Hotel in Kuala Lumpur in 1973, where Jeffrey Ong aptly developed it as the welcome drink for the Aviary Bar. It was even served in crazy bird-shaped containers! For a cocktail that uses Campari, it’s surprisingly sweet and not at all bitter. While the bird-shaped glasses are optional, a Jungle Bird cocktail should look as tropical as it tastes, so garnish with a few pineapple fronds for the final ta-da, this cocktail deserves.
How to make this exotic sipper
You’ll need a decent Jamaican rum, and we just love Appleton Estate Signature Rum (opens in new window) (it’s award-winning) as it lines the palette with sweet molasses and peach notes. If you’re a rum fan, try an 8-year-old reserve (opens in new window) that gives deeper vanilla and orange flavours.
For the juice elements, choose freshly squeezed pineapple juice if you can, and make sure you squeeze your limes at the last minute for the ultimate zing. Don’t forget to balance the tartness with either a store-bought or home-made sugar syrup.
Rum, pineapple, and lime are usual suspects in a tropical drink; however, this combination doesn’t often see the addition of Campari (opens in new window). This undeniably Italian red spirit adds a very gentle tang and complexity to this otherwise overtly sweet cocktail, offering a hint of orange and botanicals. You’ll love it, we promise!
How to create a garnish for a Jungle Bird drink
Pull three fronds from a fresh pineapple, trim them, and poke them into your drink. For extra jazz, skewer a Maraschino cherry through the white frond ends and into a pineapple wedge and rest in your glass.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
This drink was first made at Kuala Lumpur’s Hilton in the 70s where the beverage manager, Jeffrey Ong, developed a fitting welcome drink for their Aviary Bar. Because it was Malaysia’s only internationally recognised drink, Jeffrey became somewhat of a hero and was honoured at his death in 2019.
It's a tropical flavoured cocktail developed in the humidity of Malaysia’s Kuala Lumpur. It’s a fruity rum cocktail with pineapple and lime juice, along with a dash of sugar syrup for extra sweetness and little Campari giving it a very gentle bitter undertone.
When you’re craving a deliciously sweet sip, a Jungle Bird is a perfect choice. It has all the tropical flavours together in one sip, making it ideal for summer fun.
If you don’t have Campari, use any other amaro instead like Aperol. But if you are nervous about the bitterness of Campari, you could reduce the amount, starting with 10 ml. Or if you want to omit it, just add a dash of aromatic bitters to ease the sweetness.
It's very sweet! The bitterness of Campari is overpowered by the caramel tones of the rum, the super sweet pineapple and the tangy sweet lime. The Campari adds necessary depth to this heavenly tropical drink.
Although the ingredients that Campari are not disclosed, we know it’s made with water and alcohol that’s infused with aromatics from plants and herbs.
Campari is an Italian bitter sweet liqueur around 25% ABV and made from infusing herb and fruit botanicals in water and alcohol. It’s added to cocktails to offer the quintessential aperitivo (pre-meal) bitterness that’s meant to stimulate the appetite.
