Jungle Bird

Name: Jungle Bird
Prep time: 5 min
Total time: 5 min
Yield: 1
Ingredients: 1.5 Oz Appleton Estate Signature Jamaica rum; 0.75 Oz Campari; 1.5 Oz Fresh pineapple juice; 0.5 Oz Lime juice, freshly squeezed; 0.5 Oz Simple syrup; Pineapple triangles and fronds, and a slice of lime, to garnish (optional); Ice

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PREP TIME 5 min

Cocktail Type

Rum

Great for

Summer

Difficulty

Easy

Jump to recipe

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.

QUICK TIPS

Make your simple syrup with a molasses or demerara sugar for a richer tropical tone.

For full jungle vibes, juice or buy freshly squeezed pineapple juice.

For a sweeter sip with less bitter, just add a little less Campari.

INGREDIENTS

Classic color pencil illustration of a Jungle Bird cocktail

MAKE FOR

1 Person

1.5 Oz

45 Ml

1.5 Parts

0.75 Oz

22.5 Ml

0.75 Parts

1.5 Oz

45 Ml

1.5 Parts

Fresh pineapple juice

0.5 Oz

15 Ml

0.5 Parts

Lime juice, freshly squeezed

0.5 Oz

15 Ml

0.5 Parts

Simple syrup

Pineapple triangles and fronds, and a slice of lime, to garnish (optional)

Ice

INSTRUCTIONS

Add all your ingredients to a shaker

Add a handful of ice and shake until ice-cold

Strain into a tumbler over fresh ice

Garnish with pineapple triangles and fronds

Serve

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 flavors.

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 homemade simple 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 recognized drink, Jeffrey became somewhat of a hero and was honored at his death in 2019.

It's a tropical flavored 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 simple 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 flavors 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 quarter of an ounce. 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.