Orlando Sour? Yes please!
One of the first truly awesome (for me) things I dug up while rummaging around the Disney Archives came when we were doing research to prepare for the Epcot 30th Anniversary event last year. In a box of files that once belonged to Imagineer John Hench, there was this odd manila envelope stapled shut with a note from Marty Sklar scrawled on the outside. Marty had been to Walt Disney World (this was in the very early years of the resort) and found that the cocktail lounge at the Polynesian Village Resort was using a shoddy, type-written menu to list their offerings. Judging this an “embarrassment”, Marty asked Hench to draw up a more Disney-quality presentation for the resort. As someone obsessed with early Walt Disney World, the Polynesian, and tiki beverages in general, this was a goldmine.
Read the story and see the art at D23’s site.
Michael,
I’m working on a recreation of the Orlando Sour, which I’ll be blogging about shortly. The basic recipe is pretty simple — selecting the right burbon and fruit juices for ’70s Orlando has been fun.
It’s interesting to note that the earliest drink menu I’ve seen (1973) does not have the Orlando Sour, Bacardi Cocktail, or Trinidad Cocktail on it.
Also, since you like tiki drinks, check out the Mike Wazowski-inspired drink that I devised for a Trader Vic’s contest a couple of years back (http://quasieverything.wordpress.com/2013/06/20/mikes-hawaiian-eye-a-rum-drink-inspired-by-monsters-inc/). I think you’ll get a kick out of it.
Oh my gosh I wish there was a way to “like” comments on here. Fantastic. Please, please let me know when you write about the Orlando Sour – I never knew it turned out to be an actual thing! This is research that truly benefits mankind.
Aarg — I should have double-checked my facts before I posted that. The ’73 menu does, in fact, have both the Bacardi and Trinidad cocktails on it, but not the Pi Yi. By ’75 they were off the menu and Polynesian Resort originals Lei-Lani Volcano and Lapu Lapu were on. Still no Backscratcher though.
Oddly enough, there’s still a jar of backscratchers sitting at the Tambu Lounge bar, even though they took that drink off the menu a couple of years ago.
This is fascinating – especially knowing which were original to the Poly. As for the backscratcher, mercifully you can still order the old Poly drinks off-menu at the Tambu. When they made all the resort bars go to the generic (boring) menu, I was devastated, but thankfully the Poly will make you whatever you want. Which is good, because without an Island Sunset waiting there for me, all will to live would be lost.
Being a founding member of the Coconino Cove Bar in the Contemporary Hotel with Disney Legend Harriet Burns, I would love it if Disney Legend John Hench had done our menu. He approved out initial work on it. I wonder if they make the Coconino Cove Zombie that conjures up pink elephants dancing as in John’s Dumbo?.
Ok, these are stories I *really* need to hear!! Coconino Cove in 1971 with Harriet Burns… oh to be a fly on the wall! I have a great fascinating with the early design and decor of the Contemporary and its environs…
Try a Jumbo Dumbo Zombie.
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The Backscratcher and Lapu Lapu have never been removed from the Tambu Lounge menu. Many WDW bars still have a couple unique drinks in the front of their menu, before the “standard” drinks. (The recent upgrade of the standard drinks menu is actually in improvement from the previous. They’re using some pretty good high-end spirits, like Maker’s Mark and Pimm’s.) Check out my recent blog post on Trader Sam’s coming to the Poly, in which I’ve posted my interpretation of the Backscratcher. Aloha! http://www.slammie.com/atomicgrog/blog/2013/07/31/trader-sams-enchanted-tiki-bar-one-of-many-changes-likely-coming-to-disneys-polynesian-resort/
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[…] It’s funny how obsessions start. This one began with a post on Michael Crawford’s excellent Disney history website, Progress City U.S.A. […]