When you have a bottle of creme de cacao kicking around, the temptation to use it is nearly irresistible. Tonight, we did not resist one of these….
The Yellow Monkey
1/2 oz light rum
1/2 oz creme de cacao
1/2 oz Galliano
1 oz cream
Shake well with ice. Strain into a pre-chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with a banana slice.
The first thing you’ll notice is that the drink itself is not very yellow. The Galliano does give it an ever so slight lemony hue but in the wrong light you’ll miss it. Also, beyond the arbitrary choice of garnish, there is nothing particularly monkey-like about The Yellow Monkey either. Or maybe there is. I’m no monkey expert.
Moving on….
This drink very much resembles the Alexander, and like it’s better known cousin, the Yellow Monkey packs a well hidden punch. The cream mellows the other ingredients and even though there’s a full ounce and a half of booze in there, the cocktail comes off tasting like a slightly spiked milkshake.
“I am just a harmless little tipple,” it will whisper so convincingly. And as you dally with the Yellow Monkey you will drift along, following its gentle chocolate logic, it’s benign vanilla wisdom, all the while blithely unaware of its dark magics subtly dementing your senses.
On that note… about that creme de cacao I’ve been using…. You’ll note from the picture that it’s Meagher’s brand. I’m not a big fan of any of Meagher’s liqueurs. Their bottle design is ridiculous and, worse, the spirits themselves have an artificial flavour to them that puts me off. Unfortunately, I’m told that the SLGA has recently delisted the far superior Bols creme de cacao.
A tragedy. Nay. An outrage.
