A Painkiller is a
rum
Rum is a liquor made by fermenting and then distilling sugarcane molasses or sugarcane juice. The distillate, a clear liquid, is usually aged in oak barrels. Rum is produced in nearly every sugar-producing region of the world, such as the Ph ...
cocktail with a name trademarked by
Pusser's Rum Ltd, their signature drink. It is often associated with the British Virgin Islands, its place of origin. The Painkiller is a blend of rum with 4 parts pineapple juice, 1 part cream of coconut and 1 part orange juice, well shaken and served over the rocks with a generous amount of fresh nutmeg on top. It may be made with either two, three or four ounces of rum.
History
The original Painkiller was created in the 1970s at the Soggy Dollar Bar at White Bay on the island of
Jost Van Dyke
Jost Van Dyke (; sometimes colloquially referred to as JVD or Jost) is the smallest of the four main islands of the British Virgin Islands, measuring roughly . It rests in the northern portion of the archipelago of the Virgin Islands, loca ...
in the
British Virgin Islands
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.
The inventor may have been Daphne Henderson,
or George and Mari Myrick, previous owners of the Soggy Dollar.
It was originally made using
Cruzan Rum
Cruzan Rum ( ) is a rum producer in Saint Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands owned by Beam Suntory. Founded in 1760, it claims the distinction of being "the most honored rum distillery in the world." For eight generations, and through various changes i ...
.
In 1989, Pusser's Rum Ltd. filed a US trademark on the Painkiller's name and recipe. When a
Tiki bar
A tiki bar is a themed drinking establishment that serves elaborate cocktails, especially rum-based mixed drinks such as the Mai Tai and Zombie cocktails. Tiki bars are aesthetically defined by their tiki culture décor which is based upon a roman ...
named Painkiller opened in the
Lower East Side
The Lower East Side, sometimes abbreviated as LES, is a historic neighborhood in the southeastern part of Manhattan in New York City. It is located roughly between the Bowery and the East River from Canal to Houston streets.
Traditionally an im ...
of
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
in May of 2011, Pusser's sent a
cease and desist order
A cease and desist letter is a document sent to an individual or business to stop alleged illegal activity. The phrase "cease and desist" is a legal doublet, made up of two near-synonyms. The letter may warn that, if the recipient does not disc ...
to owners Giuseppe Gonzalez and Richard Boccato, both for the bar's name and for selling Painkiller cocktails made with rums other than Pusser's. Gonzalez and Boccato reached an out-of-court settlement with Pusser's, which included them renaming the bar to PKNY. In response to the news, numerous bartenders organized a boycott against Pusser's Rum.
See also
*
List of cocktails
A cocktail is a mixed drink typically made with a distilled liquor (such as arrack, brandy, cachaça, gin, rum, tequila, vodka, or whiskey) as its base ingredient that is then mixed with other ingredients or garnishments. Sweetened liqu ...
*
Dark 'N' Stormy
A dark 'n' stormy is a highball cocktail made with dark rum (the "dark") and ginger beer (the "stormy") served over ice and garnished with a slice of lime. Lime juice and simple syrup are also frequently added. This drink is very similar to the ...
*
Sazerac
The Sazerac is a local variation of a cognac or whiskey cocktail originally from New Orleans, named for the ''Sazerac de Forge et Fils'' brand of cognac brandy that served as its original main ingredient. The drink is most traditionally a combi ...
*
Hand Grenade
A grenade is an explosive weapon typically thrown by hand (also called hand grenade), but can also refer to a shell (explosive projectile) shot from the muzzle of a rifle (as a rifle grenade) or a grenade launcher. A modern hand grenade ...
References
External links
Pusser's Painkiller: Official SiteThe History of The Pusser's Painkiller™
{{DEFAULTSORT:Painkiller (Cocktail)
Cocktails with rum
Tiki drinks
Cocktails with orange juice
Cocktails with pineapple juice
Cocktails with coconut
Three-ingredient cocktails
Cocktails with dark rum