No Shortage of Boat Drink Ideas with Voodoo Tiki Margarita Book

As always, it's great to relax at the end of a long day of boating with a nice cool drink--and if you're doing your own bartending, it's a good idea to have some solid cocktail recipes on hand. Smart mixologists know that one of the favorites among the ladies is the Margarita, and a free recipe book, now available from Voodoo Tiki Tequila, can help fill in any gaps in your Margarita know-how.

If you haven't come across it yet, Voodoo Tiki is a relatively new brand of tequila that takes the fun factor to a whole new level. Voodoo Tiki is made from 100 percent blue agave and comes in three main styles: Platinum Silver, Reposado and Anejo. It's a super-premium brand, featuring a unique and creative package. The result--which is something of a collector’s piece--is a hand-blown, numbered and signed glass bottle with a hand-crafted tiki statuette inside.

PHOTO CREDIT: Voodootiki.com.

“The taste is clean, not harsh, hot or woody,” says company head Donna DeCunzo-Taddeo, who expects sales of $1.2 million in 2009, up from about $240,000 in her first year. The Margarita Guide, available as a free PDF download, includes over 100 creative Margarita recipes. Get your copy HERE, and give the Voodoo a try.

Tiki 101: Great Introduction to Tiki Drinks & Culture

If you like boats and enjoy spending a lot of time near the water--whether it's under a palm tree at a warm ocean beach or sitting at a dockside bar on a cool Northern lake--you can probably appreciate Tiki culture. The exotic island imagery, and certainly the cocktails it has inspired are a great compliment to life on the water. After all there's nothing quite like a good MaiTai or Zombie after a fun day on the boat.

But where did the idea of "Tiki" come from? There are lots of books and articles on the subject, which has been covered here before. But I came across a great video on the New York Times website that provides a brief and effective summary of what it's all about...

While it's inspired by island culture so very far away, the essence of Tiki is uniquely American, in the same way that Jazz music is. So, next time you've tied the boat up at the end of the day and are ready to cool off, try something a little more exotic and see where Tiki can take you...

Get Your Party on with Six Great Beach Cocktails - Courtesy of TikiTender

After your day of boating is over - or even if you're relaxing on the dock watching the boats go by - nothing sets off a nice sunset like a cool, island-style cocktail. There's always the obvious choices...like Mai Tais, Margueritas or Pina Coladas...but we want to offer you something a little more original and creative.

Thankfully, we can turn to out old Twitter pal, Mark Woods, aka "TikiTender" who lives and works steps away from the Atlantic Ocean in Flagler Beach, Florida. Since 2005 he has made his work home at The Golden Lion Cafe, one of the area's most awarded restaurants. Mark's welcoming personality and creative drink mixing have earned him 3-time honors as Florida's Favorite Bartender, selected by the readers of Backstage Pass magazine.

So, next time you're up for something cool and crisp, set yourself or your friends up with one of these delicious drinks:

Aquatini
2 oz Absolut Citron vodka
1 oz blue curacao
1 splash sweet and sour mix
Shake with ice and strain into chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with a lemon slice.

Bikini Line
1 oz coconut rum
3/4 oz vodka
dash of grenadine
1 oz pineapple juice
Shake the liquors and pineapple juice with ice. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Drop in a dash of grenadine. Garnish with an orange wheel.

Bonecrusher
"A group of customers requested this recipe two summers ago. They still like to order it when they are feeling frisky. They claim I am the only one in the area who knows how to make it."
1/2 oz gin
1/2 oz vodka
1/2 oz triple sec
1/2 oz rum
1/4 oz grenadine syrup
1/4 lime juice
2 oz sweet and sour mix
1 oz Champagne
Combine all ingredients (except Champagne) in a cocktail shaker and shake vigorously. Pour into a tall glass, preferably a pint glass or large brandy snifter with ice, and float the champagne on top with a squeeze of lemon. Serve.

Jamaican Me Crazy
1 oz silver rum
1 oz coconut rum
1 oz creme de banane
equal parts pineapple & cranberry juices
In a tall glass combine all ingredients, balancing with the fruit juices. Garnish with a cherry & orange slice. Enjoy!

Pirate's Treasure
2 oz Captain Morgan spiced rum
1 1/2 oz Crown Royal Canadian whiskey
Coca-Cola to balance
Build over ice in a Collins glass.

Surfer On Acid
"I used to have a red-haired friend that loved 'em on ice with a little bit more pineapple."
3/4 oz Jagermeister herbal liqueur
1/2 oz Malibu coconut rum
1/2 oz pineapple juice
Shake with ice, strain into a rocks glass, and serve as a shot.

For more great recipies, and to find out more about TikiTender's incredible skills, head over to www.tikitender.com - or follow him on Twitter here.

Dock The Boats & Hit The Parties at Lake of The Ozarks

Every summer, Lake of The Ozarks continues to be one of the country's hottest "hot-boat" spots, and for good reason. Not only is this huge lake a great playground for high performance boating, there is an incredible variety of places to go and things to do throughout the region. The shores of the lake are filled with great scenery, beautiful homes and unforgettable night spots...and we want to highlight just a few. You'll not only find sports bars, tiki bars, relaxing lounge bars and hot dance clubs, you can even enjoy a comedy club or a down-home opry show.

Whether you're into live country, blues, jazz, rock-and-roll or karaoke, you'll find it. One of the most popular places is the Horny Toad at Toad Cove; originally a small Lakeside restaurant, the 30,000-square-foot waterfront entertainment complex now features the Horny Toad restaurant, Frisky Frog sports bar, and Jeremiah's nightclub not to mention an arcade, mini-mart store, gas dock and boutique shop. Peckers Dueling Piano Bar, which is owned by the Horny-Toad, is another popular nearby nightspot. With a new luxury resort and yacht club added close by, this place has it all.

The Bambooze Bar & Grill offers a tiki bar and entertainment on an outdoor stage, while the well-known Captain Ron’s offers weekly Beach Parties and Beach Volleyball, Martinis and a live Jazz Night. Like it's neighbor, the Horny Toad, The Topsider has grown into an impressive entertainment complex with six bars. Among these are a popular Tiki Bar, a fun place called The Poop Deck and a high energy dance club.

No matter what you're into, you can find it here. These are just a few of the many popular hangouts; there are many more bars, lounges, dance clubs and hot spots scattered throughout the LOTO region. Of course, during powerboat races and poker run season, these places are packed with people who are eager for a good time. One of the most popular events is the LOTO Shoot Out, the largest unsanctioned boat race in the United States, and which has been listed by Powerboat Magazine as one of the 8 “must see” boating events. It runs from August 25th through the 30th, and is hosted by Captain Ron's. You can find out all about the Shootout HERE.

PHOTO CREDITS: (top) The Horny Toad (middle) The Topsider (bottom) TLCUG.

For more information about Lake of the Ozarks' nightlife, lodging, dining and events, call 800-FUN-LAKE or visit the Lake of the Ozarks Convention & Visitor Bureau's web site at www.funlake.com.

READS: Tiki Your Way to a Summer Frame of Mind

With the weather being a little cold in some places, not everyone has been able to run their boat as much as they'd like - or even had a chance to sit around a pool or lake, sipping Coronas. But you could get in a better frame of mind with Sven Kirsten's Tiki Modern, a great follow-up to his 2003 book, The Book of Tiki. The latter was a real inspiration to me, providing the impetus to build a tiki bar and generally turn my backyard into a summertime Bali Hai playground. Well...at least as much as our Ohio climate would allow. My wife drew the line at fake palm trees, but we'll see.

The book provides about as comprehensive a look as you could ever want at this remarkable cultural phenomenon. It may seem strange to us now, but for hundreds of thousands of American servicemen who served in the South Pacific during WWII, the tiki style provided an idyllic reminder of the region's natural beauty--even as it was experienced in the midst of a brutal war. Tiki Modern, like it's predecessors, is more than just a dip into nostalgia, it's an in-depth study of pop culture, and it's a great escape from our current cool weather. Kick back with one of these books and a Zombie or Mai Tai, and your spirit will soon be drifting off into a world of palm trees, gentle surf and skimpy bikinis.

Inspired? You can also head over to the Eastside Tiki store and get yourself a shirt, or a cool clock. It's just the thing to get you and your friends back on track with your summer plans!

Desert Storm Update: Rockin' on Havasu

Offshore Powerboaters from all over the country took their shot at being named King of the Desert in the 2009 Desert Storm Poker Run Shootout on Saturday on Lake Havasu. When it was all over, Greg Olson's 33-foot Daytona Eliminator “Fatal Attraction,” took top honors with a speed of 174 mph, a new shootout record. Like every Desert Storm event, thousands of offshore fans took to the streets of Lake Havasu City to check out the boats on display during the Thursday night Street party.

PHOTO CREDITS: All story photos by SeriousOffshore.com member - Tank

One highlight of the event was seeing the amazing 44-foot-long, 14-foot-wide double-decker pontoon boat sponsored by The Naked Pirate Beach Bar at the Pirate Cove Resort. Built in less than a month, the boat's decks, uprights and finishing touches were completed in just six days, said Pirate Cove Sales Director Rob Smith. It's a Tiki-themed masterpiece, and led the parade of performance boats through the channel for the Desert Storm Event.


After its Desert Storm debut, the boat will be used strictly for promotional purposes by the new Pirate Cove Resort, which is located about two miles north of Topock Gorge off Park Moabi Road on the California side of the Colorado River. The boat will make regular weekend runs through Bridgewater Channel to advertise the resort.


Over 170 boats registered for the weekend event, coming from 18 different states and Canada, and 37 were pre-registered to take part in the shootout. ”I’m really pleased with that number," said promoter Jim Nichols with Lake Racer LLC. "I didn’t expect 150, but these are boat owners that work hard and when it comes time to play, they like to play hard.”

Thousands of spectators either lined the shores to watch or boarded their own boats filling Thompson Bay in order to get a closer look. We'd like to thank Seriousoffshore.com member Tank for posting some great photos of the happenings on the lake; these are just a few - to see more, head over to www.seriousoffshore.com and sign up!

Gettin' Down at The Docks: More Tiki Bars

A few weeks back we took a look at Tiki Bar culture here on B3 and I shared a couple of places I really like. A couple of our readers sent me some info on spots they enjoy as well, so I thought I'd post a couple up here. Like I said at the time, once you're done with your day of boating, relaxing by the dock watching the scenery and enjoying a cold one kind of go hand-in-hand. Of course, not all of these are Tiki bars in the strictest sense, but they do have the tropical, nautical feel you want when you tie up and plant yourself on a bar stool.

PHOTO CREDIT: Capt. Woody's

Mark Underwood down in Central Ohio gave us the heads up about Buckeye Lake, which is just due east of Columbus; it's a 3500-acre lake with at least 13 popular watering holes along its shores, some of which will even allow you to dock overnight and sleep on your boat. Mark specifically singled out Capt. Woodys, PaPa Boos and Island House, and sent us some pictures, too. Above is a shot of the crowd at Capt. Woody's, and below is Mark, in his very nice, old-school Velocity 30. You might very well see him at Buckeye or up on Lake Erie - one thing's for sure, you won't miss that outstanding paint job! Also, check out Mark's website here.

PHOTO CREDIT: Mark Underwood - 30velocity.com

Bob Carl from NJ said that he really enjoys the Nauti Goose, in Northeast MD, at the upper end of the Chesapeake Bay. The "Goose" is a very popular hangout for powerboaters, as evidenced by the photo just below. Another favorite, sent to us by Ed Scott in Missouri, is The Topsider [bottom photo] located at Osage Beach on Lake of The Ozarks. According to Ed, they have it all--including a pool, apparently.

PHOTO CREDITS: [above] The Nauti Goose [below] Topsiders

Thanks to everyone who sent us info and photos, we'd include them all but our space is limited. Maybe we'll do occasional updates on new places you find, or maybe at some point, even do a directory of your favorite tiki bars on the water.

Tales of The Tiki Bar

Tiki Bars and Boating are such a great combination. Let's face it, Captains aren't allowed to drink while operating, and in many bodies of water, there are other restrictions. That's why there's often nothing better at the end of a nice day of boating fun than a nice seat at a waterside tiki bar, with an ice-cold Corona, a Captain-and-Coke, or some umbrella-drink sitting there in front of you. Add some great music, a fun crowd [cue the eye candy] a nice view of the water and some fast boats, and it doesn't get much better. They don't always have to be decked out in bamboo and rattan, either -- because a good tiki bar is as much about attitude as it is about the design details.

We all have our favorite spots. The closest body of water near me is the chain of Portage Lakes, and there are several great places--though my personal hometown favorite remains The Olde Harbor Inn [below] on West Reservoir. They have a huge tiki bar that offers a great view of their deck and boat docks, and on a nice afternoon dozens of nice boats will cruise by to check the place out. Next door is another great spot -- Hook, Line and Drinkers -- which has a great vibe of its own.

PHOTO CREDIT:The Olde Harbor Inn

PHOTO CREDIT: www.kellysislandcasino.com

I can think of other wonderful places, like The Casino on Kellys Island [above] ...but I'd like to know about some of your favorites, either on or off the water. Send us a picture of you, your pals and your boat cooling off at a tiki bar you enjoy. If you have an extra Corona, send that too.