Make Mine a Piña Colada Royale

“If only I’d thought of it first,” said every bartender, at least once.

It was how I felt back in 2019, at the Ave in Grand Cayman, when I first tasted the Escape (If You Like Piña Coladas) for the first time. The mashup of the iconic Ramos Gin Fizz and the Champagne Piña Colada from London’s Coupette was so simple, yet so clever, and it completely stole my heart (as did my now-wife, whom I also happened to meet and share this cocktail with on said trip).

The Escape is made with a house blend of white rums infused with pineapple skins and coconut, all vigorously shaken with Coco Lopez, pineapple and lime juices, then lengthened with Champagne. It’s essentially a Piña Colada Royale with a cloud-like head of tropical foam, and it was garnished with a dusting of pulverized toasted coconut flakes to mimic beach sand. It was sensational. 

But anyone who has ever attempted to enjoy colada after colada on vacation knows that consuming all that coconut cream can be a slog. 

The solution? Mini Escapes. I decided to scale down the drink, and, to make it easier for a home bartender, eliminate the rum infusion. I named my iteration the Seafire Colada, which I featured in my book, Tiny Cocktails. 

The diminutive homage to the Escape packs the same abundance of flavor as the full-fat version, but it’s lighter on its feet; sometimes, bold and rich flavors are best enjoyed in tiny doses. While, yes, the drink is sentimental for me—as an engagement gift, Ave’s beverage manager Jim Wrigley and ex–head bartender Patricio Rio mailed the cocktail (deconstructed) from Cayman to London for us to enjoy—I’m certain it could be (almost) as special for you, too.