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# Don’s Own Grog
- URL: https://www.tikitimewithjeff.com/dons-own-grog/
- Published: 2026-08-14T18:00:00.000Z
- Updated: 2026-08-26T00:10:44.000Z
- Description: Entry 8 — Blackberry, nutmeg, and a dry little rum rhapsody.
- Author: Jeff York
- Tags: #3.75

Don the Beachcomber’s circa-1937 grog brought together lime, demerara, grenadine, local Leopold Brothers blackberry liqueur, three styles of rum, Angostura, and fresh nutmeg. Stasi was sadly away, but we'll get her thoughts on it eventually, I'm sure.

The Build

- Fresh lime juice
- Homeade Demerara Syrup
- Grenadine
- Leopold Brothers Rocky Mountain Blackberry Liqueur
- Chairman’s Reserve Rum
- Probitas Rum
- Hamilton 86 Demerara Rum
- Angostura bitters

Add everything to a drink-mixer tin with 12 oz crushed ice and 4–6 agitator cubes. Flash-blend and open-pour with a gated finish into a double old-fashioned glass; top with freshly grated nutmeg.

### Jeff’s Thoughts

The local Leopold Brothers blackberry liqueur was the reason to get excited before the ice even hit the tin. Nutmeg and blackberry dominated the aroma; blackberry remained the central flavor, blending with the demerara while Hamilton 86 supplied the most obvious rum voice. Lime kept the drink from becoming sweet, and the overall impression was dry—almost Merlot-like. The rum blend worked, although it read mostly as Demerara. Like Don’s original Navy Grog, it did not feel particularly “tiki” in the modern sweet-and-theatrical sense, which raised the larger question of whether Don’s drinks were often drier, more rum-forward rhapsodies than the category later became. The rating hovered between 3.5 and 4, so 3.75 preserves the indecision without pretending it never happened.

The Ratings

Jeff3.75

Overall3.75 / 5