Build over cubed ice and stir gently
Paloma
Peppery tequila, tart lime, and sparkling pink grapefruit.
Shake hard, fine-strain over fresh cubed ice, and garnish
Jungle Bird
A tropical bitter classic that balances dark molasses rum and ripe pineapple with Campari, lime, and measured demerara sweetness.
Edited by CocktailSteps Editorial Team
- Time
- 4 minutes
- Level
- Easy
- Glass
- Rocks glass
- Approx. ABV
- 14% · Medium
- Tradition
- Malaysian
- Profile
- Sweet · Sour · Bitter · Citrus
Ingredient totals
Ingredients
Amounts below make one drink. The method, Quick Check, and guided Make use these one-glass amounts.
1.5 ozBlackstrap rumRecommended brandHamilton Jamaican Pot Still Black Rum
0.75 ozCampariRecommended brandCampari Bitter
1.5 ozFresh pineapple juiceRecommended brandFresh ripe pineapple
0.5 ozFresh lime juiceRecommended brandSunkist Persian Lime
0.5 ozDemerara syrupRecipe specification2:1 demerara sugar to water, by weight
Gently warm 200 g demerara sugar with 100 g water and stir until fully dissolved; do not boil it down. Cool before measuring into the drink. This is a rich syrup: a thinner 1:1 syrup is not an equal-volume substitute. Bottled demerara syrups can have a different concentration or added gum, so check the product specification.
1 piecePineapple wedgeOptionalRecommended brandFresh ripe pineapple
Measured method · one drink
How to make Jungle Bird
These steps make one glass. For more drinks, use the ingredient totals above to set up, then repeat this method for each serving.
- 01
Measure the build
1½ oz rum · ¾ oz Campari · 1½ oz pineapple · ½ oz lime · ½ oz syrup
Add 1½ oz blackstrap rum, ¾ oz Campari, 1½ oz fresh pineapple juice, ½ oz fresh lime juice, and ½ oz demerara syrup to an ice-filled shaker.
Measure the build visual check - 02
Shake hard
Shake hard · 12 sec
Shake hard with ice for 12 seconds.
Shake hard visual check - 03
Strain over fresh ice
Fine-strain · fresh cubed ice
Fine-strain the shaken drink into a rocks glass filled with fresh cubed ice.
Strain over fresh ice visual check - 04
Add the pineapple
1 pineapple wedge
Set 1 fresh pineapple wedge securely at the rim.
Add the pineapple visual check
Shake hard with ice for 12 seconds.
AI-assisted illustration of one step. Follow the measured method above; sound is optional.Key move
Keep the pineapple and demerara measured so Campari's bitterness stays visible
Technique note
Why this build works
The Jungle Bird gives bitterness enough room to register inside a tropical build. A 1½-ounce pour of blackstrap-style rum matches the 1½ ounces of fresh pineapple, so fruit supplies body without displacing the base spirit. Campari enters at ¾ ounce, a deliberate amount that remains vivid against ½ ounce each of lime and demerara syrup. Shaking integrates the dense syrup, aerates the pineapple slightly, and chills the mixture; look for an even texture and taste after the suggested shake. Fine straining over fresh ice removes broken shaker fragments; serve promptly because the new ice continues to dilute the drink.
Common failure points
- The drink reads as sweet pineapple punch with no bitter finish.
- Measure the Campari at ¾ ounce and keep pineapple juice to 1½ ounces.
- The rum disappears behind the fruit and fresh serving ice.
- Check that the rum has the molasses intensity intended here and the juice is measured. Drain meltwater from the serving ice; the timer alone cannot control a watery result.
Measure or substitute
A dark rum can replace blackstrap at 1½ ounces, but dark color alone does not indicate molasses intensity. Our demerara syrup is 2:1 by weight. An equal volume of 1:1 simple syrup is less sweet and adds more water; treat it as an adjustment that needs tasting, not an identical replacement.
Recipe references
These references describe the drink or its ingredients. Our measured build and teaching notes are CocktailSteps adaptations; proportions and methods may differ from the reference.
Set the station
Tools
JiggerRecommended brandCocktail Kingdom Japanese Style Jigger
Cocktail shakerRecommended brandCocktail Kingdom KORIKO Shaking Tins
Fine strainerRecommended brandCocktail Kingdom COCO Mesh Cone
Rocks glassRecommended brandRIEDEL Drink Specific Rocks Glass
Choose your bottle
Bottle buying guide
Best fit is our default. Spend less with Smart buy, or choose Upgrade when you want more character.
Blackstrap rum
Campari
Know the pour
Medium
Rum and Campari remain distinct after pineapple, citrus, shaking, and serving-ice dilution.
Contains alcohol. Serve only to adults of legal drinking age and enjoy responsibly.
