Bahama Mama

History

The bartender most associated with this cocktail is Oswald "Slade" Greenslade, who was born in the Bahamas and worked at the Pink Elephant nightclub. This is where he claims to have created this cocktail in 1963 for three women at his bar who wanted something fruity they'd never had before.

Some question Slade's claims, saying the cocktail appeared on menus in the 1940s-50s, although I've not yet seen evidence of such a menu. However, in September 2024, Slade sent us his original recipe and the story of his Bahama Mama.

Oswald Greenslade's Bahama Mama recipe
1¼ oz Dark Bacardi
1¼ oz Coconut Rum
1 oz Grendene
2 oz Pineapple juice
2 oz Orange juice
4 oz Cracked ice
Shake well and pour into a 12 oz cocktail glass.
Garnish with pineapple, orange slice and cherry.

Working at a nightclub called the Pink Elephant as a bartender in 1963, three tourists sat at my bar and asked me to make them a unique, fruity cocktail. So, I decided to take them up on the challenge and came up with the recipe above. They tasted the cocktail and exclaimed that it tasted good. And, they asked me, what was the name of the cocktail and I told them that I didn't know. A short while later, a Bahamian calypso singer named Morene Duvalier, with the stage name Bahama Mama, came into the bar. I immediately said let's name the cocktail after her stage name. Later, I was informed that the tourist went to the Ministry of Tourism and spoke highly of the cocktail that I created. The Ministry of Tourism told me that they will promote the drink as something for tourists to try when coming to The Bahamas. And, the rest, as they say, is history.

Oswald Greenslade, 2024