Shark Bite
What is Shark Bite?
Shark Bite is a cocktail made from spiced and light rum, sour mix, and blue curaçao. Additionally, grenadine is added as a sweetener and to provide the color effect. The drink has a spicy flavor with hints of orange, citrus, and berry.
- The color of the cocktail is ocean blue with red streaks, resembling blood in the water as if a shark has bitten someone.
- It is considered to be a fun cocktail suitable for beach or poolside parties. Also, it is popular at Halloween parties.
The top 10 most popular rum cocktails are:
- Daiquiri
- Mai Tai
- Piña Colada
- Dark ‘N Stormy
- Jungle Bird
- Coquito
- El Floridita (Hemingway Daiquiri)
- The Painkiller
- Mojito
- Eggnog Punch
Origin of shark bite
This is a cocktail that is a variant of Shark Tooth, a cocktail that was popular during the Tiki age. The template for these types of cocktails was developed by Donn Beach. It is possible that the drink was invented around the 1940s. The first written record of this recipe is from Grog Log, a book by Jeff Berry published in 1998.
Nutrition
Nutritional profile for Shark Bite (1 glass):
Though the pomegranates in the grenadine syrup may help in preventing or reducing certain conditions such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol, oxidative stress, hyperglycemia, and inflammation, the high sugar content may be a concern. Furthemore, overconsumption of large amounts of alcohol can lead to several health problems, including affecting the brain’s functioning patterns and general lowering of immunity. Liver cirrhosis, pancreatitis, high blood pressure, stroke, and different types of cancers can also result from drinking too many cocktails.
Commercial production
To prepare Shark Bite, the main ingredients required are spiced rum, light rum, sour mix, blue curaçao, and grenadine syrup. The grenadine syrup needs to be thick and viscous. First, a cocktail shaker is filled with ice and all the ingredients besides the grenadine syrup are added. Then, the cocktail is shaken well to mix and poured into a glass. A few drops of grenadine syrup is dropped in for the blood effect. This cocktail is usually served in an old fashioned glass.
Shark bite recipes
This cocktail is a visual treat and looks stunning. There are a few versions of this drink. Here are a few recipes to try:
FDA regulations
Blue Curaçao is classified by the TTB as a liqueur/cordial, and is defined as an orange flavored liqueur or cordial. Rum is defined as spirit distilled from the fermented juice of sugarcane with less than 95% ABV. It must be bottled at no less than 40% ABV. Also, grenadine syrup is defined as a syrup or beverage obtained from fruit juices and sugar syrup, in which the characteristic flavor may be obtained from a mixture of blackcurrant juice and other fruit juices.
References
Mai-Kai cocktail review: Find out what makes the Shark Bite so Jawesome, The Atomic Grog, http://www.slammie.com/atomicgrog/blog/2011/08/17/mai-kai-cocktail-review-what-makes-the-shark-bite-so-jawesome/
Zarfeshany, Aida et al. “Potent health effects of pomegranate.” Advanced biomedical research vol. 3 100. 25 Mar. 2014, doi:10.4103/2277-9175.129371, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4007340/