A jungle bird is a happy bird and this sunny cocktail is no exception. Its tropical notes make you want to put on your Carmen Miranda hat and hit the streets to dance the night away.
It’s said to have been first concocted during the 1970s in the Hilton Hotel, Kuala Lumpur, and is one of the more refreshing and fun drinks you can have. Great for summer, its tropical flavour is reminiscent of humid nights and hip shaking bars.
The ingredients themselves are interesting. Combining Campari with dark rum and tropical lime and pineapple juices, it’s sweetened with simple syrup and shaken with ice.
According to Eat Drink Hilton, the Jungle Bird’s popularity grew when it featured in the New America Bartenders’ Guid in the late 1980s, which exposed the cocktail exposure to a much wider audience. It caught on and soon after, bars around the world started featuring it in their cocktail menus.
Strain into a fun glass or Tiki cup and get those tropical dance shoes on. I think it’s time for a comeback.
Recipe first published in November 2021 and updated in May 2025.
The Jungle Bird
Course: Cocktails, Featured, RecipeDifficulty: Easy1
serving5
minutesYou will need
40ml dark rum
20ml Campari
15ml lime juice
15ml simple syrup
40ml pineapple juice
Pineapple wedge to garnish
Here’s what to do
- Add all ingredients to a cocktail shaker with ice.
- Shake well to chill completely.
- Strain over ice into a straight sided tumbler.
- Garnish with a pineapple wedge (and pineapple leaves if you have them so it resembles a bird’s tail).
Tips and tricks
- Simple Syrup is just a syrup made from equal parts sugar and water, simmered for five minutes so the sugar dissolves, then cooled. It can be kept in a jar in the fridge for 3-6 months.
Like this Jungle Bird? Here are some more to try.
The classic Cosmopolitan. Another fresh and fruity take, with that hint of lime and cranberry juice.
Well known and very well loved, here’s a classic Espresso Martini.
Pingback: The wonderful, classic Cosmopolitan Cocktail - The Infatuated Foodie