Houstonist Bartender: Zombie Punch

High humidity is right around the corner. One can either complain about it or embrace it. We choose the latter, particularly since the air gets so thick you can actually hug it. However instead of looking like fools stumbling around Memorial Park grabbing at the air, we embrace the humidity by pretending we're some place tropical and hosting a tropical party.

Good theme parties have signature drinks. We wanted something tasty and simple that was easy to serve but didn't rhyme with with margarita, mojito or daiquiri. Hours of research lead us to the Zombie and its many variations. Our requirement for mass quantities lead us to Zombie Punch.

Houstonist used the following recipe as a guide and tweaked it a bit when we couldn't find required ingredients, like a punch bowl. [Bracketed text] indicates adjustments we made. Underlined text indicates choices we made.

Zombie Punch

+ 2 cups curaçao or triple sec
+ 2 750-ml bottles gold or light rum
+ 2 cups lime juice
+ 2 cups orange juice
+ 2 cups high-proof rum
+ 2 oz Pernod [omitted]
+ 1/2 cup grenadine
+ 1 750-ml bottle dark rum
+ 1 cup lemon juice
+ 1 cup papaya or pineapple juice
+ 1 cup passion fruit juice [substituted pineapple; passion fruit was sold out]
+ pineapple slices for garnish
+ large block of ice

Mix all ingredients in a chilled punch bowl [five gallon bucket] and stir well. Refrigerate for several hours prior to serving. Float the block of ice in the bowl. Guests serve themselves. You take their keys.

Don't be a dumbass. Drink responsibly or take a cab.

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Photo: flickr user frogmuseum2.