The Jungle Bird Cocktail Balances Tropical Sweetness with Bold Bitterness

Campari isn’t usually the first ingredient that comes to mind when discussing tropical cocktails, but it’s an integral component in the Jungle Bird, which pairs the Italian bitter liqueur with dark rum, lime juice, pineapple juice, and simple syrup. The resulting drink is bittersweet, fruity, balanced, and refreshing.

The Jungle Bird was invented by bartender Jeffrey Ong in the 1970s at the Kuala Lumpur Hilton in Malaysia. The hotel’s bar was named The Aviary, which led to the cocktail’s avian theme.

The drink made its first appearance in print in 1989 in John J. Poister’s The New American Bartender’s Guide, but achieved its modern fame in 2003 when Jeff “Beachbum” Berry included the recipe in Intoxica!, his chronicle of classic tropical drinks.

Over the past few decades, the Jungle Bird’s profile has grown significantly. It has become a staple at many rum-focused establishments and bars that feature fruit-forward tropical drinks. The Jungle Bird’s combination of tropical fruit and bitter liqueur has also become a common template for bartenders to experiment with.

Why the Jungle Bird works

Campari and other bitter liqueurs aren’t commonly used in tropical cocktails, but in this recipe, it makes perfect sense. Pineapple juice tends to be on the sweeter side of fruit juices, and even when paired with the more acidic lime juice, it can drown out other cocktail ingredients. The bracing bitterness of Campari acts as a counterweight to the fruit juice, balancing the sweetness of the pineapple while highlighting the citrus notes of the Campari. This gives the cocktail an almost grapefruit-like balance of bitter and sweet with a similar rosy orange hue.

The choice of rum used in the Jungle Bird can also have a major impact on the flavor profile of the finished drink. Campari and pineapple juice are strong flavors, so selecting a hefty, full-flavored rum is highly recommended. An aged, pot-distilled Jamaican rum with a decent amount of funk is an excellent choice. Blackstrap rum, with its rich notes of caramelized sugar, is commonly used as well.