Uncle George's
Lost Tiki Cocktail Recipe
Escalating hints for each step of Uncle George's Lost Tiki Cocktail Recipe Hamper:
The brass lock shaped like a fish can be opened using the key inside the brown string-and-button envelope on the top of the hamper. There is a note attached to the key reading, "Fin & Eye". The key hole is hidden under a swiveling pectoral fin, and the eye of the fish on the reverse side needs to be pressed in, (like a button), while the key is turned. Hence the "Fin & Eye" note.
Listen with sound for verbal instructions
There are 3 containers labeled [icon-tikitag1]: A basket of bar snacks, a brown striped sack with candle supplies, and a long brown striped sack with a gold lock. Light the candle using the included book of matches. In order to open the gold lock, look to the book of matches.
If you are in a location where you can not light the candle, perhaps because you are in high wind, or in a dorm room, or a government building, then you can open the included small wooden box in the same sack as the candle supplies. Inside is a note directing you to a website with a video of what the burning candle looks like.
The book of matches has a poem on the outside indicating the inside of the matchbook. The inside flap has a QR code on it. If you point the camera of your reasonably-modern-cell-phone at it, it should take you to this webpage. Play the music mix you find on that page. You can just play it from your phone speakers, or a fancy bluetooth speaker if you prefer. There are no clues or anything like that in the music, but it will set the right tone for your evening. (The candle, on the other hand, might be important later.) On that webpage, below the music player, is a clue you need to open the locked sack labeled #1.
On that webpage, there is a small photo of the gold lock and 3D-style picture of green bits. When the image is clicked and dragged, it should rotate and align to reveal the combination code to the gold lock on the locked bag labeled #1.
The code to the gold lock is 8-8-8.
Get in the Tiki mood by playing some relaxing tunes and illuminating gentle lighting. Munch on some bar snacks, such as salted macadamia nuts. (You should find a link to music, snacks, and candle in the hamper)
You should find 2 items labeled with this number. A locked laser-cut wooden box, and a rolled bundle of coconut fiber matting with a special item inside (a Tiki totem figure). The Tiki Totem is the key to unlocking the wooden box.
There is an engraved symbol pairing between both objects: The bottom of the Tiki Totem statue and the outer lid of the locked box. A metaphorical ellipse will open the box.
Putting the bottom of the wooden totem near the sun symbol on the built-in box will make a clicking sound as the magnetically-triggered lock unlatches. Continue to hold the totem in proximity while you lift the lid.
Obtain a tall clear glass, ideally, tiki-themed. (two glasses are included in the hamper)
There are 3 items labeled with this number: 2 small unlocked suede-leather sacks (green and blue), and a brown & gold swirly locked sack. Use the items in the unlocked sacks to find the combination code to the locked sack.
In the leather sacks, you should have 2 parts to 2 coasters. Put the inter-nesting parts together and spin them around to make the waves match up. Make sure the green paint on both parts is facing the same direction. Once properly aligned, a short word is revealed. This is your combination.
Rotating the disc of the coaster around should read, "TiDE." This is the combination code to unlock the large pink sack. Use these coaster for your upcoming drink!
Add 2 oz of Malibu Rum or non-alcoholic Seedlip Grove 42 to your tiki glass. (both of which are included in the hamper, and are sold at most liquior stores for future needs)
[icon-Color] The liquid should be clear. [icon-tikiClear]
There are 2 items marked with this number: A brown sack containing a kukui nut lei, and a locked banana pouch. How might the beaded lei necklace hold a 3-digit number? A green line on the yellow lock marks the position where the numerical wheels should line up.
The kukui nut beads are in 3 groups. Each group of beads is a digit in the combination lock on the banana pouch.
The combination to the yellow, 3-digit lock on the banana pouch is: 7-5-7. The green line on the lock shows were these numbers should line up.
Add 3/64 tsp of Red Cabbage Powder and stir to mix.
(This is pre-measured and ready to use in the hamper, but for future use, this powder can be purchased on Amazon, as well as cute little measuring spoons are used to measure one scoop of 1/64 tsp and one scoop of 1/32 tsp.)
[icon-Color] The liquid should be red. [icon-tikiRed]
There is one pouch labeled with this tag, and it's a blue and yellow palm tree print. There is a bottle inside and a note.
You should genuinely follow the instructions to add one ounce of NaOH solution to a rum drink and two ounce to a Seedlip drink. The alkaline ions will be largely canceled out by the next ingredient. If you have spilled the 1000ppm solution, don't panic. It's quite diluted for your safety. If some as been spilled on skin, wash it thoroughly with water and/or rinse with Vinegar and then water.
If you are making a rum drink, add 1 oz of 1000PPM NaOH solution.
If you are making a non-alcoholic Seedlip drink, add 2 oz of 1000PPM NaOH solution.
(This solution is included in the hamper, but for future needs: In order to make the 1000PPM NaOH (aka Lye) stock solution, add 1g of NaOH to 1 litter of distilled water. If you use tap water, the NaOH will react with the calcium and produce an unsightly white precipitate, so distilled water from the grocery store is a better choice. In the absence of a gram scale, it's hard to use volumetric measurements for NaOH because it's sold in many different pellet sizes. For the particular product from amazon used here, one gram is about 15% less than 1/4 tsp.
The lye solution not only allows for the dramatic color-change reaction, but it also improves the taste of the cocktail. Without it, the juice added later is a bit too tart.)
[icon-Color] The liquid should be dark blue with hint of green. [icon-tikiBlue]
There are 2 items marked with this number: A locked treasure chest and a zipped coconut container. Inside the coconut are dominoes with stickers. Playing with the dominoes will reveal the code to the combination lock.
Arrange the magenta dominoes separate from the yellow, and the green dominoes. You may notice that their are half-fruits on some edges of the dominoes. Try to make the fruits whole.
Arranging all the magenta dominoes so that the pictures on the junctions connect will make a shape just like the number four. Do the same for the other 2 colors.
The magenta dominoes make a 4, the yellow dominoes make a 3, and the green ones make a 0. The black combination lock is painted with these 3 colors, and putting in the corresponding numbers makes 4-3-0. This will open the lock.
Add 1/2 cup (about 4 oz, or half a Gina-Brand can) of Calamansi Juice.
(If you need to buy more in the future, this juice is for sale in the Asian foods aisle of Woodman's grocery store, but can also be found on Amazon. Stores catering to Philippino cuisine should carry this.)
[icon-Color] The liquid should be pink. [icon-tikiPink] This is the final color.
There is just one item in the crate with this number: A one-cup scooper with a riddle attached. This is the only ingredient which you need to gather from your home because it's not included in the hamper. The riddle reads: One scoop of that which gets wetter the longer it basks in the sun. Here is another hint: Its also lighter than that which its made from.
The riddle is referring to the next ingredient, which is very common in many cocktails. It's the substance referred to by, "on the rocks."
Add a scoop of ICE to your cocktail (the exact amount of ice is not critical). Hopefully you have some ice at home. Ice cubes melt in the sun (and thus become wetter). Ice is less dense than water, (hence 'lighter than that which its made from'), which is unusual for most substances.
Add ice to your cocktail.
There is just one item with this number: A small wooden box with a flip-open lid containing an eyedropper bottle and a riddle with instructions about what to do next. The riddle reads:
For the missing piece I would delve
Rife recipe books to reshelve
Gave me the jitters
Solved by bitters
The ace number of drops is ______
The blank spot at the end is the number of drops of bitters that you should add. It is a number that rhymes with 'delve' and 'reshelve'.
The answer is twelve. Add 12 drops of Bitters to your drink.
Add 12 drops of Bitterman's Elemakule Tiki Bitters.
(For future needs: This is sold at Woodman's Grocery store, but also on Amazon. If needed, you could probably substitute a different brand of bitters.)
There is one item with this step number: a black wooden box with a canister and a blue padlock. The canister can be opened by twisting off the top or the bottom. Inside is riddle reading, "Your Tiki drink is not complete. Without adornment, it’s deplete. For the drink’s climax, Look to the hot wax. Then unlock to finish your treat."
This riddle is referring to another item from the hamper from an earlier step that must be used use to solve the lock code.
The blue combination lock is a 4-directional lock with these manufacturer instructions on the back: "Squeeze the shackle firmly toward the lock twice and release to “clear” the lock each time before opening it." So, before trying any prospective code, make sure to 'click' the shackle a couple times. It should make a satisfying click when you depress it. If it doesn't, make sure the string isn't stuck in between the shackle and the lock body.
The other item you need was from step one ("hot wax").
If you were unable to light the candle because you are in a location that forbids open flame, then you should have opened the small sliding-lid box with the LED tea light candle and seen the note directing you to this website.
Hopefully the candle from step one has been burning long enough now that the wax has melted and turned clear. The clear wax reveals a donut shaped piece of paper:
The message hides another code that you can use to open the directional lock on the basket.
The bolded letters with the 4-word message read: Right, Up, Up, Down. Remember the lock instructions on the lock back: the shackle loop must be clicked into the body of the lock twice before entering the code. Slide the blue central disk to the right, then let it return to it's neutral position. Then slide it up and let it return. Then up again. Then down. Here is a video showing how to open this type of lock.
Opening the lock will allow you to un-thread the leather loop from the hasp and open the black box.
Inside the black wooden box is a cloth zippered sack that is locked. There is also an attached key chain with a URL and QR code both leading to K8Baldwin.com/TikiWin. Visiting this URL should bring you to a short online quiz. Successfully completing the quiz will let you submit the email form, which will give you the code to the combination lock on the sack.
The quiz answers are:
#1. What is the reason for "Cala" in the name of the Calamorpho Cocktail?
- Calamansi Fruit Juice
#2. Does the Calamorpho Cocktail contain animal parts?
- No, it's vegan
#3. Why did I travel to Hawaii every year?
- To relax and recharge in one of the most beautiful locations on earth (The 'volcano water' was a fictional excuse.)
#4. What is the procession of colors that the drink underwent through the various steps of making it?
- Clear to Red to Blue to Pink
Correctly completing the quiz should show a link to the email form, and after submitting, you are redirected to: K8Baldwin.com/Tiki/Winners, where this image is shown:
4-5-7 is the combination code to the lock on the cloth sack.
The winners page also lists past winners, player photos, and links to all the game webpages.
Add an anise star, a decorative straw, some fruit, and any other decorations on hand!
[icon-Color] The cocktail should be be an appealing pink color. [icon-tikiPink]
Need more help? Text: Seven Zero Eight, Four Two Six, 6 0 5 8 or Email: Kate@K8Baldwin.com