The Jungle Bird was originally a welcome drink for guests at the Aviary Bar at the Kuala Lumpur Hilton in Malaysia on its opening day in 1973. It remained a staple on their menu for decades.

It was the first five-star hotel in Kuala Lumpur, so employees of the hotel were highly regarded. The original staff remembered if there were police roadblocks, they only had to show their work IDs and they would be immediately waved off- that's the level of respect the community had for the hotel.

One of the main attractions of this incredible hotel was the Aviary Bar. Travel guides marveled, "Others may prefer something more Malaysian; in the Aviary Bar you may have your drink amidst lush tropical foliage and an aviary of exotic jungle birds. Live entertainment is furnished by a jazz quartet, a trio, or a solo singer."

The original Hilton Kuala Lumpur, at Jalan Sultan Ismail, was a landmark building designed by BEP Akitek. It was renowned for its unique multi-level lobby and Minangkabau roof designs. This iconic property was demolished after Hilton ended its management agreement in 2001, moving to the new KL Sentral location in 2004.

Like other cocktails created according to the theme of their host bar, the Jungle Bird referred to the birds that you could see from inside The Aviary Bar. The Jungle Bird was also famous for its unique glassware, as the cocktail was served in a bird shaped ceramic glass with a pineapple garnish. Sadly, none survived the later destruction of the hotel in 2013 and it was assumed most were stolen before the demolition took place. The new KL. Hilton, however, kept the cocktail that the original hotel made famous... Just not the ceramic glasses!

Recipe: 1 1/2 ounces dark Jamaican rum, 3/4 ounce Campari, 1 1/2 ounces pineapple juice, 1/2 ounce fresh squeezed lime juice , 1/2 ounce simple syrup, Pineapple wedge and leaves for garnish with Maraschino cherry.

Variant recipes abound, but a quick sub for those who do not like the cocktail as bitter as the original specs is to use 4 oz of pineapple juice instead of 1 1/2 oz. Those who like the original specs will, of course, consider this an abomination.

Hamilton Pot Still Black seems to have become the default Jamaican Rum for this recipe in recent years, but many Jamaican rums have been used.

According to Jeff Berry, when the recipe called for 'dark Jamaican rum', the most likely candidate would have been the classic molasses and caramel-heavy Myers's Original Dark, which would have been the easy choice in the 1970s.

The Jungle Bird, since its rediscovery, has been embraced by the craft cocktail community and today stands as both a modern classic and as well as the national cocktail of Malaysia.

The Aviary Bar was a tiki adjacent bar in its original incarnation with foliage and birds lending a tropical aspect, and though not full-tiki, deserves an honorable mention for this cocktail and influence on later generations.

There are many bars today named "The Jungle Bird" (a tiki bar in Sacramento, a tiki bar in San Juan, and a craft cocktail bar in New York for example), owed in no small part to this one cocktail.

The modern Aviary Bar in the new Kuala Lumpur Hilton on Sentral still serves this signature drink today. There are no birds and (as far as I can tell) no foliage in this newer, sleek, and generic dark hotel bar. However, the cocktail legacy continues.