Origin of Cocktail Umbrellas
Ask Yahoo! answers the question “who came up with the idea of putting paper umbrellas in cocktails?” Some of you know-it-alls might immediately answer Trader Vic’s, but don’t be so sure. It could’ve been Don the Beachcomber instead. Even more interestingly, the kickass site The Straight Dope tried to answer this question six years ago.
August 18th, 2006 at 5:36 pm
And to muddy the waters even further:
“Rumor has it that Harry Yee, ‘The Dean of Hawaiian Bartenders’ was the first mixologist to garnish a drink with an orchid (in 1955) and a paper parasol (in 1959).
-From Beachbum Berry’s “Intoxica!”
Far be it from me to dispute a source as well-regarded as the Beachbum, but I find this somewhat doubtful…if only for the date. 1959 seems very late for the first appearance of a paper umbrella in a drink. Given that Don the Beachcomber’s was around since the mid-30’s (and Trader Vic’s soon thereafter), I’m inclined to think it appeared in drinks well before ‘59.
August 18th, 2006 at 11:40 pm
I have also heard the Harry Yee story. I think Harry Yee believes he invented it first, so I’ll go with that.