It does not contain blood or anything from tigers.[2][1] The flavor is a combination of strawberry, watermelon, and a smaller amount of coconut,[1][2] though some syrup makers have slightly different recipes and add other flavors like cherry.[4]
Though the flavor is strongly associated with Hawaiʻi, some think it originated in Texas in the 1980s.[4] However, ads from the area at the time make clear the connection to Hawaiʻi,[5] and the flavor was still considered exotic in Texas into the next decade.[6] Also in the mid 1980's tiger blood was appearing in Utah and South Carolina along with imaginative flavors like "rock & roll" and "popeye".[7][8] In 1977 the flavor was in Missouri at a New Orleans-style shave-ice shop.[9]
References
^ abcAllen, Kevin (1 July 2019). "11 Unusual Shave Ice Flavors Visitors Have To Try in Hawaiʻi". Hawaiʻi Magazine. Honolulu, HI: aio Media Group. Archived from the original on 26 October 2021. Retrieved 29 May 2023. 3. Tiger's Blood Tiger's Blood is a great name for a shave ice flavor because it could also be a heavy metal band (it's actually the name of a heavy metal band's album). But don't worry: No tigers were actually hurt in the making of this flavor. It's just a mixture of strawberry, watermelon and a splash of coconut. Get it at Ululani's Hawaiian Shave Ice on Maui and other shave ice shops in Hawaiʻi.
^Jean, Sheryl (13 June 1993). "Chill Mills". Spartanburg Herald-Journal. Spartanburg, SC. p. A1. Retrieved 7 August 2023.
^Bridenbaker, James (11 April 1985). "Snow in Moab". The Times-Independent. Moab, Utah. p. 2. Archived from the original on 27 July 2023. Retrieved 27 July 2023.
^"New Orleans Shaved Ice". Saint Charles Journal. 22 June 1977. p. 41. Archived from the original on 30 July 2023. Retrieved 27 July 2023.