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Spirit collection

Rum Cocktails

Rum is the most versatile bottle on the shelf: white rum keeps daiquiris and mojitos crisp, gold and aged rums deepen an El Presidente or a rum Old Fashioned, and dark rum drives the tiki canon from the Mai Tai to the Zombie.

65guided recipesml + ozprecise specs

Start with the Daiquiri — three ingredients, nowhere to hide — then work outward. Every recipe here shows exact ml and oz specs and can walk you through each pour, shake and garnish.

Mojito in a tall straight-sided highball glass styled in a quiet harbor rum bar with salt-worn timber, limewashed walls and one blurred rope detail.

Mojito

MediumMuddledMuddled

The traditional Cuban-style mojito: a whole lime in wedges, fresh mint and sugar muddled right in the glass, then rum, a mountain of ice and sparkling water. Press the mint gently instead of pulverizing it, and yours will beat most bar versions.

Piña Colada in a curved hurricane glass styled in a quiet harbor rum bar with salt-worn timber, limewashed walls and one blurred rope detail.

Piña Colada

MediumShakenTropical

The piña colada is rum, pineapple and coconut — Puerto Rico’s gift to summer. No blender needed: shaken hard and poured over crushed ice it comes out creamy, frothy and better balanced than most frozen versions.

Daiquiri in a clear shallow coupe styled in a quiet harbor rum bar with salt-worn timber, limewashed walls and one blurred rope detail.

Daiquiri

StrongShakenSour

Forget the frozen slush machine — the real daiquiri is white rum, lime and sugar, shaken ice-cold and served straight up. It is the drink bartenders order to judge other bartenders, and you can make it on your first try.

Dark 'n' Stormy in a tall straight-sided highball glass styled in a quiet harbor rum bar with salt-worn timber, limewashed walls and one blurred rope detail.

Dark 'n' Stormy

MediumBuilt in glassHighball

The Dark 'n' Stormy is dark rum poured over spicy ginger beer so it drifts down like a storm cloud — Bermuda's national drink. Two ingredients plus lime, and it looks far more impressive than the effort involved.

Cuba Libre in a tall straight-sided highball glass styled in a quiet harbor rum bar with salt-worn timber, limewashed walls and one blurred rope detail.

Cuba Libre

MediumBuilt in glassHighball

A Cuba Libre is rum and cola done properly: fresh lime juice turns a basic mixer drink into a real cocktail. It takes two minutes and needs nothing but a tall glass.

Rum Punch in a tall straight-sided highball glass styled in an airy tropical hotel bar with irregular off-white plaster, rattan shadow and honey limestone.

Rum Punch

LightBuilt in glassTropical

A classic Caribbean-style rum punch: dark rum, two juices, lime and a little grenadine for color. It is built straight in the glass, scales up beautifully, and is the crowd-pleaser of this whole collection.

Hemingway Daiquiri in a clear shallow coupe styled in a quiet colonial gallery bar with worn cane furniture, dark mahogany and cream shutters.

Hemingway Daiquiri

StrongShakenSour

Papa’s daiquiri: white rum with lime, grapefruit and a touch of maraschino — drier and more complex than the original. Also called the Papa Doble.

Mai Tai in a heavy low rocks glass styled in a lived-in Cuban veranda with aged mineral plaster, a soft off-centre shutter and worn dark wood.

Mai Tai

StrongShakenTropical

The tiki icon done right: aged and gold rum, orange liqueur, almondy orgeat and plenty of lime, over crushed ice. Rich, nutty and citrusy — no fruit-juice slush required.

Painkiller in a curved hurricane glass styled in an airy tropical hotel bar with irregular off-white plaster, rattan shadow and honey limestone.

Painkiller

MediumShakenTropical

Dark rum, pineapple, orange and coconut cream — the Caribbean beach in a glass, dusted with nutmeg. Creamy, tropical and aptly named.

Jungle Bird in a heavy low rocks glass styled in a lived-in Cuban veranda with aged mineral plaster, a soft off-centre shutter and worn dark wood.

Jungle Bird

MediumShakenTropical

The tiki drink that took a bitter turn: dark rum and Campari with pineapple and lime. Tropical and bittersweet, and completely modern-feeling.

Hurricane in a curved hurricane glass styled in a shaded island courtyard bar with faded sea-green render, old terrazzo and a single palm shadow.

Hurricane

MediumShakenTropical

New Orleans’ big red party drink: light and dark rum with passion fruit, citrus and a little grenadine. Fruity, boozy and dangerously easy.

Zombie in a curved hurricane glass styled in a quiet harbor rum bar with salt-worn timber, limewashed walls and one blurred rope detail.

Zombie

StrongShakenTropical

Don the Beachcomber’s legendary knockout: three rums, lime, grenadine and spice over crushed ice. Famously limited to two per customer.

Blue Hawaii in a curved hurricane glass styled in a shaded island courtyard bar with faded sea-green render, old terrazzo and a single palm shadow.

Blue Hawaii

MediumShakenTropical

Rum, blue curaçao and pineapple — the tiki drink the color of a Hawaiian sea. Sweet, tropical and very blue.

Planter’s Punch in a curved hurricane glass styled in a quiet colonial gallery bar with worn cane furniture, dark mahogany and cream shutters.

Planter’s Punch

MediumShakenTropical

Dark rum with citrus, a little grenadine and bitters — the original Jamaican punch. “One of sour, two of sweet, three of strong, four of weak.”

Bahama Mama in a curved hurricane glass styled in a quiet harbor rum bar with salt-worn timber, limewashed walls and one blurred rope detail.

Bahama Mama

MediumShakenTropical

Two rums with pineapple, orange, coconut and grenadine — the Bahamas in a tall glass. Sweet and unabashedly tropical.

Airmail in a large stemmed balloon wine glass styled in a shaded island courtyard bar with faded sea-green render, old terrazzo and a single palm shadow.

Airmail

MediumShakenSparkling

A rum Bee’s Knees lifted with champagne — aged rum, lime and honey, topped with bubbles. Celebratory and bright.

Old Cuban in a clear shallow coupe styled in an airy tropical hotel bar with irregular off-white plaster, rattan shadow and honey limestone.

Old Cuban

MediumShakenSparkling

Audrey Saunders’ dressed-up mojito: aged rum, lime, mint and bitters shaken and topped with champagne. Elegant and sparkling.

Fog Cutter in a tall straight-sided highball glass styled in an intimate cellar salon with limewashed masonry, old oak and tarnished copper.

Fog Cutter

StrongShakenTropical

Rum, cognac and gin in one glass sounds like a dare. Orange, lemon and orgeat smooth it over so completely that the first sip tastes like breakfast juice. That is the trap, and Trader Vic said as much himself.

Scorpion in a tall straight-sided highball glass styled in a small French café bar with aged mirror, zinc counter and cream-painted wood.

Scorpion

MediumShakenTropical

Almost a Fog Cutter without the gin, and with twice the orange juice. Rounder and juicier, and quietly holding 75 ml of rum and cognac under all that fruit.

Navy Grog in a heavy low rocks glass styled in a quiet colonial gallery bar with worn cane furniture, dark mahogany and cream shutters.

Navy Grog

StrongShakenTropical

Drier than almost anything else carrying a tiki name: three rums, grapefruit, lime and just 15 ml of honey syrup to hold it together. The sweetness stops where the rum starts, which is why people who say they dislike tiki drinks usually like this one.

Rum Runner in a tall straight-sided highball glass styled in an old cane-house bar with pale rough plaster, honeyed wood and a distant slatted window.

Rum Runner

LightShakenTropical

Fruit does the talking here, but the 30 ml of gold rum and 22 ml of raspberry liqueur are doing the work. Sweet, and stronger than the color lets on.

Rum Old Fashioned in a heavy low rocks glass styled in an old cane-house bar with pale rough plaster, honeyed wood and a distant slatted window.

Rum Old Fashioned

StrongStirredSpirit-forward

Same formula as the whiskey version: spirit, sugar, bitters, one large cube. Aged rum answers differently, though. Molasses and vanilla sit where rye's pepper would be, and it lands softer without going slack.

Rum Sour in a heavy low rocks glass styled in a quiet harbor rum bar with salt-worn timber, limewashed walls and one blurred rope detail.

Rum Sour

StrongShakenSour

Sixty milliliters of gold rum to 22 of lemon and 15 of syrup runs drier than the textbook 2:1:1 sour, which is the right call when the base already brings its own caramel. Shake it until the tin hurts to hold.

Ti’ Punch in a heavy low rocks glass styled in a lived-in Cuban veranda with aged mineral plaster, a soft off-centre shutter and worn dark wood.

Ti’ Punch

StrongStirredSour

The everyday drink of the French Caribbean: rum, a coin of lime and a little cane syrup, stirred and sipped neat. “Chacun prépare sa propre mort.”

Nuclear Daiquiri in a clear shallow coupe styled in an airy tropical hotel bar with irregular off-white plaster, rattan shadow and honey limestone.

Nuclear Daiquiri

StrongShakenSour

A ferociously good overproof daiquiri turbocharged with green Chartreuse. Bright green, potent and not for the faint-hearted.

Queen’s Park Swizzle in a tall straight-sided highball glass styled in an airy tropical hotel bar with irregular off-white plaster, rattan shadow and honey limestone.

Queen’s Park Swizzle

StrongMuddledMuddled

A Trinidadian showpiece: mint and lime swizzled with rum over crushed ice, crowned with a dark cap of Angostura. As pretty as a mojito, with more depth.

Knickerbocker in a clear shallow coupe styled in a shaded island courtyard bar with faded sea-green render, old terrazzo and a single palm shadow.

Knickerbocker

StrongShakenSour

Raspberry and orange liqueur ride on a base of gold rum, with lime doing the cutting. It reads fruity for a second and then turns dry, because there is barely a splash of each sweetener. Older than most drinks people call classic.

Rum Daisy in a heavy low rocks glass styled in a lived-in Cuban veranda with aged mineral plaster, a soft off-centre shutter and worn dark wood.

Rum Daisy

StrongShakenSour

Grenadine and a splash of orange liqueur turn a plain rum sour red and take the corners off it, which is all a daisy ever was: a sour with something sweet and brightly colored standing in for the sugar.

Mary Pickford in a clear shallow coupe styled in an old cane-house bar with pale rough plaster, honeyed wood and a distant slatted window.

Mary Pickford

StrongShakenTropical

A Prohibition-era Havana drink named for the silent-film star: white rum with pineapple, grenadine and a touch of maraschino. Pink and juicy.

El Presidente in a clear shallow coupe styled in a quiet harbor rum bar with salt-worn timber, limewashed walls and one blurred rope detail.

El Presidente

StrongShakenSpirit-forward

The elegant house drink of 1920s Havana: white rum with blanc vermouth, orange curaçao and a drop of grenadine. Dry, golden and refined.

Beachcomber in a clear shallow coupe styled in a lived-in Cuban veranda with aged mineral plaster, a soft off-centre shutter and worn dark wood.

Beachcomber

StrongShakenSour

Swap a Daiquiri's sugar for orange liqueur, add a bar spoon of maraschino, and this is where you land. Drier than the Daiquiri and considerably more aromatic. Most people can't name the cherry-stone note underneath, and 4 ml of it is plenty.

Bacardi Cocktail in a clear shallow coupe styled in a lived-in Cuban veranda with aged mineral plaster, a soft off-centre shutter and worn dark wood.

Bacardi Cocktail

StrongShakenSour

Pink and sharply limey, this is a Daiquiri with grenadine where the sugar should be. Which makes the syrup you pour the entire difference between a good one and cough medicine.

Hotel Nacional in a clear shallow coupe styled in a shaded island courtyard bar with faded sea-green render, old terrazzo and a single palm shadow.

Hotel Nacional

StrongShakenTropical

Apricot is what separates this from a pineapple Daiquiri, and it is doing more than the small measure suggests — it gives the rum a stone-fruit weight the pineapple alone never reaches. Only 22 ml of juice goes in against 15 of lime, so it stays sharp and dry.

Kingston Negroni in a heavy low rocks glass styled in an airy tropical hotel bar with irregular off-white plaster, rattan shadow and honey limestone.

Kingston Negroni

StrongStirredSpirit-forward

A Negroni built on funky Jamaican rum instead of gin — same bitter-sweet balance, with tropical, molasses depth.

Rum Manhattan in a clear shallow coupe styled in a quiet harbor rum bar with salt-worn timber, limewashed walls and one blurred rope detail.

Rum Manhattan

StrongShakenSpirit-forward

Aged rum at two parts to one of sweet vermouth, the Manhattan's own proportion rather than the equal-parts split a Palmetto takes. Angostura keeps the dry line. Cane sugar and oak stand where the rye's pepper used to be.

Palmetto in a clear shallow coupe styled in a shaded island courtyard bar with faded sea-green render, old terrazzo and a single palm shadow.

Palmetto

StrongShakenSpirit-forward

One measure of aged rum, one of sweet vermouth, and orange bitters where a Manhattan would take Angostura. Vermouth gets an equal say, so the drink runs rounder and gentler, brown sugar and dried fruit in place of rye's pepper.

Yellow Bird in a clear shallow coupe styled in an old cane-house bar with pale rough plaster, honeyed wood and a distant slatted window.

Yellow Bird

StrongShakenSour

Galliano is the whole point and also the whole risk. Fifteen milliliters threads vanilla and anise through the rum and lime; thirty turns the glass into a licorice bomb. Measure it rather than free-pouring.

Goombay Smash in a tall straight-sided highball glass styled in a shaded island courtyard bar with faded sea-green render, old terrazzo and a single palm shadow.

Goombay Smash

MediumStirredTropical

A Bahamian beach classic: two rums with orange curaçao, pineapple and orange. Sunny, fruity and deceptively strong.

Bermuda Rum Swizzle in a tall straight-sided highball glass styled in a quiet harbor rum bar with salt-worn timber, limewashed walls and one blurred rope detail.

Bermuda Rum Swizzle

MediumStirredTropical

Bermuda’s national drink: dark rum swizzled with pineapple, orange, lime and grenadine over crushed ice. A whole beach in a glass.

Honeysuckle in a clear shallow coupe styled in a shaded island courtyard bar with faded sea-green render, old terrazzo and a single palm shadow.

Honeysuckle

StrongShakenSour

A Daiquiri with honey in place of the sugar, and the difference is as much texture as flavor. Honey thickens the drink slightly and leaves a floral note the lime can't scrub off. Thin it with warm water first, or it will seize in a cold shaker.

Daiquiri No. 2 in a clear shallow coupe styled in a lived-in Cuban veranda with aged mineral plaster, a soft off-centre shutter and worn dark wood.

Daiquiri No. 2

StrongShakenTropical

Orange juice does something odd to a Daiquiri. It pushes the lime into the background and lets the rum's sweetness sit forward, so what you get is less bracing than the original and rather better suited to the middle of the afternoon.

El Floridita in a clear shallow coupe styled in a lived-in Cuban veranda with aged mineral plaster, a soft off-centre shutter and worn dark wood.

El Floridita

StrongShakenSour

The Havana bar’s signature daiquiri riff: white rum with a touch of sweet vermouth, curaçao, lime and grenadine. Dry and ruby-tinged.

Quarterdeck in a clear shallow coupe styled in a quiet harbor rum bar with salt-worn timber, limewashed walls and one blurred rope detail.

Quarterdeck

StrongShakenSour

Sherry in a rum drink sounds like a stretch until you taste it. Dry, nutty and only just sour, with 8 ml of lime doing the work you would normally hand a whole squeeze. Suits anyone who finds Daiquiris too sweet.

Acapulco in a heavy low rocks glass styled in a shaded island courtyard bar with faded sea-green render, old terrazzo and a single palm shadow.

Acapulco

StrongShakenSour

Take a Daiquiri, hand most of the sweetening job to orange liqueur, and finish with mint: that's the shape of this one. White rum and lime over cubes, bright and quick, with the triple sec rounding off what would otherwise be a very sharp drink.

Chinese Cocktail in a clear shallow coupe styled in an old cane-house bar with pale rough plaster, honeyed wood and a distant slatted window.

Chinese Cocktail

StrongShakenSpirit-forward

Rum first, and then a small parade of fruit: orange liqueur, maraschino and grenadine, with bitters holding the line. Short and red, and considerably sweeter than most rum drinks. It comes from a period when sweet was the fashion and a cocktail meant something small and strong.

Nevada in a clear shallow coupe styled in an old cane-house bar with pale rough plaster, honeyed wood and a distant slatted window.

Nevada

StrongShakenSour

Grapefruit does the work here. Two parts white rum to one part grapefruit juice, with just enough lime and sugar to sharpen the edges, and what comes out is drier and more bitter than a Daiquiri without being difficult about it.

Test Pilot in a heavy low rocks glass styled in a quiet colonial gallery bar with worn cane furniture, dark mahogany and cream shutters.

Test Pilot

StrongShakenTropical

A Donn Beach tiki classic: aged rum boosted with overproof, curaçao and lime, with dashes of bitters and absinthe. Complex and stealthy.

Cobra's Fang in a tall straight-sided highball glass styled in a quiet colonial gallery bar with worn cane furniture, dark mahogany and cream shutters.

Cobra's Fang

StrongShakenTropical

Sixty milliliters of rum, a quarter of it overproof, buried under passion fruit and citrus so completely that you won't notice the strength until you stand up. Dark, sweet-tart and unrepentant. One is plenty.

Doctor Funk in a tall straight-sided highball glass styled in a shaded island courtyard bar with faded sea-green render, old terrazzo and a single palm shadow.

Doctor Funk

MediumBuilt in glassHighball

Built straight in the glass, which makes it the least fussy drink in the tiki repertoire. Dark rum, lime and grenadine, lengthened with soda until it behaves more like a highball than a punch. Drier and sharper than most of the tropical company it keeps.

Barracuda in a large stemmed balloon wine glass styled in an airy tropical hotel bar with irregular off-white plaster, rattan shadow and honey limestone.

Barracuda

StrongShakenSparkling

A sparkling tiki number: golden rum and Galliano with pineapple and lime, topped with prosecco. Tropical and celebratory.

Havana Special in a clear shallow coupe styled in a quiet colonial gallery bar with worn cane furniture, dark mahogany and cream shutters.

Havana Special

StrongShakenTropical

Pineapple does most of the talking, but the 4 ml of maraschino underneath is what stops this being a fruit drink. Lime turns up in a small enough measure to sharpen rather than sour. Finishes drier than the ingredients suggest.

Rum Cobbler in a tall straight-sided highball glass styled in a lived-in Cuban veranda with aged mineral plaster, a soft off-centre shutter and worn dark wood.

Rum Cobbler

StrongStirredTropical

Swap the base spirit and the cobbler goes somewhere else entirely. Aged rum puts cane sweetness and a little oak up against the orange, warmer and rounder than the same drink built on whiskey.

Jamaican Mule in a tall straight-sided highball glass styled in a lived-in Cuban veranda with aged mineral plaster, a soft off-centre shutter and worn dark wood.

Jamaican Mule

MediumBuilt in glassHighball

Swap the vodka in a Moscow Mule for dark Jamaican rum and the drink stops being polite. Molasses and funk push back against the ginger, lime keeps it from turning heavy, and it lands warm rather than sharp.

Rum Collins in a tall straight-sided highball glass styled in a lived-in Cuban veranda with aged mineral plaster, a soft off-centre shutter and worn dark wood.

Rum Collins

MediumBuilt in glassHighball

Every Collins is the same tall build with a different bottle in it, and white rum makes this one rounder than gin does, with a thread of cane sugar surviving all the way through the soda.

Jet Pilot in a heavy low rocks glass styled in a quiet colonial gallery bar with worn cane furniture, dark mahogany and cream shutters.

Jet Pilot

StrongShakenTropical

A dense, spiced tiki flip on the Zombie: dark and overproof rum with grapefruit, lime and honey, sharpened with bitters and absinthe.

Añejo Highball in a tall straight-sided highball glass styled in a shaded island courtyard bar with faded sea-green render, old terrazzo and a single palm shadow.

Añejo Highball

MediumBuilt in glassHighball

Dale DeGroff’s tribute to Cuba: aged rum with curaçao and lime, lengthened with ginger beer. Dry, spicy and endlessly refreshing.

Columbia in a clear shallow coupe styled in a shaded island courtyard bar with faded sea-green render, old terrazzo and a single palm shadow.

Columbia

StrongShakenSour

Raspberry liqueur turns a plain rum sour pale pink and gives it a fruit note that lemon keeps from going syrupy. Only a bar spoon of it goes in. Any more and the raspberry stops accenting the rum and starts replacing it.

Pineapple Daiquiri in a clear shallow coupe styled in a shaded island courtyard bar with faded sea-green render, old terrazzo and a single palm shadow.

Pineapple Daiquiri

StrongShakenTropical

Pineapple juice does two things at once here: it sweetens and it thickens, which is why the lime stays at full measure and the syrup drops to a bar spoon. Use juice you pressed yourself, or a carton with nothing added, never the sugared canned stuff.

Rum Rickey in a tall straight-sided highball glass styled in a quiet harbor rum bar with salt-worn timber, limewashed walls and one blurred rope detail.

Rum Rickey

MediumBuilt in glassHighball

No sugar at all, which is the whole point. Half a lime's worth of juice, white rum, soda, and nothing to round the edges — the same austere formula as the Gin Rickey, with cane sweetness standing in for juniper.

Rum Fix in a heavy low rocks glass styled in an airy tropical hotel bar with irregular off-white plaster, rattan shadow and honey limestone.

Rum Fix

StrongStirredTropical

Crushed ice is doing real work in a Fix. It dilutes fast and keeps the drink cold enough that the aged rum's oak reads as warmth rather than heat, while four milliliters of maraschino puts a dry cherry note under the lemon.

Twelve Miles Out in a clear shallow coupe styled in a quiet drawing-room bar with tobacco linen, walnut and one worn leather chair edge.

Twelve Miles Out

StrongShakenSpirit-forward

A Prohibition rum-runner’s drink: white rum and apple brandy braced with sweet vermouth. Named for the limit of the law at sea.

Cuban Special in a clear shallow coupe styled in a shaded island courtyard bar with faded sea-green render, old terrazzo and a single palm shadow.

Cuban Special

StrongShakenTropical

Pineapple and lime split the sour duty, which is why this doesn't collapse into fruit punch the way tropical rum drinks so often do. A Daiquiri with juice in it and a splash of curaçao, essentially, and better for both.

Fair and Warmer in a clear shallow coupe styled in a quiet colonial gallery bar with worn cane furniture, dark mahogany and cream shutters.

Fair and Warmer

StrongShakenSpirit-forward

Rum where the whiskey usually goes. Sweet vermouth at roughly a third of the pour, plus a teaspoon of orange liqueur, which is enough to lift the thing without making it taste of oranges.

Little Devil in a clear shallow coupe styled in a quiet harbor rum bar with salt-worn timber, limewashed walls and one blurred rope detail.

Little Devil

StrongShakenSour

Two base spirits at 30 ml each, neither given the lead. Gin's juniper and rum's cane pull in opposite directions and the lemon keeps them from settling. Sharper than either spirit alone, and stronger than the small measures suggest.

Bee’s Kiss in a clear shallow coupe styled in a quiet colonial gallery bar with worn cane furniture, dark mahogany and cream shutters.

Bee’s Kiss

StrongShakenCreamy

A silky rum flip without the egg: white rum shaken with cream and honey. A gentle, dessert-like sipper.

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