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10 of the best rum cocktail recipes!
Aug 31, 2023
We are taking a look at some of the best rum cocktails that you can make at home - they also make for great rum cocktails for the beach too!
Each of these classic rum cocktails is bright, vibrant and utterly delicious. And, what’s more, we have paired each cocktail with the perfect type of rum, be that white, spiced, golden or dark rum.
Give them a go!
Which rum is best for cocktails?
Different cocktails require different kinds of rum, so no one rum is perfect for every cocktail. But not to worry, with this guide, we can help you pick the right rum for your favourite rum cocktails.
Spiced Rum
Spiced rum is any rum that is infused with a host of herbs and spices - it is made by macerating white rum with botanical ingredients.
We love spiced rum as it often has a delicious, complex flavour profile with a variety of spices and sweeteners, giving it a robust finish. Popular flavour notes in spiced rum are cinnamon, vanilla and nutmeg, giving a toffee-like sweetness to the rum.
Spiced rums work great with cocktail ingredients that complement those tones, like Coca-Cola, tropical fruits and other spice ingredients.
Therefore, spiced rum is great for cocktails like the Cuba Libra, Hot Buttered Rum and the Painkiller (find recipes for all three below).
White Rum
Often referred to as white, silver or clear rum, white rums have a mild flavour compared to the other styles, with a lighter body.
This is because white rum is only aged for three to six months in tropical climates, or up to one year in colder climates (which is a much shorter ageing time compared to its darker rum siblings), and then is filtered through charcoal to remove any colouring.
Apart from a subtle background sweetness from the sugarcane, it’s the most straightforward rum that you can buy.
It makes a wise choice for cocktails that have lighter or more delicate ingredients, as it won’t dominate the other flavours too much.
Some of the best white rum cocktails are the Mojito, the Pina Colada and the Daiquiri (Scroll down to find recipes for all three).
Golden Rum
Distinctive for its pleasing amber hue, golden rum has been mellowed in barrels over time. It’s known to be the ultimate tasting sweet spot between a dark and light rum. It’s a medium-bodied spirit that gets its colour from ageing in pale oak barrels or adding caramel to the mix.
Golden Rums have a more flavorful profile than white rums and are used in cocktails when there is a need for a bit more of a punch. Typical characteristics of a golden rum tend to be citrus, coconut, almond and caramel.
Golden rums are particularly delicious in cocktails like the Mai Tai and Rum Punch (find both in the rum cocktail list below).
Dark Rum
Dark rums have the largest and boldest flavour profiles because they have been aged for the longest periods of time, often years, in charred oak casks.
Through this ageing process, the rum develops deep toasted molasses tones as well as hints of toffee, honey and brown sugar.
With that punchy flavour profile, dark rum can hold its own with big, bright ingredients and in more complex cocktails.
That’s why dark rums are so perfect for rum cocktails like the Dark ‘n’ Stormy and Rum Swizzle. Try out these cocktails using the recipes below…
10 of the best rum cocktail recipes:
Mojito
As cocktails with rum go, the Mojito could be the most famous.
Attributed to the island of Cuba, it brings together white rum, fresh lime, fresh mint, sugar and soda water to give you a refreshing summer cocktail that is citrusy, herbaceous, sweet and sour in all of the right places.
In Cuba, you can often find this rum cocktail finished with a couple of dashes of bitters for extra depth of flavour too. Give it a go - you will not be disappointed!
50ml white rum
Juice of one lime
1 tsp granulated sugar
Small handful of fresh mint leaves
Soda water, to top
2 dashed of Angostura bitters, optional
Fresh mint sprig, to garnish
Fresh lime slices, to garnish
Muddle the mint leaves and sugar in the bottom of your glass. Add the lime juice, white rum and ice. Stir well. Top with the soda water. Stir again. Add the dashes of Angostura to the top, if using. Garnish, serve and enjoy!
Dark ‘n’ Stormy
A close relative of the Moscow Mule (made with vodka), this vibrant mix of rum, ginger beer and lime juice is utterly divine.
Technically, it should only be made with Goslings Black Seal Rum from Bermuda, as they were able to register a trademark that says any drink named Dark ‘n’ Stormy must be made with their rum.
However, if you are making this cocktail at home and can’t get Goslings Black Seal Rum, then any dark rum can work just as well.
50ml Goslings Black Seal Rum
15ml fresh lime juice
75ml ginger beer, to top
Fresh lime, to garnish
Add the rum and lime juice to a glass with ice. Stir well. Top with the ginger beer. Garnish, serve and enjoy!
Pina Colada
It’s hard to say “rum cocktail” without imagining a Pina Colada. It is one of the most popular rum cocktails in the world - and for good reason.
The Pina Colada is a rich and creamy combination of white rum or coconut rum, coconut cream and pineapple juice. Whether you prefer it “frozen” or “on the rocks” it never fails to make cocktail fans smile.
Find out everything you need to know about this classic rum cocktail here. And then give it a go…
50ml white rum or coconut rum
100ml pineapple juice
50ml coconut cream
Fresh pineapple, to garnish
Add the rum, pineapple and coconut cream to a glass with ice and stir. Garnish, serve and enjoy!
Alternatively, you can make a frozen pina colada by adding the rum, pineapple juice and coconut cream to a blender with a large handful of ice. Simply blend until smooth and pour into your glass.
Daiquiri
The Daiquiri is a zesty white rum cocktail recipe akin to the Gimlet for gin or the Margarita for tequila.
At its most basic, it is created using just three ingredients, citrus juice, sugar syrup and rum, but modern twists like the Strawberry Daiquiri have gained huge popularity too.
This traditional recipe is the perfect balance of sweet and sour. Delicious!
60ml white rum
30ml fresh lime juice
10ml Simple Syrup
Fresh lime slice, to garnish
Add the rum, lime juice and syrup to a shaker with ice and shake well. Strain into a coupe glass. Garnish, serve and enjoy!
Cuba Libra
This classic Cuban cocktail is named “Free Cuba” in Spanish and is thought to have been invented in a bar in Havanna just after the Spanish-American War and the subsequent liberation of Cuba from Spanish colonial rule.
The original “Rum and Coke” cocktail, this serve is a simple yet effective mix of fresh lime juice, spiced rum (originally Bacardi rum produced in Cuba) and Coca-Cola. And it’s possibly the easiest rum cocktail you can make at home…
50ml spiced rum
Juice of half a fresh lime
Cola, to top
Fresh slices of lime, to garnish
Add the rum and lime juice to your glass with ice. Stir well. Top with the cola. Stir again. Garnish, serve and enjoy!
Rum Swizzle
The Rum Swizzle is a traditional cocktail made with white rum and dark rum.
It’s created in a very similar way to a rum punch recipe however it is stirred using a “swizzle stick”, for which the cocktail takes its name.
The cocktail has a tropical fruit flavour profile, with moreish hints of spice from the bitters and rich depth from the rum.
50ml dark rum
50ml light rum
100ml fresh orange juice
100ml fresh pineapple juice
25ml grenadine
5 dashes of Angostura bitters
Fresh tropical fruit, to garnish
Add the rums, juices, grenadine and bitters to a punch jug or bowl with lots of ice. Stir well with a spoon (or a swizzle stick if you have one). Pour into glasses filled with ice - you should get enough for four rocks glasses from this recipe. Garnish, serve and enjoy!
Rum Punch
Also known as a Caribean Rum Punch, this dark or gold rum cocktail recipe is a classic!
Mixing rum with tropical fruit juices and grenadine, each sip is an utter joy.
What’s more, this rum cocktail is perfect for sharing with your friends. Whip up a big punch bowl full and they will lap it up!
125ml rum
200ml pineapple juice
100ml fresh orange juice
75ml fresh lime juice
50ml grenadine
Fresh tropical fruit, to garnish
Add all of the ingredients apart from the garnish to a punch bowl with lots of ice. Stir well. Serve in individual glasses filled with more ice. Garnish, serve and enjoy!
Hot Buttered Rum
If you have never tried it before then a “buttered” cocktail may seem a little weird, but trust us, it’s also absolutely wonderful!
Created using unsalted butter, spices, sugar and dark or spiced rum, the cocktail is smooth and warm and perfect for sipping in the colder months. Give it a go!
50ml dark or spiced rum
100ml freshly boiled water
15g unsalted butter (room temperature)
1 tsp brown sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla paste or extract
1 pinch of cinnamon
1 pinch of nutmeg
1 pinch of allspice
Slice of orange, to garnish (optional)
Cinnamon stick, to garnish (optional)
Add the butter, sugar, spices, and vanilla to a mug or Irish coffee glass and stir well. Add the rum and pour over the hot water. Stir well. Garnish, serve and enjoy!
Mai Tai
The Mai Tai cocktail uses two different kinds of rum.
Golden or white rum is used in the main body of this tropical cocktail and then dark rum is added as a topper at the end, giving the cocktail its iconic two-tone look.
Orange liqueur (we like Cointreau but Curaçao works too) adds fragrant, warm citrus notes and lime juice adds zest. Orgeat syrup then rounds this tropical rum cocktail out with its almond flavours.
45ml white or golden rum
15ml dark rum
25ml Cointreau
25ml fresh lime juice
15ml orgeat syrup
Fresh tropical fruit, to garnish
Lightly shake the white or golden rum, Cointreau, lime juice and orgeat syrup with ice. Strain into a glass filled with ice. Top with the dark rum. Garnish, serve and enjoy!
Painkiller
The Painkiller is a deeper, darker, spiced twist on the Pina Colada cocktails that is made with dark or spiced rum and finished with nutmeg.
Orange juice is also added to the Pina Colada-mix of coconut cream, pineapple juice and rum, giving it a fruitier, more citrusy edge than its sibling. Yum!
50ml dark or spiced rum
100ml pineapple juice
25ml orange juice
25ml coconut cream
Fresh pineapple, to garnish
Grated nutmeg, to garnish
Shake the rum, juices and coconut cream with ice. Strain into a glass filled with ice. Garnish, serve and enjoy!
