Top Tropical Rum Drinks with Recipes

August 16th is National Rum Day, so this week’s post is all about the Caribbean’s #1 spirit – RUM! Whether you prefer dark or white, with or without fruit juice, rum can easily transform into an island resort-worthy drink that you can make and enjoy from home. With origins in the Caribbean, rum is made from distilling and fermenting molasses that’s created as a by-product when sugarcane is processed into sugar. Rums can vary widely in color, aroma and flavor. 

Dark, light, aged… what’s the difference? 

• Dark – Aged rum with a dark color and rich, developed flavors of caramel, brown sugar and vanilla.
• Light (or white) – Clear and has a smoother, more straightforward flavor than a dark rum.
• Aged (golden, amber or añejo) – Complex flavor, more like a Cognac. Undertones of vanilla, coconut, almond, citrus, or caramel.

Regardless of what kind of rum you like, or which bottle you happen to have on hand, pretty much any rum can be whipped up into a delicious cocktail for your National Rum Day celebration. So bust out your tiki mugs and toothpick umbrellas and mix up one (or more) of these tasty tropical drinks (my favorites have an asterisk before them).

Mai Tai: The Mai Tai is the quintessential tiki drink, made with equal parts dark and light rum combined with an orange liqueur like triple sec or Curaçao and fresh lime juice, finished with a subtle floral almond perfume from the orgeat syrup. Mai Tais are traditionally made using a combination of Jamaican rums and rhum agricole (a rum made from pure pressed cane juice).

Recipe: In a cocktail shaker full of ice, combine 1.5oz white rum and 1/2oz each of fresh lime juice, orange Curaçao and Orgeat syrup. Shake all ingredients together with ice. Strain into a glass and float 3/4oz dark rum on top. 

Planter’s Punch (Rum Punch): This one is a fruity punch. In addition to rum, Planter’s Punch consists of various juices, grenadine, simple syrup and occasionally Angostura bitters. This flavorful punch tastes best when made with dark rum from the Caribbean. Which (if any) fruits go into it vary by personal taste. Top with berries, cherries, citrus, or tropical fruit.

Recipe: Pour 1.5oz dark rum, 2oz pineapple juice, 1/2oz lime juice, and 1/4oz grenadine into a shaker filled with ice cubes. Shake well. Strain into a glass full of ice. Top with fruit of your choice.

*Mojito: Cool and refreshing, the mojito is one of the most refreshing cocktails you’ll have the pleasure of drinking. It’s an easy to make drink that requires only a few ingredients: white rum, simple syrup and a lot of mint and lime muddled together, all topped with ice. You’ll need a muddler, but that’s a modest and worthy investment for your bar. The best thing about this cocktail is its versatility. You can often find variations like blackberry, mango, blueberry and even a Dirty Mojito (made with gold rum and raw sugar). 

Recipe: Place 10 mint leaves and 1 lime wedge into a sturdy glass. Use a muddler to crush the mint and lime to release the mint oils and lime juice. Add 2 more lime wedges and 2T sugar, muddle again. Fill the glass almost to the top with ice. Pour 1.5oz white rum over the ice, and fill the glass with carbonated water. Stir, taste, and add more sugar if desired. Garnish with a remaining lime wedge.

Piña Colada: Whether you blend it or shake it, few drinks say “tropical” like a piña colada. While you can cheat and buy a pre-made piña colada mix, it’s much more delicious when made fresh. Blend a frozen cocktail concoction of light rum, cream of coconut, pineapple juice and ice. Then top with a maraschino cherry and pineapple wedge for garnish. 

Recipe: Add 2oz light rum,1.5oz each of cream of coconut and pineapple juice and 1/2oz fresh squeezed lime juice to a shaker with ice and shake vigorously. Strain into a glass filled with ice. Garnish with a pineapple wedge. Throw it all in a blender and blend till slushy if you prefer.

Painkiller: The Painkiller is a fruity rum cocktail similar to a Piña Colada, except it substitutes orange juice for cream of coconut and is garnished with a dusting of nutmeg. The Painkiller cocktail is trademarked by rum maker Pusser’s and therefore requires the use of Pusser’s Navy Strength Rum.

Recipe: Add 2oz Pusser’s rum, 4oz pineapple juice, 1oz each of orange juice and cream of coconut to a shaker with ice and shake vigorously. Strain into a glass over crushed ice. Garnish with nutmeg and a pineapple wedge. 

Hurricane: It’s fruity and extra boozy, meet the Hurricane! The Hurricane is a classic New Orleans cocktail made with light and dark rum and passion fruit syrup. The passion fruit gives it a tropical nuance and a hint of grenadine gives it extra sweetness and a rosy-golden color. It’s a unique, fun rum cocktail!

Recipe: In a cocktail shaker filled with ice, squeeze the juice from half a lime. Pour 2oz each of light and dark rums, 2oz passion fruit juice or purée, 1oz orange juice and 1/2oz each of simple syrup and grenadine into the shaker. Shake well. Strain into a glass filled with fresh ice. Garnish with orange slices and a maraschino cherry. 

Bahama Mama: Flavors of coconut and pineapple with a hint of orange and cherry, give this cocktail a festive flavor. Three kinds of rum – light, dark and coconut – a splash of grenadine along with pineapple and orange juice make this  a dangerously good cocktail!

Recipe: Combine 1oz white rum, 1/2oz dark rum, 1oz coconut rum, 2oz each of orange and  pineapple juice, a splash of grenadine and crushed ice in an electric blender. Blend until the drink’s consistency is slushy.

Blue Hawaii: This beautiful ocean-colored drink is fruity, somewhat sweet and has a pretty bluish green shade to it. It features rum, vodka and blue curacao liquors mixed with sweet and sour and pineapple juice.

Recipe: Add 3/4oz each of vodka and light rum, 1/2oz blue curaçao, 3oz pineapple juice and 1oz sweet-and-sour mix (mix 1 part sugar with 1 part water. Add fresh lime juice to taste) into a shaker with ice and shake until well-chilled. For a frozen version, ingredients can be blended with ice in a blender. Garnish with a pineapple wedge.

Daiquiri: This perfectly balanced cocktail stars lime juice, rum and simple syrup. A classic daiquiri is not frozen but is served straight up in a cocktail glass. 

Recipe: Add 2oz light rum, 1oz lime juice and 3/4oz demerara sugar syrup to a shaker with ice and shake until well-chilled. Strain into a chilled glass. Garnish with a lime. 

Daiquiris come in a variety of flavor combinations as their easy-to-follow recipe allows for endless customization. Here’s a few island favorites:

Strawberry – Fruity and refreshing, just grab strawberries, rum, lime juice and ice, and blend it all together.

Recipe: Add 4C frozen and 1C sliced fresh strawberries, 5oz simple syrup, 4oz light rum and juice of 1 lime to a blender. Blend until completely smooth. Pour into glasses and garnish with fresh berries and lime slices.

Banana – This twist on the classic is an ode to the topics. Building on the standard daiquiri ingredients of rum, triple sec, lime juice and a sweetener, you’ll simply add a whole banana to the blender. With this basic recipe, you can take the banana cocktail to a new level by adding or swapping ingredients: Use a banana, coconut or darker rum, toss in more fruits, or transform it from a slushie into a smoothie with a little cream.

Recipe: Blend 1.5 oz of light rum, 1/2oz triple sec, 1/2oz lime juice, 1 (very ripe) banana,1t sugar and 1C of ice until smooth and frosty. Pour into chilled glasses. Garnish with a maraschino cherry.

*Mango – Deliciously refreshing cocktail full of sweet mango, vodka and rum.

Recipe: Peel and cube 1 mango (or use frozen), add to blender with 2oz each of rum and vodka and 1/2C of ice. Blend until you get a smooth slush-like consistency. Garnish with a maraschino cherry. 

Rum swizzle: Expand your mixing techniques with Bermuda’s national drink. Rum Swizzle recipes vary, but most have three ingredients in common: rum, fruit juice and a sweetener like grenadine or falernum. With this drink it’s all about how the ingredients come together. You’ll use a swizzle stick (a bar spoon works) to churn the liquids in a glass filled with crushed ice. Called “swizzling,” the method creates a frosty drink that is perfect for hot days.

Recipe: Fill a pitcher a third of the way with crushed ice, add 4oz each of Gosling’s Black Seal and Gosling’s Gold Seal rum, 8oz orange juice, 8oz pineapple juice, 3/4oz grenadine and 6 dashes of  Angostura bitters. Churn vigorously with a swizzle stick (or bar spoon) until frothing. Fill four glasses with fresh ice, and divide the contents of the pitcher between all. Garnish with an orange slice, pineapple wedge and a cherry.

*Dirty Banana: Popular on many Caribbean islands, the classic dirty banana cocktail combines rum, Kahlúa (or another coffee-flavored liqueur) along with banana-flavored liqueur in an icy, creamy shake. You can add chocolate syrup for an extra treat, or up the tropical taste with fresh pineapple. Some recipes call for coconut cream while others add Baileys Irish Cream. This drink is dangerously boozy and a dessert in a glass! 

Recipe: Put 1/4-1/2C of ice in the blender. Add 1.5oz white rum, 3/4oz each of Kahlúa and banana-flavored liqueur, 2T each of light cream and whole milk and 1 ripe banana. Blend until smooth, increasing the speed as necessary to thoroughly pulverize the ice. Pour into a glass. Garnish with bananas and maraschino cherries. 

*Bushwacker: Another dessert in a glass – the Bushwacker is like a mashup of a chocolate milkshake and piña colada! This boozy frozen cocktail stars Kahlua and creme de cacao. It’s lusciously smooth with notes of chocolate, coffee and vanilla.

Recipe: In a blender, add 1C ice, 1oz each of dark rum, coffee liqueur and dark crème de cacao liqueur, 2oz each of cream of coconut and milk. Blend until smooth. Pour into a chilled glass. Optional: swirl chocolate syrup in the glass and top with whipped cream. 

*My favorites

Cheers, enjoy your little taste of paradise!