Happy National Rum Day! Once again another holiday I don’t know the origins of, and really don’t care! What’s your favorite rum drink? A Cuba Libre, Daiquiri, Pina Colada? While I do have a soft spot for Mojitos (after living in Key West, with such a Cuban influence everywhere,) my favorite is a Dark and Stormy.
Dark and Stormies (would that be the plural?) are essentially only two ingredients, but I think the fact that the two ingredients are so packed full of flavor is what makes it so tasty. It’s basically rum and ginger beer. Here’s the thing, specifics are very important in this cocktail. Gosling’s Black Seal Rum (available at your local BevMo) is the only acceptable rum. Period. And you need a zippy ginger beer, not ginger ale. My “recipe” (since you know I am so precise when I make “recipes”) is to fill about 1/3 of your glass with rum. Squeeze in a wedge of lime. Fill the glass with ice, and top it all off with the ginger beer.
One sip of this and you will be transported back to the days when pirates ruled the seas, pillaged the towns, and ransacked the local watering holes! Or, maybe it’ll just make you kick back, relax, and say, “ahhh…”