Giving Classic Cocktails a Rum Makeover

For hundreds of years, rum and whiskey have been fierce rivals competing for the attention of drinkers and bartenders.

Rum was America’s first signature spirit made along the East Coast in the Colonies before it was unseated by, you guessed it, whiskey. And across the country, rum and whiskey continue to battle it out on liquor store shelves and cocktail lists.

Recently, rum has been showing up in traditional whiskey drink recipes, including the Old-Fashioned, the Highball and the Manhattan. And some classic rum cocktail recipes, like the Presidente, are being updated with ingredients traditionally used in whiskey drinks. While purists may prefer it neat, rum’s deep flavor works perfectly in all of these concoctions.

So, mix up the following recipes today. Cheers!

INGREDIENTS:

• 1.5 oz Santa Teresa 1796 Rum
• .25 oz Demerara syrup (one part water, one part sugar)
• 4 dashes Angostura Bitters
• Glass: Double Old-Fashioned
• Garnish: Orange or lemon twist

DIRECTIONS:

Add all the ingredients to a mixing glass and fill with ice. Stir, and strain into a double Old-fashioned glass filled with fresh ice. Garnish with an orange or lemon twist.

To purchase Santa Teresa 1796 Rum, visit Drizly.

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 oz BACARDI Añejo Cuatro Rum 
• 1 oz MARTINI & ROSSI Vermouth
• .5 oz Dry Curaçao
• 2 Dash Angostrua Bitters
• Glass: Coupe
• Garnish: Orange peel

DIRECTIONS:

Add all the ingredients to a mixing glass and fill with ice. Stir, and strain into a couple and garnish with an orange peel.

To purchase BACARDI Añejo Cuatro Rum, visit Drizly.

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 oz Havana Club Añejo Clásico Rum
• 4 oz Chilled ginger beer
• 2 Lime wedges
• 2 dashes Aromatic bitters
• Glass: Highball

DIRECTIONS:

Squeeze the lime wedges into a highball glass filled with ice. Add the rum, ginger beer and bitters. Stir gently.

To purchase Havana Club Añejo Clásico Rum, visit Drizly.