Dark rum christmas Cocktails

Dark rum christmas Cocktails - Top 5 dark rum christmas cocktail recipes

dark rum christmas cocktails 2023

The holidays bring people together. We know this. Sometimes it can be stressful, but more often than not, it can be joyful. One thing is certain. Holiday gatherings are best accompanied by holiday drinks with dark rum! Whether your eggnog or hot cocoa is spiked or not, or if your punch bowl is laden with cranberries, pomegranates, apples and mistletoe, certain recipes are simply made for December. And when you are in charge of hosting a family or friend affair, you’re going to need some key never fail combinations guaranteed to please a range of palates. Let’s dive into a few classics and a few key ways to winterize them into you’ve guessed it: Dark Rum Christmas Cocktails!

5 Dark rum christmas cocktail ideas

Perhaps you aren’t entirely confident with your mixology skills and may even have had a few mishaps in the past. No sweat. Keep it simple & classic: WASSAIL.

WASSAIL Cocktail - Dark rum with apple cider

Wassail has several iterations and usually incorporates mulling spices, ale or cider and/or other spirits like brandy or rum. Its nomenclature and history stretch back to pre-Christian Britain, when folks would prepare a large batch of the warming brew during the cold months. The word ‘wassail’ originates from the Anglo-Saxon phrase ‘waes hael’, which also means ‘good health’. Perhaps you’ve heard the classic song “Here We Come A-Caroling?” Well, it was originally “Here We Come A-Wassailing.” When you think about it practically speaking, naturally, singing Christmas carols from door to door out in the cold can be brutal on one’s vocal chords. Sharing a warm mulled blend of cider, ale, spices and spirits served as balm to many spirited carolers.

Wassail cocktail ingredient

  • 1 gallon of unfiltered apple cider
  • 2 bottles of brown or dark ale
  • Half a bottle of Dos Maderas 5+5 
  • 3-5 cinnamon sticks
  • 2 oranges, slices and clove studded
  • 3-5 star anise
  • A handful of cardamom pods, lightly crushed
  • The zest of 1-2 lemons
  • 2 scored apples (where you cut a shallow line around the diameter)

 

Combine all the non-alcoholic ingredients into a large pot and simmer on your stove for about 10-15 minutes. Then add your dark ale slowly so that they don’t bubble over the rim. Top with your rum. Keep covered to stay warm and only reheat when needed. Ladle into mugs or paper cups held by well mittened hands!

You can tell a lot about a person by the way they handle three things: a rainy day, lost luggage and tangled Christmas tree lights.

Dark Rum smokey old fashioned

True tests of character are often conducted in chaotic situations, like perhaps meeting an in-law who you’ve “mildly” researched online beforehand because you had a feeling you might disagree on some crucial topics during a holiday chat and feast. Seeing someone handle a stressful situation for the first time is like a surreal challenge where the goal is to unlock some “extra level” fortress gate. Here is a suggestion. Ask around beforehand and find out what they like to drink! All else fails, most folks can’t go wrong with a riff on an Old Fashioned or a Daiquiri. Have you ever tried one with dark rum? A Dark Rum Old Fashioned with an easy tweak incorporating a bit of spice, smoke and a touch of chocolate might just be the liquid diplomacy you require this holiday season. And a Dark Rum Daiquiri with PX sherry instead of sugar will justifiably win over and melt even the most bitter of Grinch hearts.

Smokey old fashioned ingredients

  • 2 oz. (60 ml) Dos Maderas Selección Rum
  • .25 oz. (8 ml) Rich Simple Syrup (2:1)
  • 2 dashes of Aromatic bitters (like Angostura)
  • 2 dashes of Chocolate bitters (like Bitter Truth)
  • Orange & peeler
  • Cinnamon stick and lighter 

 

Light your cinnamon stick on fire until it really starts to smoke. Then invert a rocks glass over top so the glass gets nice and smokey. Then add the rum, syrup & bitters to a mixing glass, fill with cracked ice and stir for about 10 seconds. Strain into your smoked glass over 1 large piece of fresh ice. Garnish with the oils of an orange peel and your cinnamon stick.

Tips for preparing the perfect smoked old fashioned

  • TIP 1: Don’t feel like making simple syrup? Sub in your syrup with PX sherry like Don Zoilo for a Smokey PX Rum Old Fashioned.
  • TIP 2: Check out the Dos Maderas website to learn about the history of the Old Fashioned and how to mix other classics.

Dark rum Daiquiri with Sherry

  • 1.5 oz. (45 ml) Dos Maderas 5+5 Rum
  • 1 oz. (30 ml) fresh squeezed lime juice
  • .5 oz (15 ml) Don Zoilo PX Sherry
  • Nutmeg for garnish

 

Chill a coupe.

Add all liquid ingredients to a shaker and shake with ice for about 10 seconds. Double-strain into your chilled glass. Freshly grate some nutmeg on top. That’s it. Enjoy! 

Tips for preparing a dark rum daiquiri

  • TIP 1: Does your palate run on the sweeter side? Adjust the ratio by adding .25 oz. (8 ml) more PX and .25 oz. (8 ml) less lime.

You can tell a lot about a person by the way they handle three things: a rainy day, lost luggage and tangled Christmas tree lights.

Dark rum eggnog cocktail

Dos-Maderas-rum-Cocktail-Egg Nogg - HERO - 2

Give the people what they want because it’s just too socially unacceptable to enjoy eggnog year round! But also, if you deliver them with an extra delicious recipe then by golly, it may even snow on Christmas Day. The many iterations of eggnog typically have house receipts. Perhaps you have an uncle who is the eggnog master of the clan or a sneaky grandma who never reveals her secret ingredients. Kudos to them and their giving spirit. For the rest of us…

Eggnog ingredients

  • 1 oz. (30 ml) Dos Maderas 5+5 Rum
  • 1 oz. (30 ml) Gran Duque d’Alba Brandy
  • .5 oz. (15 ml) Williams & Humbert Dry Sack Sherry
  • 1 oz. (30 ml) Milk
  • .5 oz. (15 ml) Cream
  • 1 egg 
  • Nutmeg for garnish

 

Chill a punch cup. Add all ingredients to your shaker with just 2-3 cubes of ice. Shake vigorously for about 30 seconds so that the egg gets completely emulsified. Strain into your punch cup and garnish with freshly grated nutmeg.

Tips for preparing an Eggnog

  • TIP 1: No worries. You can definitely just throw everything into a blender. No need to work too hard during the holidays right?
  • TIP 2: Want to impress more friends? Dive a little deeper into the family of cocktails from whence classic Eggnog came here!

Facts: Eggnog is all that it's cracked up to be.

Golden fountain punch with dark rum

Lastly, family gatherings and festive parties are always that much more perfect when you can craft a seasonal punch. You know who was an excellent punch master from back in the day? Charles Dickens (February 7, 1812 – June 9, 1870). There’s even a Charles Dickens Punch that is often made for the holiday season. Ever make an oleo saccharum or light your punch bowl on fire? Yes? Excellent. No? Well, there’s always a first time for everything. Safety first, naturally. I created the dark rum Golden Fountain Punch this year with a few key inspirations.

One you already know but have you heard of the historic Spanish writer who was in large part inspired by Dickens: Benito Pérez Galdós (May 10, 1843 – January 4, 1920)? He wrote a novel, “La Fontana Oro” in 1870 named after a Madrid café of the same name. This recipe incorporates a few key elements such as coffee liqueur and anise as well as the namesake of this book. Lastly, it’s the holidays and Dos Maderas also has a family that includes much more than just rum. They are all part of the Williams & Humbert bodega in Jerez, Spain who not only mature and bottle excellent sherry but also Gran Duque d’Alba brandy. And the combination of dark rum, brandy and sherry works just as well in cold or hot punches in addition to delectable creamy decadent eggnogs.

Golden Fountain punch ingredients

  • 1/2 cup sugar (preferably demerara)
  • 6 lemons
  • 2 cups Dos Maderas 5+5 
  • 1 ¼ cups Gran Duque d’Alba Solera Gran Reserva Brandy
  • ¼ cup of Kahlúa or other coffee liqueur
  • ¼ cup of PX sherry (like Don Zoilo)
  • 5 cups chai tea (freshly brewed hot)
  • Cloves
  • Star Anise
  • Lighter or match
  • Measuring cups
  • Citrus peeler & knife & cutting board
  • Ladle
  • Tea or punch cups
  • Heat proof bowl or enameled cast-iron pot

 

In a heat proof bowl or enameled cast-iron pot, make an oleo saccharum by adding ½ cup of demerara sugar and the peels of four lemons. Mix the sugar and peels together and let sit for a half hour or so. This will allow for the citrus oils to saturate the sugar.

While waiting, cut wheels from your other two lemons, remove seeds and stud with cloves. Freshly brew your chai tea and keep it hot.

Then add to your oleo saccharum and stir:

  • 2 cups of Dos Maderas 5+5
  • 1 ¼ cups of Gran Duque d’Alba.

 

Pour some brandy into a spoon or ladle above the punch and light on fire. Slowly set the spoon with the brandy on fire into the bowl to let the rest of the ingredients light on fire. Extinguish fire after 5 seconds or so by covering with a pan or heat proof lid. 

Add:

  • 5 cups of hot chai tea
  • ¼ cup of Kahlúa or other coffee liqueur
  • ¼ cup of PX sherry
  • The juice of your 4 peeled lemons

 

Stir all ingredients and remove lemon peels. Let cool if serving cold.

Add:

  • Add small ice block or 8-10 1 inch ice cubes if serving cold
  • 8-10 lemon slices studded with cloves
  • Freshly grate nutmeg just before service.

 

Ladle your servings into punch cups or teaware. Singe a star anise and add directly to your cup for garnish.

And now we welcome the new year. Full of things that have never been.

Author:  Chantal Tseng, DC Bar-Somm

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