Can you mix dark rums with mixed drinks?

[MoMojitoPlease]

I have come to this amazing resource and figured I had to utilize the vast knowledge of you posters to further educate me on rum. I only drank Bacardi for rum and have purchased some economy rum in Appleton vx. My question is,since I do not drink liquor straight as it is generally too strong,do I need to get white or light rum to make mixed drinks? Can I make Mojitos,etc with Dark Rum?Finally, if I need to get some white rum,well,what kind of mixed drinks can I make with the dark? I do want to taste the rum thus my fave drinks are Hurricanes,Mojitos(my name says it all)and I just started making the real deal Daiquiri which I like a lot. ANy help is appreciated. Thanks.

[Jason Perlow]

You can definitely make a Mojito with Gold or Dark Rum.

For best results the Pina Colada MUST be made with dark rum, as does the Dark and Stormy and any number of other drinks.

Rum and Coke is best made with dark rum as well.

[ctgm]

My question is,since I do not drink liquor straight as it is generally too strong.

I have a bottle of rum at 50% alc vol, which I find too strong for me so, like a whisky, I add a dash of water. If you find 40% bottlings too strong, why not add water? Some people prefer to add ice and let it melt to achieve the same affect.

[dwarnier]

There are a number of cocktails which you can make with aged or dark rum. I find this guide very useful for both classic and contemporary recipes

http://www.sauceguide.com/index.php

PS I find Appleton much better than Bacardi anyway

[Ed Hamilton]

I only drank Bacardi for rum and have purchased some economy rum in Appleton vx.

Good choice, to me there is a huge difference between economy and value and Appleton VX is usually a good value in full flavored dark rum. If you're looking for inexpensive rum to mix ook for the some of the private labels from the virgin islands, good rum but without the flavor and taste of Jamaica's export.

I drink Appleton VX on the rocks in bars that don't have a large rum shelf.

[Mayhaw Man]

THis thread concerning Rum in the Cabinet should be helpful for you.

Back when I drank them, I loved Dark and Stormy's made with Jamaican Ginger Beer and Meyer's Dark Rum. Very refreshing.

[phaelon56]

I'm not familiar with the Dark and Stormy but in my drinking days I occasionally enjoyed a "Rum Float". Make a rum sour in a tall glas and then float a shot or two of dark rum onto the top by pouring it gently down the side of the glass or over the back of a bar spoon. Drinking with a straw allows one to lift the straw to get an infusion of dark rum into each sip of the sour. As the melting ice begins to weaken the rum sour portion of the drink, the straight dark rum starts to blend in, leaving the balance of the drink with a nice kick.

[MoMojitoPlease]

Thank you all for your replies. I am just getting started and was making Mojitos with dark rum. I went to the local big liquor store that has a lot of variety. I looked at white rums and they had some Bacardi,Flor De Cana,along with Matusalem which of course is not Cuban style. From what I have read Flor De Cana looks to be a top choice for white rum. Am I mistaken?

[Jason Perlow]

Not being a huge fan of white rums made from molasses, I can tell you that there is very little variety in flavor profile between them -- so if you are going to use white rum for a drink, you might as well be using Bacardi.

Flor de Cana is a really good rum but I have never tried their white. Their 7-year-old is by far their best product. The 12 year old Centenario is also very good, but the 21 is supposedly over aged.

Ron Matusalem IS supposed to be a Cuban-style rum, as that is where it originated from. For a while it was produced in Florida, now it is produced in Central America, I beleive Costa Rica or the Dominican Republic. The Anejo Reserva is an excellent product. However I don't think it tastes much like actual Cuban Matusalem, which is no longer made and can only be found in really good liquor stores in the Caribbean, like at the Old Liquor Store in Saint Maarten in Philipsburg. The White Matusalem is OK, but as I said, you might as well be using Bacardi or Captain Morgan.