These are the Top Rums to Make a Daiquiri

For a good reason, classic cocktails are timeless. These cocktails are perfect and straightforward. The Old Fashioned. The Manhattan. The Martini. The Daiquiri. People associate daiquiri these days with neon-colored, fruity and excessively sweet drinks from the 1990s. The traditional traditional daiquiri only has three ingredients. Rum, sugar, and lime juice. Although it seems simple, the daiquiri has more than its parts. It requires some thought and balance to make the sweetness of sugar syrup, the acidity in the lime juice, as well as the flavor of rum taste better.

Daiquiris can transform a dull day into something good. They can also transport you to sunny beaches from rainy days. The daiquiri is a classic cocktail that has become a staple in the world of cocktails. Jennings Cox an American mining engineer, was born in Cuba in the early 20th century. He enjoyed entertaining his friends with pitchers rum sour and worked in Santiago de Cuba. Local bartenders eventually took over and created what we now know.

Classic Daiquiri Recipe

Prep time:5 min

Time Total:7 min

Yield1 Cocktail

Ingredients

• 2 ounces Rum
• Lime juice,.75 ounce
• Simple syrup:.75 ounce (1:1 sugar/water).

The Method

1. Mix all ingredients in a shaker.
2. Mix the ingredients together and shake well until chilled
3. Take the chilled drink into a coupe glass.
4. Use a lime wheel to garnish.

The daiquiri is a common bartender’s test to gauge their skills and palate. Joaquin Simo of Pouring Ribbons, Manhattan once stated about the daiquiri: “It is the omelet for cocktails.” You don’t have the skills to make an omelet. The same goes for a daiquiri.

The Best Rums to Make a Daiquiri

Six bartenders will answer six questions about their favorite daiquiri Rum. Guess what? And guess what? We accomplished just that! Some of our most trusted bar buddies from across the country helped us choose the right rum or rums to make the best daiquiri.

Clairin

Kat Foster is a bartender at Eleven Madison Park in NYC. She says Clairin has become my favorite rum. It’s a Haitian-derived style made with sugarcane, rather than molasses. This gives it a vibrant grassiness that adds life to daiquiris. One ounce is enough. I prefer to mix it with about a quarter of an ounce of unaged rum, such as Plantation 3 Star white rum or Ten To One white.

El Dorado 3yr Cask Aged Demerara

Drew Hairston from Maydan Washington DC, says El Dorado 3yr Cask Aged Demerara is his go-to rum when making classic daiquiri. This juice ticks all the boxes. The oak age adds subtle vanilla notes and baking spices while keeping the rum clean and uncolored. This style is my favorite because it balances out acidic fresh lime juice. It also allows for less sugar while maintaining roundness.

Coconut Cartel

Kyle Jones (owner of Bon Vivant’s, Nassau, Bahamas) was our contact. He provided us with his unique favorite daiquiri. For our simple daiquiris, I use Plantation 3 Star white rum. However, Coconut Cartel is my favorite for treating myself. Coconut water is used to cut the rum from Guatemala. This adds a delicious tropical layer of saltiness and sweetness. Coconut Cartel stands out among the many other rums available.

Scarlet Ibis

Alex Negranza is the Bar Manager at MARCH in Houston. He chose a Trinidadian blended rum originally created for Death & Co., Manhattan. Blended rums are my favorite because they make me feel that rums should be able to work together. Death & Co. was a fantastic team in developing this rum. I also love to add a few drops of Plantation Original Dark or an equivalent for extra flavor. A 2:1 simple syrup is my preference over a turbinado syrup. Additionally, a dark Rum adds depth to the drink when it’s not being used.

Ron Pepon Blanco

Stephen Hoppe is co-owner at La Penultima Bar, our favourite bar in Puerto Rico. He uses a specific (island-specific) rum for his daiquiri. Ron Pepon Blanco is my favorite daiquiri Rum right now. This is Puerto Rico’s first rum produced in an agricultural-style style by San Juan Artisan Distillers. The distillery uses fresh milled cane juice and it is distilled in French pot stills. It’s a mix of Martinique and Jamaican Rums. Both elegant and funky. We love both Jamaican and grassy agricole Rhums so we are eager to grab this bottle.

Learn more

Worthy Park Rum Bar Gold

Do not let the bar’s name fool you. Greg Ewan, Aunt Betty’s Gin & Absinthe Bar, Raleigh, North Carolina has a great recommendation for your next daiquiri. Worthy Park Rum-Bar Gold is my go-to for single-rum daiquiri. The rum-bar gold has less esters than a Jamaican rum, doesn’t contain dunder pits, and the slight muted flavor allows for the vanilla, plantain and citrus notes to shine through. They have complete control of their production from the cultivation of cane to the production and distillation to bottling.

The Manual’s Choice: Plantation’s Stiggins Fancy, Wray & Nepthew Overproof

We are avid daiquiri lovers and couldn’t resist adding our choice to the mix. Our favorite “snaquiri”, a 50/50 mix of Plantation’s “Stiggins fancy” and Wray & Nephew Overproof, is what you will find at the shop. Plantation’s remarkably smooth, pineapple-infused Rum is hard to beat. We also love the Jamaican Wray and Nephew Overproof.

Faqs

Conclusion

Daiquiris are often associated with being too sweet, but they have a lot going on. A traditional daiquiri has rum, sugar and lime juice. Classic Daiquiris are made by shaking all the ingredients together in a shaker and then pouring them into a glass with a lime wheel garn