Hot buttered rum is one of the oldest drinks in America, and one of the easiest to get wrong. Use a thin rum and you get sweet butter water. Use the right one and you get something rich, spiced, and worth making a batch of batter for. Here's what to pour, with recommendations from working bartenders, plus a make-ahead batter recipe.
Where Hot Buttered Rum Comes From
Butter in hot drinks goes back further than rum does. Drinks historian David Wondrich traces the habit to the reign of Henry VIII, and a recipe for "Buttered Beere" appears in print in 1588. Rum entered the picture when Caribbean molasses started flowing into New England in the 1650s. Distilleries followed, rum got cheap, and colonists took to drinking it hot in winter: in toddies, in nogs, and in flips, a tavern drink of beer or cider, rum, and molasses heated by plunging a red-hot iron into the mug.
By 1862, Jerry Thomas's How to Mix Drinks had the formula down: his "Hot Spiced Rum" was sugar, Jamaica rum, cloves, allspice, a piece of butter, and hot water. Not everyone loved it. David Embury wrote in 1948 that "the Hot Spiced Rum is bad enough, but the lump of butter is the final insult."
Trader Vic disagreed. His bartender's guides pushed a batter of brown sugar, butter, salt, and spices that could be made ahead and scooped into mugs, and that method is how most bars make the drink today. January 17 is National Hot Buttered Rum Day, in case you need the excuse.
What Kind of Rum Works
Butter, sugar, and hot water flatten delicate flavors. The rum has to push back. Two things matter:
- Barrel age. Wine & Spirits magazine's advice is a medium-aged, strong rum: white rum has no barrel character to contribute, and very heavy black rums can turn bitter in the heat.
- Pot still character. Several bartenders reach for Jamaican or Guyanese rum because the funk and body stand up to the butter. Charleston bartender Alec Gropman told Food & Wine that a navy-strength Jamaican rum "cuts through the butter" where lighter rums disappear.
Ben Potts of Beaker & Gray in Miami puts it simply: only use a rum you'd be happy to sip neat.
The Bottles Bartenders Actually Recommend
Jamaican, high proof. Smith & Cross is Gropman's pick: pot still Jamaican rum at 57% ABV. Worthy Park 109 is tiki historian Beachbum Berry's choice. Both are overproof, so the drink stays warm and rum-forward instead of watery.
Jamaican, aged. Appleton Estate 12 Year is a softer way to get Jamaican character, recommended by bartender Nico Berardi. Ten to One Dark is NYC bartender Luis Hernandez's pick for how its pot still funk plays with brown butter.
Demerara. Guyana's rich, dark rums were built for this. El Dorado 12 Year comes up repeatedly, and Hamilton 86 Demerara is a value alternative. For a blend of both islands at 114 proof, Hamilton Navy Strength is bartender Mike Treffehn's choice.
Smoother and sweeter. If you'd rather the rum round out the drink than cut through it, bartenders recommend Diplomático Reserva Exclusiva, Ron Zacapa 23, and Chairman's Reserve from St. Lucia.
Dark and classic. Myers's Original Dark is bartender Marie King's pick because its funk cuts the butter, and Planteray Original Dark does the same job with a little more polish.
The shortcut. A spiced rum like Chairman's Reserve Spiced brings its own cinnamon and clove, so you can get away with a simpler batter.
Make-Ahead Batter (Trader Vic Method)
This is adapted from Saveur's version of the Trader Vic's recipe. It makes enough for about 16 drinks and keeps in the fridge for up to two weeks.
¾ lb (3 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
1 cup dark brown sugar
¼ tsp ground nutmeg
¼ tsp ground cinnamon
¼ tsp ground cloves
Pinch of salt
Beat everything together until light and fluffy. Store covered in the refrigerator.
To make a drink: put 2 heaping tablespoons of batter in a heat-safe 8-oz mug, add 1½ oz rum, and fill with boiling water. Stir until the batter dissolves. Grate fresh nutmeg on top.
Single-Serve Version (No Batter)
Adapted from Difford's Guide:
2 oz aged rum
2 barspoons honey
1 small knob (about 2 tsp) unsalted butter
2 pinches freshly grated nutmeg
Boiling water to top
Build in a pre-warmed toddy glass or mug, top with boiling water, stir, and garnish with a cinnamon stick.
Three Things That Make It Better
- Pre-heat the mug. Fill it with boiling water for a minute, then dump it. Cold batter in a cold mug melts the butter before the sugar dissolves and leaves an oily slick on top.
- Use heat-safe glass or ceramic. Regular glassware can crack with boiling water.
- Grate your own spices. Bartenders consistently call for freshly ground nutmeg, and a fresh grating on top of the finished drink is where you smell it most.