Reddit reviews Smuggler's Cove: Exotic Cocktails, Rum, and the Cult of Tiki

Rum is a slightly more complicated topic than, say, whiskey or tequila. The legal standards for rum vary by country. Remember that most individual islands in/on the Caribbean are independent nations. There are more than 200 rums bottled in North America alone. The U.S. federal definition of rum is abysmal and not enforced as it is. OK. Where to start? Here are some links to further your pursuit.

This is a good general overview as only Wikipedia can give. Rum - Wikipedia

Here's a reasonable intro to rum guide put together by VINEPAIR Rum Guide - Learn About Rum

This is Drink International's Rum Supplement from last December. It discusses a lot of the topics surrounding rum today. Download it (free) and put it on your phone/tablet. Rum Supplement - Drink International

Here are some books that are generally well regarded by the rum community. I've linked to the eBook versions. The most expensive is $11.99

Rum The Manual
Rum Curious
And A Bottle of Rum
Smuggler's Cove: Exotic Cocktails, Rum, and the Cult of Tiki

Have fun chasing rums!

~Cheers

I highly suggest that you get a copy of Martin Cate's excellent book (tiki bible?) Smuggler's Cove: Exotic Cocktails, Rum, and the Cult of Tiki. That will teach you everything you need to know.

But, almost all tiki cocktails are rum-based. There are a few with other spirits, but fairly few. (Get rid of that spiced rum - you won't need it, and it's generally awful.) You can get as many opinions on rum brands here as there are posters, but as an advanced beginner, I'll give you my list:

• An all-around rum - I like Plantation 5-Year
  
• A black rum - Gosling's Black Seal is solid
  
• An overproof rum - I prefer Plantation O.F.T.D.
  
• A column still rum - Cruzan is quite good
  
• A rhum agricole - Clement works well
  
  What you're looking for is style of rum, and country of origin. Around here we find the terms, "light, dark, amber" to be pretty useless as there are dozens of different styles and tastes of rums within each of those.

I make a lot of cocktails for friends and so I've found the following ingredients to be useful for making a ton of cocktails:

• Costco bag of limes - a gigantic bag of fresh limes for less than 6 bucks and it should keep in the fridge for a few weeks. Most rum drinks use limes vs lemons, though there are a few. With this, you can make daiquiris, use the limes for garnishes, etc.
  
  
• Pineapple Juice (Multi-pack) - The cans of pineapple juice are so convenient for making quick cocktails. A lot of tiki drinks feature pineapple juice (Painkiller, Missionary's Downfall).
  
  
• POM juice - You use the pomegranate juice for making homemade grenadine, possibly one of the easiest and best tasting syrups. I've used this recipe for years and I extend its life by adding a T of brandy. I love the Shrunken Skull drink made with this: 1 oz Gold Rum, 1 oz Demerera, 1 oz lime, 1 oz grenadine, and ice - potent and so good!
  
  
• Angostura Bitters - a feature of most tiki drinks. There's even a cocktail (that I haven't tried) that uses this as it's main spirit!
  
  
• Books that are packed full of wonderful recipes:
  

1. Smuggler's Cove
   
2. Beach Bum Berry's Remixed
   
3. Trader Vic's Tiki Party
   
   Fair Warning - You will want to make ALL of the recipes in these books, and then you will want to buy more different types of alcohol (Jamaican, Demerera) and ultimately the recipes. It's a vicious, expensive cycle, but it's all worth it when you discover your new favorite drink. Eventually, it will hopefully lead you to something complex and wonderful like the Puka Punch recipe, one of my favorite cocktails. I think it features more than 10 ingredients, and it's amazing!