It’s just rum, ginger beer and lime, but which rum works best? We ask three bar legends to upgrade this classic cocktail.
Despite its name, the Dark ‘n’ Stormy is definitely a cocktail for all weather. You’ve got the zesty freshness of lime (a big tick on those sweltering days) and the gentle warmth of ginger (ideal when it’s chilly) wrapped around the sweet richness of rum – all of which makes the Dark ‘n’ Stormy one of our absolute go-to cocktails.
The other reason we love a Dark ‘n’ Stormy is its simplicity. All you need are three ingredients – lime, ginger beer and rum – to build yourself a cocktail that has been essentially unchanged since it first cropped up in the 19th century.
It begs the question, though: which rum is best for a Dark ‘n’ Stormy? From the original Gosling’s Black Seal to small-batch local rums and Caribbean classics, we asked some of the top rum bars in the country to let us in on their favourite rums for a Dark ‘n’ Stormy.
Below the pedestrian bustle of Flinders Lane you’ll find Jack and Bones, a tropical hideout billing itself as Melbourne’s only Hawaiian dive bar. Besides a menu of burgers, tacos and pizza that was clearly built with famished drinkers in mind, Jack and Bones is all about tiki-ish cocktails – and you better believe rum features heavily.
For venue manager Martini Kolaj, there’s no one perfect rum for a Dark ‘n’ Stormy, but there is a strong case for tradition.“ The original, and argued by some to be the only rum to use for a traditional Dark ‘n’ Stormy, is Gosling’s Black Seal Rum,” Martini says. “Goslings creates a well-rounded Dark ‘n’ Stormy, with flavours of dark molasses, hints of caramel, vanilla and spice – ideal for a drink that is traditional, refreshing and ‘original.’”
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For a rum that hits a little lighter on both the palate and the wallet, Martini reckons you’re best off reaching for Bacardi Spiced. “Using Bacardi Spiced will give you a similar vanilla flavour to what you’d get from Gosling’s, with hints of nutmeg and a gentle cinnamon heat mixed in, making it the perfect rum for a Dark ‘n’ Stormy in warmer weather.”
And, if you want to dial everything up for a richer, more complex version, go for Plantation Original Dark Double Aged, a heady blend of Trinidadian and Jamaican rums. “It gives you a more ‘gourmet’ flavour within your Dark ‘n’ Stormy, including the molasses flavours from the traditional recipe, but adding a slight flavour of banana, making this the perfect rum to use when you want a more diverse and rich mix of flavours,” Martini says.
Hobart might be a long way from the traditional Caribbean heartland of rum but, with specialty rum bars like Rude Boy, it really doesn’t matter. Here, co-owner Campbell Nicol finds joy showing locals the fun side of rum, serving up everything from fruity tiki cocktails and Dark ‘n’ Stormy specials to rare bottlings, all alongside Rude Boy’s famous fried chicken.
At Rude Boy, the typical Dark ‘n’ Stormy rum is pretty traditional, but nothing’s set in stone. “The Dark ‘n’ Stormy has a very simple structure – you're talking about rum, lime and ginger beer, but there's so much room in that to have fun,” Campbell says. “We make a pretty classic one using Gosling's Black Seal, but you can sub any rum you want into that.”
Starting with the classic molasses, ginger and lime flavour profile, Campbell says you can pick a rum to tweak it in any direction you like. "If you want to go super funky and rich, pick up a bottle of El Dorado 12 Year Old and go for more of a South American, big, rich, round, Dark ‘n’ Stormy.”
Considering Rude Boy is flying the flag for rum in Australia (and Campbell estimates a quarter of the back bar is Aussie), a local rum from New South Wales distillery Husk will definitely take your Dark ‘n’ Stormy up a notch or two.
“The Husk guys are just making really banging rums, full of flavour,” Campbell says. “They've got some cool spiced ones that work in a Dark ‘N’ Stormy, but the Husk Rare Blend that just won a couple of awards is one of the great rums from Australia at the moment. It just slips perfectly in there with a nice, spicy ginger beer and that fresh squeeze of lime – it's great.”
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Consider Old Love’s a passion project for Dre Walters, describing it as both a guilty pleasure and “a rum bar that I wanted to drink in.” Tucked below its sister venue Old Mate’s, Old Love’s is a rum bar like few others, with a 350-strong collection of rums on the back bar and a menu that reads like a book (and took nine months to write). And you’d better believe they know what’s up when it comes to a Dark ‘n’ Stormy.
“Any kind of really dark, heavy molasses rum works really well,” Dre says. “The rum's got to shine through the ginger. You don't want the rum to overpower by any means, but you still want to be able to know that there is a nice, warming, Christmassy sort of rum inside there.”
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As a Dark ‘n’ Stormy traditionalist, Dre first reaches for Gosling’s Black Seal, but it’s definitely not the only rum on the radar. “If I'm going to do anything else, I'd probably stick to something local like Lord Byron. That's just to pay homage to the fact we're in Australia – we've got some really good rums here.”
And, considering the Dark ‘n’ Stormy’s Caribbean origins, Dre would also recommend grabbing a Jamaican classic like the Appleton Estate 8 Year Old. “It has that characteristic of rich molasses and those really nice Christmas notes that come through, where you've got those rich raisins and dates to it. That's the kind of rum, like a Gosling’s, that you want to shine through.”
