Hot Buttered Rum is a very warming drink.

Sweet, spicy and very, very warming. Hot buttered rum has become iconic in Western culture, a traditional drink for the winter festivities. Let’s try to understand why he is cult there, and we only have grog.

The other day I got my hands on Barbados Mount Gay rum. Not the most premium version of it, but I liked the drink, although I am not a big fan of Caribbean distillate. Drinking it in a pleasant friendly company, when there was a solid minus outside the window, and everything indicated that the winter would be long and cold, I remembered one very interesting and extraordinary warming drink – Hot Buttered Rum (Hot Buttered Rum).

According to very reputable sources, HBR is one of the most famous rum warming drinks in the world. Of course, we often hear the legendary grog, but in English-speaking countries it is considered a good habit to add butter to rum, especially on holidays. What is remarkable about this drink is its long history and a huge number of variations.

History of Hot Buttered Rum

Hot Buttered Rum has been known in the bar community since Jerry “Professor” Thomas’s first cocktail anthology, How to Mix Drinks, or Bon-Vivants Companion. But the history of this drink began much earlier. Already in the thirteenth century, oil began to be added to ale in order to enhance its medicinal properties. Then the Europeans learned how to distill and oil began to be added to stronger drinks.

After molasses began to be imported from Jamaica to colonial America and distilleries began to open in New England, the colonists began adding rum to hot drinks. So, along with eggnog and toddy, Hot Buttered Rum appeared. Of course, the drink was to the taste of Christmas America and quickly gained fans throughout the Anglo-American world. Initially, strong, aged dark rum was added to HBR, which retained a distinct molasses flavor in the drink. Later, lighter distillates and their spicy versions came into play.

Hot Buttered Rum for the Lazy

Any dark rum, both spicy and not so, is suitable for this drink. Often, the same Mount Gay, Bacardi Carta Negra are used, from spicy ones – the popular Bacardi Oakheart and Captain Morgan’s Spiced. Remarkably, you can not add spices at all if you originally plan to use spiced rum. Instead of hot water, hot cider or tea is often added.

Melt butter with sugar and cloves over low heat in a small saucepan. Remove from heat, add rum to the mixture and mix well. Pour through a sieve into a heatproof glass or cup and add hot water to taste. Garnish with a cinnamon stick and grated nutmeg. Drink immediately, without delaying the pleasure!

Hot Buttered Rum Recipe for the Compliant

In America, they prepare for the Christmas holidays in advance, as well as for the preparation of traditional warming drinks. For Hot Butter Rum, it is customary to prepare an oil concentrate in advance, the name of which can be interpreted as “dough”. I offer one of the drink recipes with such a “dough”.

Add rum to a heatproof glass or mug. Add the “dough”, pour boiling water to taste and stir well. Drink immediately, without delaying the pleasure!

* “dough” for hot buttered rum

• 450 g butter
• 450 g brown sugar
• 450 white sugar
• 1 Art. l. ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp clove balls
• 1 teaspoon grated nutmeg
• 1 l softened vanilla ice cream

Add all ingredients, except ice cream, to a bowl and mix well until smooth. Add ice cream and mix again. Transfer to any container of a suitable volume, close tightly and store in the freezer.