Rum and Coke
Rum and cola over ice. The simplest rum drink there is — and a Cuba Libre the moment you add a squeeze of lime, which you should.
Built to the standard modern spec; not yet tested in our kitchen. How we test.
The recipe.
Scaling adjusts quantities only. Prepare shaken drinks in individual portions.
Let’s make a good drink.
Fill a highball glass with ice.
Add the rum.
Top with cold cola and stir once, gently.
Squeeze a lime wedge over the top and drop it in, if you like.
A thoughtful finish
- A lightly aged gold rum with some caramel and oak makes a far better drink than a neutral white; a funky Jamaican rum makes a bigger, bolder one.
- Fresh, cold cola in a small bottle. Flat cola from a litre bottle is the usual failure.
- Add the lime. It costs nothing and it is the difference between a soda and a drink.
Common mistakes
- Spiced rum, which makes it taste of vanilla essence.
- Warm cola, or not enough ice.
- Two to one cola to rum is a drink; four to one is a soft drink with a hint of rum. Choose.
A few good questions.
What is the difference between a rum and Coke and a Cuba Libre?
Lime. A Cuba Libre has fresh lime juice squeezed in; a rum and Coke does not. The lime cuts the sugar and makes the drink.
Which rum?
A lightly aged gold rum is the sweet spot. A funky Jamaican dark rum makes an excellent bigger version; a neutral white rum makes a forgettable one.
Diet cola?
It works, but the sweetener reads against rum and the drink tastes thin. Full-sugar cola is the drink.
What about Captain Morgan and Coke?
Spiced rum and cola is its own thing, popular and sweet. This page is for rum.
Variations
- Cuba Libre — Rum, cola and lime.
- Dark and Stormy — Dark rum and ginger beer.
- Fernet and Coke — Fernet in place of rum.
- Whiskey and Cola — Bourbon in place of rum.
Where it comes from
c. 1900 · Cuba and the United States
Contested. More than one origin is claimed for this drink. We show the competing accounts rather than pick one.
Coca-Cola reached Cuba in 1900 and met Bacardi within the year; the Cuba Libre, with lime, is the version with a name and a story, and the plain rum and Coke is the same drink with the lime left off, which is how most of the world has drunk it since the Andrews Sisters sang ‘Rum and Coca-Cola’ in 1945 — a calypso about Trinidad that became the biggest hit of the year. It is the drink most people make first and the one most often made carelessly. A good rum, a fresh cola, enough ice and a lime wedge make it worth making well.
Sources
- Wayne Curtis, And a Bottle of Rum, 2006 (book)
- David Wondrich, Imbibe!, 2015 (book)
- Difford's Guide, Rum and Coke, 2015 (reference)
Strength. About 1.33 US standard drinks at an estimated 11.6% ABV, estimated from the ingredients and technique, not measured. What that means.
A little character in every sip.
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