Post #753922 by Sunny&Rummy on Thu, Nov 12, 2015 10:37 PM

There are so many drinks to choose from, I'd reccommend taking a dufferent approach that identifies signature drinks you can use to showcase different rum styles. e.g., do a Zombie or a 151 Swizzle to showcase 151 Demerara, a Three Dots and a Dash to showcase Martinique rhum agricole, a classic Planters Punch to showcase dark Jamaican rum, a classic Daiquiri to showcase a dry Spanish style light rum, and a Trader Vic style Mai Tai to showcase a pot still aged Jamaican rum. For non-rum options, someone already mentioned the Pinky Gonzalez (sub tequila for rum in your Mai Tai), and a Trader Vic Honi Honi (aka a Bluegrass Mai Tai) is a bourbon-based Mai Tai.

For an approachable starter cocktail that still showcases an excellent rum, I'd go with a Pusser's Painkiller. Tiki Hardbop may give me grief because it isn't Tiki, but neither are a couple of my other suggestions above. . . going Faux Poly/Caribbean rather than strictly Tiki.