Recipe: Coco Punch and other recipes for cruzan blackstrap rum

On 2006-04-13 11:18, kick_the_reverb wrote:
That horrid rum (Molasses Liqueur as Humuhumu called it) is usually $8-10 at some places, Trader Yossi's (Joe's) for example. At least it used to be. If you found a way to use it in a drink, a lot of us would thank you for helping us get rid of it :wink:

Ran

i saw this post on another thread and lemme say i don't totally disagree. however i have a few comments to add. first it is NOT a great rum but if you us in moderation as a flavor in a drink like any other syrup it adds a nice flavor. here is a recipe i created for our home bar. the name comes from a drink on the stockton islander menu and i'm quite sure that it was nothing like the one below. the drink is very "layered" and i have recieved good feedback from all i have made it for. feel welcome to add your comments if you like i have thick skin!

Coco Punch:

1.5 oz grapefruit juice
1.5 oz fresh lime juice
1.5 oz white rum ( i like the pyrat best but use what you have/like)
1 oz demerara (lemon heart or el dorado)
1 oz coconut syrup (i use trader vics but again use what you like)
.5 oz cherry syrup (you know the stuff the cocktail cherries are floatin in)
.5 oz black strap

shake thoroughly with ice and stain into a tall zombie glass or tiki mug full of ice. garnish however you like.

the key to using black strap in my opinion is making sure that: 1) you don't use a lot of it and/or 2) that you need to have a very sour base.

i hope you all enjoy this recipe and please post your own black strap recipes here.

Last year at the Home Bar Crawl during the NW Tiki Crawl in Portland I had the pleasure of tasting a drink served by MrTikiBar's Dad. I'm not sure what(other than the blackstrap) was in it, but it was fantastic.

Maybe he could elaborate?

Just a couple of weeks ago during my trip to Seattle I was fortunate enough to find a bottle to bring home with me.

I guess I'm alone then when I say I love the stuff. I do agree though, that it does tend to overpower a drink if used in large amounts, but so does orgeat and everyone still loves Mai Tais. I do like it by itself on the rocks, but my favorite is to add a half ounce to the Captain's Grog recipe in the Grog Log. Another is to mix pineapple juice, coconut rum, and a bit of Black Strap. Mmmmm. :drink:

By the way, that Coco Punch recipe sounds great!

My thoughts were so loud I couldn't hear my mouth...

[ Edited by: finkdaddy 2006-04-13 16:20 ]

I have used it in a simple sort of Cuba Libre-esque drink with decent results. It is just Black Strap and 7up with lemon (1/4.. squeezed and shell dropped in).

Now unlike a Cuba Libre, the sweetness of the soda is not cut as much because the rum itself is quite sweet, so.. be warned that this is a bit top heavy sugar wise. But it is a nice combo nonetheless with lots of crushed ice on a hot day.

I call it a Chupacabra, but you can call it awful if you wish.

Ahu

Although I would never drink it straight, I don't think Cruzan Black Strap is horrid, it just needs to be used sparingly, like Drunken Hat uses it.

A worse rum is Trader Vic's Dark Rum. That stuff makes any drink taste vile, and they should stop using it in their bars immediately! I noticed at Beverly Hills they use Curuba in the well, though I'm not sure if they use it as their main dark rum.

Made something up last night

2oz cruzan 5 year
1/2 a fresh squeezed lime
1/2oz cruzan blackstrap
2oz unsweetened pineapple juice
1/4oz coconut syrup
1/4oz licor 43

shake with crushed ice, strain into glass filled with crushed ice & let mellow a little. I'm not sure how I feel about this one. Drunkenmunky thought it was a little tart, and I tend to make things on the sweet side, so I think this calls for another round with maybe half the lime and a mint garnish.

On 2006-04-14 10:32, thejab wrote:
Although I would never drink it straight, I don't think Cruzan Black Strap is horrid, it just needs to be used sparingly, like Drunken Hat uses it.

A worse rum is Trader Vic's Dark Rum. That stuff makes any drink taste vile, and they should stop using it in their bars immediately! I noticed at Beverly Hills they use Curuba in the well, though I'm not sure if they use it as their main dark rum.

Ok, I tend to overstate things. It's not as horrid as the TV dark. But not by much. I like the way the Drunken Hat suggested to use it. As a flavor additive, not to be used in large quantities.
Thanks for the recipes everyone.

Ran

On 2006-04-14 11:07, Tikiwahine wrote:
I'm not sure how I feel about this one. Drunkenmunky thought it was a little tart, and I tend to make things on the sweet side, so I think this calls for another round with maybe half the lime and a mint garnish.

No!

Too tart? I cannot believe that. One half lime with coconut syrup, pineapple juice, and Black Strap cannot possibly be too tart. It may just need more water if you are resting it to mellow a bit. So if any of the ingredients you are using are refrigerated, leaving them at room temp might be what you need (ie: small cans of pineapple juice as opposed to a large carton). Or shake it longer with more ice.

But other than being too concentrated, it sounds workable as is to me.

Ahu

Cruzan V year? I don't recall seeing that before. Must be a Canadian import. Lucky Canadians with their Cuban rums and now Cruzan V year! :wink:

On 2006-04-14 11:39, thejab wrote:
Cruzan V year? I don't recall seeing that before. Must be a Canadian import. Lucky Canadians with their Cuban rums and now Cruzan V year! :wink:

Er.. the black label Cruzan Estate diamond is a five year rum.

Unless I am mistaken.

Ahu

yup, that's the one Ahu, sorry for the confusion. I thought they all said 'estate diamond rum' on them.

Just finished the bottle - it smells like brown sugar sniiiif mmmmmm

just mixed another one up. the only thing I did differently was increast the licor 43 to 1/2oz instead of 1/4

I'm taking this thread in a slightly different direction:

I just found a yummy looking recipe for a Cider Soaked Smoked Ham with Honey Rum Glaze. The glaze calls for 2 cups of dark rum, but I thought this would be terrific with Black Strap. I'm making this for Easter dinner, so I'll let you know tommorow how it tastes.

Along what thejab was saying, I think Trader Vics Spiced Rum is about the worst tasting liquid ever produced.

My thoughts were so loud I couldn't hear my mouth...

[ Edited by: finkdaddy 2006-04-15 11:10 ]

I like black strap, I actually use in a Dark n' Stormy with the Gosslings, and it turned out great. It can overpower a drink quickly like you guys have said if not used sparingly.

This one?

http://www.epicurean.com/featured/cider-soaked-baked-ham-with-honey-rum-glaze.html

That's the one! Mmmm... cider, smoked ham, and rum. Should be tastey. :)

On 2006-04-16 09:43, finkdaddy wrote:
That's the one! Mmmm... cider, smoked ham, and rum. Should be tastey. :)

Well, how did that ham turn out anyway? I picked up a bottle of Black Strap the other day (first time). I tried Kono's Rabid Mongoose, but that was not really to my liking. Too sweet for me and the molasses was overpowering. It did pack a wallop though. :)

I'll try the Coco Punch and Tikiwahine's creation soon. Any other Black Strap recipes floating out there that someone likes?

On 2006-09-05 06:09, GatorRob wrote:

On 2006-04-16 09:43, finkdaddy wrote:
That's the one! Mmmm... cider, smoked ham, and rum. Should be tasty. :)

Well, how did that ham turn out anyway?

It was delicious! I'm planning on making it a tradition.

I've slightly refined my recipe, and given it a name:

Blackstrap Betty
1 1/2oz Cruzan 5 year
1/2 a lime
1/2oz Cruzan Blackstrap
3oz Pineapple Juice
1/4oz Koko Cream
1/4oz Licor 43

Shake & strain over crushed ice

Nice name! :)