The Unofficial National Drink of Bermuda
The Dark and Stormy originated in Bermuda and is unofficially their national drink. Rumour has it that Gosling, a
seafarer, successfully navigated the extensive coral reefs around Bermuda to the pink sandy shores, then desperately needed a drink. Rummaging around the bowels of the boat for something in the way of a mixer, they found some ginger beer, commonly loved by English sailors at the time, and mixed their rum with the spicy beverage.
The darkness of the rum, combined with the lighter colored ginger beer made for a cloudy beverage. A sailor on that cleverly named it a Dark & Stormy, after the murky skies so commonly found in the Caribbean. This spicy and refreshing beverage packs quite a wallop with a couple ounces of sweet dark rum. Sailors around the world have adopted this gingery beverage their own as the perfect beverage after a safe voyage.
Dark & Stormy Ingredients:
- 2 oz Goslings Black Seal Dark Rum
- 8 oz Ginger Beer
- 1/2 oz of fresh lime juice (optional)
How to Prepare the perfect Dark and Stormy:
- Fill a tall glass with cubes of ice
- If you like, add the fresh lime juice to the glass
- Pour a fantastic ginger beer over the ice, leaving room at the top for your spirit
- Float your premium dark rum on top
- Garnish with a freshly cut lime wedge and swizzle stick
Don’t stir the drink. Let your guest do this last step as the layered effect of the rum on the ginger beer makes for the best drink presentation.
Also spend the time to fine the best ginger beer. With a little luck, you might find real ginger beer in your local grocery or health food store. There are even some craft options on store shelves now. Note that attempting to make the Dark and Stormy cocktail with ginger ale will not yield the same results. The proper cocktail needs the spiciness of a decent ginger beer. We cover how to make this cocktail also on Day #5 of our 32-hour bartender training course.
