The Spruce
Creators of tropical cocktails just cannot seem to agree on ingredients and the Rum Runner is another example of a great drink with many recipes. No matter how you make it, it is a fun one.
You Will Need: light and dark rums, banana liqueur, blackberry liquor, orange juice, pineapple juice, grenadine
That list is only from one Rum Runner recipe. Others include the spices of falernum instead of sweet grenadine or they may skip either of the juices. In general, a Rum Runner should have rum, banana, and blackberry, but this is not always the case either.
Rum Runner: 3 Easy Recipes for the Fruity Tiki Cocktail
Total:3 mins
- Prep:3 mins
- Cook:0 mins
- Yield:1 cocktail (1 serving)
| Nutritional Guidelines (per serving) | |
|---|---|
| 209 | Calories |
| 0g | Fat |
| 19g | Carbs |
| 1g | Protein |
See Full Nutritional Guidelines
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)
The Rum Runner was created in the 1950’s at the Tiki Bar of Holiday Isle in Islamorada, Florida. It’s popular drink, filled with fruits and rum. It can either be shaken or blended and no matter how you decide to mix up your Rum Runner, it is a delicious tiki cocktail.
As we often see with tropical drinks, it seems like there are a million ways to make the same cocktail and rarely do two recipes agree. The Rum Runner is no exception though there are a few elements that most (certainly not all) recipes do agree on: rum and banana and blackberry liqueurs, and grenadine.
From there, we see can pineapple or orange juices (or both), one or two rums (sometimes spiced or coconut), and the occasional use of falernum, among other things. For this reason, I’ve included three of my favourite Rum Runner recipes. They are each unique, and you may find that you enjoy one more than the others.
It doesn’t matter which Rum Runner is ‘original’ or ‘the best,’ because the journey in finding your perfect Rum Runner recipe is half the fun!
An Easy and Fruity Rum Runner
This Rum Runner recipe may have one of the longest ingredients lists but notice that each is poured equally. That makes it an easy drink to remember and make!
Two styles of rum are used in this recipe, which adds a nice foundation for all the fruits. Some drinkers may prefer to use a spiced rum rather than a dark and others may like a coconut rum like Malibu instead of a light rum.
Ingredients
- 1 ounce light rum
- 1 ounce dark or aged rum
- 1 ounce banana liqueur
- 1 ounce blackberry liqueur (or blackberry brandy)
- 1 ounce orange juice
- 1 ounce pineapple juice
- Splash grenadine
Steps to Make It
- Pour the ingredients into a cocktail shaker filled with ice.
- Shake well and strain into a hurricane glass over fresh ice.
- Garnish with fruit!
Tip
If you’re throwing a party, set all of these ingredients out on the bar counter and simply pour 1 shot from each bottle (except the grenadine). It makes serving this Rum Runner super easy!
Recipe Variation
Make this rum runner a blended beverage by pouring the ingredients into a blender with about 3/4 cup of ice and blending until smooth.
By Colleen Graham