Most folks that come out with us for a day on the water enjoy having a few cocktails during the trip. Many choose to bring their own adult beverages but, if you don't feel like lugging heavy coolers down to the dock, there's another option. When booking your trip, you can pre-order rum punch by the gallon and it will be waiting for you on ice when you arrive. Pretty nice, right?
Most bars and restaurants down in the islands serve rum punch and it's just one of those drinks where no two recipes are exactly the same. Every place has their own recipe and for me, it can be kind of fun to try them in different places and see which ones I like the best.
The rum punch that we serve on Island Girl is the result of a few years of "research". Like I said, I really enjoy rum punch and I know a good one when I taste it. I solicited the help of a close friend to help me come up with the recipe for the rum punch we would serve on the boat. The requirements were simple:
- It has to taste good
- It has to be made with ingredients that are readily available on island.
- It cannot be too sweet. No one really wants all that sugar anyway.
- It cannot be heavy - it must be light. Painkillers are great, but they're heavy and after a few, I tend to get pretty full, and that's no fun.
- It cannot be weak or too strong. It needs to be "strong enough". Remember, drinking on a full day boat charter is a marathon, not a sprint.
Pretty simple requirements, actually, but it took quite a bit of "testing" to zero in on the recipe we use on the boat. We only use Cruzan rum. It's made on St Croix, is easy to get, and quite frankly, we think it's the best.
Side note: If you ever have the opportunity, visit the Cruzan Rum distillery on St Croix and take the guided tour. The tour guides are great!
Our Cruzan Rum distillery tour guide, Darnell
You'll learn a ton and will get to see how the different types of rum are made. This is not just a "demo" room - you actually walk through the various parts of the distillery where rum is being made. Pretty cool.
At the end of the tour, your guide brings you to the bar where s/he makes you 3 or 4 drinks of your choice. It will be the best $7/person you will ever spend! Make sure you have a designated driver!)
We use nearly 1 liter of rum in our 1 gallon of rum punch, so it's definitely not weak. We also use a combination of 3 different juices (sorry, the amounts and types of juice are proprietary). We do not use grenadine. (See requirement #3 above.)
Lastly, we do add a little water to our rum punch. Not only does this help keep it "light", it helps with hydration. Remember, we are serving it on a boat out in the hot sun. You're welcome. 🙂
Anyway, we think our rum punch recipe is perfect for a day on the water. Give it a try and see for yourself. And if you don't finish it all, you can take the rest with you and drink it the next day on the beach Cheers!