Hot Buttered Rum
Build; Warm up ∙ 4 min ∙ 18.9% ABV ∙
A Hot Buttered Rum is a warm, built cocktail of aged Caribbean rum, honey, and butter topped with boiling water and grated nutmeg.
Ingredients
1
Servings
Garnish
Instructions for 1 serving
- Pre-heat a toddy glass
- Add the Honey to the warmed glass using a bar spoon
- Add the remaining ingredients: Unsalted butter 1 knobCaribbean aged rum 60 mlFreshly grated nutmeg 2 pinchesBoiling water 60 ml
- Stir until the honey and butter are dissolved
- Garnish with a cinnamon stick and a lemon slice (studded with cloves)
Tips
- Spoon the honey into the pre-heated glass first so it loosens before the butter, rum, nutmeg, and boiling water go in.
- Keep stirring until the butter and honey have melted into the rum and water; a greasy film on top means it needs more stirring.
History
Hot buttered rum traces to colonial America, where rum imported and distilled from Caribbean molasses became widely available by the late 1600s. Colonists already favored hot spiced drinks like toddies and flips, and adding butter turned these into a calorie-dense, warming mixture suited to cold winters, since butter was a prized source of richness and fuel during the season. The drink was mostly a home and tavern tradition, passed along through family recipes rather than formal bartending. Early written recipes appear in Jerry Thomas's 1862 guide, How to Mix Drinks: Or, The Bon-Vivant's Companion, which gives two versions of a hot rum drink made with sugar, Jamaica rum, butter, and hot water. One is spiced with cloves and allspice, the other simply garnished with grated nutmeg.
The drink saw a revival in the mid-20th century as part of the tiki movement, when Victor "Trader Vic" Bergeron popularized a premade batter of butter creamed with sugar and spices in his Bartender's Guide. Other versions appeared around 1950 at Hawaii's Volcano House Hotel and a Chicago restaurant. Its association with cozy, cold-weather drinking was reinforced by its mention in Kenneth Roberts's 1937 novel Northwest Passage and later in the film White Christmas.
FAQ
What is the difference between a hot toddy and a hot buttered rum?
A hot toddy is typically spirit, hot water, honey or sugar, and a citrus or spice garnish, while a Hot Buttered Rum adds a knob of butter melted into the mix. That butter gives it a richer, silkier body than a standard toddy, turning a simple hot drink into something closer to a warm, rum-based dessert.
What kind of rum is best for a Hot Buttered Rum?
An aged Caribbean rum works best, since its caramel and spice notes hold up against the honey once diluted with boiling water.
How do you make a good Hot Buttered Rum?
Pre-heat a toddy glass and spoon in 2 barspoons of honey so it loosens. Add a knob of unsalted butter, 60 ml Caribbean aged rum, two pinches of grated nutmeg and 60 ml boiling water. Stir until the butter and honey melt in; a greasy film on top means keep stirring. Garnish with a cinnamon stick and a clove-studded lemon slice.
