Rum Daisy
Shake ∙ 3 min ∙ 25.6% ABV ∙
The Rum Daisy shakes white rum with lemon juice and sugar syrup, finished with a touch of herbal liqueur and bitters over a large ice cube. Tart lemon and warm rum lead, a faint herbal bitterness from the Chartreuse and Angostura trailing underneath, with a cool, lightly diluted finish from the block ice.
Ingredients
1
Servings
Garnish
Instructions for 1 serving
- Pre-chill a glass
- Shake all ingredients with ice: White rum 60 mlHerbal liqueur (e.g., Yellow Chartreuse) 5 mlLemon juice 15 mlSugar syrup 5 mlAngostura aromatic bitters 1 dash
- Fine strain into the chilled glass (preferably over a large cube or chunk of block ice)
- Garnish with a mint sprig and a lime twist
Tips
- Fine-strain over one large cube or a block of ice — the slower melt keeps the drink cold without watering it down.
- Shake hard and briefly to fully integrate the sugar syrup before fine-straining, so no undissolved syrup pools at the bottom.
- Pre-chill the glass before straining so the drink doesn't lose its chill sitting on room-temperature glass.
History
The Rum Daisy belongs to the Daisy family, a group of sour-style cocktails distinguished by a spirit base, citrus juice, a small amount of orange liqueur or other cordial, and a touch of sweetener. The name "Daisy" is not floral in origin but comes from 19th-century slang for something excellent, the same root that gave English the word "doozy." The earliest known written reference to a Daisy appears in an 1866 novel, and some accounts trace the drink's likely birthplace to Washington, D.C., though the specifics of its creation were never firmly documented.
The format was codified in print by Jerry Thomas, whose 1876 edition of The Bartender's Guide, or How to Mix Drinks: The Bon-Vivant's Companion included Daisy recipes built on various base spirits, including brandy, whiskey, gin, and rum, with orange liqueur playing a central role in the mix. Because the Daisy was understood as a template rather than a single fixed recipe, bartenders of the era freely swapped the base spirit while keeping the name, so a rum-based version sat alongside brandy, whiskey, and gin Daisies as one of the standard variations.
Over the following decades the Daisy's formula shifted, with grenadine eventually displacing orange liqueur in many popular versions. The category is also credited as a forerunner of later cocktails, including the Sidecar and, through its citrus-and-orange-liqueur structure, the Margarita.
FAQ
What are the ingredients in a Daisy drink?
A Daisy is traditionally a spirit, citrus juice, and a small amount of orange liqueur or liqueur-based sweetener, shaken and served over ice. This Rum Daisy follows that structure with white rum, fresh lemon juice, and sugar syrup, plus a touch of herbal liqueur such as Yellow Chartreuse and a dash of Angostura bitters for depth.
What is a Daisy cocktail?
A Daisy is a family of cocktails built from a base spirit, citrus juice, and a sweetener or liqueur, shaken and served over crushed or cracked ice, traditionally garnished with a sprig of mint. It's considered a forerunner of the sour and the modern Margarita-style drink, with rum, gin, and whiskey all common bases.
