The name Dark and Stormy brings to mind the occasional summer night thunderstorms that New England brings from June through September, not necessarily the delicious drink made from dark rum and ginger beer being offered by Gumbo on Water Street. Being Bermuda’s National Drink, this drink grew in popularity due to the sailors who would frequent Bermuda and bring their alcohol tastes with them to various ports up and down the Eastern Seaboard. For those of you who have not had to chance to sample this great summer cocktail, you are definitely missing out. Even if you are squeamish of rum in general or even ginger beer, let me ease those worries. Ginger beer is slightly different than ginger ale. But to draw a comparison, think of ginger ale and concentrate the taste…the ginger has much more of a bite to it (almost spicy) and it is noticeable. The rum of choice in this cocktail (Gosling’s Black Seal Rum) is a mid-priced rum that has been barrel-aged, and is almost coffee-colored. Gosling’s Black Seal has a sugary character accented by deep char notes of roasted coffee. It also has notes of cola, cinnamon, allspice, and ripe fruit. When you pair the two together, you can expect to enjoy a lazy summer evening and you will most definitely have a new favorite summertime cocktail.
