National Rum Day 2015: Three cocktail recipes to help you enjoy the Caribbean's sweet nectar

Drink up me 'earties, yo ho.

It feels like only yesterday we were celebrating National Tequila Day, but here we are in the middle of August toasting one of the Carribean's finest exports.

As rum seems to agree with most mixers, we've challenged Havana Club and The Duppy Share to come up some rum cocktails with a twist.

Rum Old Fashioned

50ml The Duppy Share
10ml sugar syrup
2 dashes Angostura bitters

Method

Stir all ingredients with ice. Strain into small chilled glass. Serve with a fresh twist of orange peel.

Havana Club Mojito

Havana Club Tres Años
1/2 a lime
2 tsp sugar
2 sprigs of mint
Ice
Sparkling water

Method

Squeeze half a lime into a glass and mix with the sugar. Fold the mint sprigs and place them in the glass, use the end of a wooden spoon to gently press the mint into the bottom of the glass. Fill with ice. Pour four lids worth of Havana Club Tres Años. Top up with sparkling water.

The Classic Cuba Libre

50ml gold rum
Cola
Lime

Method

Fill a Collins glass with ice, add rum, half a shot of freshly-squeezed lime juice and top with cola. It's as simple as that.

Now the drinks are made...

All you need to is sit back (preferably in the sun) and sip your cocktail to the voice of the King of Calypso, aka, Harry Belafonte.