How Much Rum for a Party?

Rum Planning Guide

Rum is built for batching, which changes how you plan it. A 750ml bottle still yields about 16 to 17 standard drinks at 1.5 ounces, but most rum cocktails go down easy and fast, so plan two to three per guest and expect a tropical-themed party to run on the higher end. Rather than mixing drink by drink, the smart move with rum is to batch one or two signature cocktails ahead of time, which lets one 750ml bottle serve a group of six to seven without anyone tending bar all night.

Keep both a white and a dark rum on hand, because they do different jobs. White rum is the base for mojitos, daiquiris, and rum-and-sodas, while dark or aged rum carries punches, mai tais, and anything you want to taste over the mixers. A coconut rum rounds out the lineup for sweeter, fruitier drinks and is the bottle that pleases guests who say they do not like rum. For most parties a single white plus a single dark covers the menu, with coconut as an optional third.

The mixers and prep are what make rum drinks taste like a bar instead of a kitchen. Stock cola and lime for the simple builds, and for mojitos you need fresh mint, lime, and simple syrup, which you should make ahead by dissolving equal parts sugar and hot water. Fresh lime juice is the single biggest upgrade over a bottled mixer and is worth the squeezing. Pre-batch your syrup and juice the morning of, keep everything cold, and you can assemble mojitos and daiquiris in seconds once guests arrive.