New Orleans Buck

I'm not sure what make's this Buck "New Orleans." Maybe it is the addition of orange juice, since that is the only variation to the Rum Buck recipe: New Orleans drinks tend to be juicier and orange is an American and Southern flavor, for sure.

The recipe calls for light rum. I'm glad I chose Plantation 3 Stars. It has an interesting flavor of its own that stands apart from cheap white rums (that taste like alcohol and burning!) For all of it's 41.7% alcohol, Plantation has a lot of sugar cane character similar to cachaça.

There's no sugar added, so all in all, an easy drink to make.

• 2 oz light rum
• 1 oz. lime juice
• 1 oz. orange juice
• lime slice
• ginger ale

Combine all ingredients except ginger ale and lime wedge in a shaker with ice. Shake and strain into a highball glass full of fresh ice. Top with ginger ale and garnish with lime slice.

Fern Gully

The Fern Gully is a fanciful drink that seems to recall European romance of the tropics. Here Italian amaretto and rums from the Caribbean and American colonies are combined for an exotic experience. There is an immistakable nuttiness to the drink that comes from amaretto and coconut cream, that when put in a tiki mug like this one, evokes a shady place to rest and contemplate romantic notions. If you have amaretto, don't rule out going the tropical route with this ordinarily continental liqueur.

• 2 oz. dark rum (Lyon Bijou Batch used)
• 1 1/2 oz. light rum (Plantion 3 Stars used)
• 1 oz. amaretto (Lazzeroni used) 
• 1/2 oz. coconut cream
• 1 oz. orange juice 
• 1 oz. lime juice

Combine all ingredients in a blender with ice and blend until smooth. Pour into a grim-faced tiki and garnish at will, or just put it in a chilled wine goblet.