Planter's Punch

Hold the sweet juices and the pineapple; a traditional Planter's Punch is a clean, icy drink of rum, lime, and bitters.

The Periodista

The Periodista is very easy to love. Starting with the basic rum-lime-sugar building blocks of a daiquiri, the Periodista is gussied up with the addition of two liqueurs: Cointreau, the dry orange liqueur that lends crispness and elegance to most drinks it encounters, and the aforementioned apricot liqueur, which makes the drink richer more alluring.

Mai Tai

The true Mai Tai is a vacation in a glass, bearing little resemblance to the sweet, murky rum drink you've likely tried before.

(Not Exactly A) Painkiller

First things first: this is not a Painkiller. This may resemble that drink that originated some 40 years ago at the Soggy Dollar Bar in the British Virgin Islands, but the Painkiller was adopted as the mascot drink by Pusser's Rum around a decade after its birth (the drink's birth, that is.)

Royal Bermuda Yacht Club Cocktail

The Royal Bermuda Yacht Club Cocktail has a few of the tropical essentials: first, it's based on rum; second, its flavor is fleshed out with fresh lime juice and the little-known syrup called falernum; and third, the name has both Caribbean and nautical overtones.

Gramercy Tavern's Expat

Sometimes on a cold fall evening all you want to drink is a bright, sunny cocktail to remind of warmer days recently passed. This Gramercy Tavern creation draws inspiration from both the classic Hemingway Daiquiri and Audrey Saunders' Old Cuban. It's at once tart and refreshing with a touch of richness from the golden rum.

Larchmont

One of the most highly sought-after books is The Fine Art of Mixing Drinks, a volume first printed in 1948, written not by a bartender but by a New York lawyer named David Embury who was determined to establish a system of proper rules for mixing drinks. Most of the drinks he covered were ones that were already in regular rotation in New York bars. Here's one of his originals, the Larchmont.

The 151 Swizzle

Following Wednesday's post on the appeal of higher-proof spirits in cocktails, here's a drink that may appear formidable at first glance, but if treated with due respect is as gentle as can be: the 151 Swizzle.

Jungle Bird

Campari, pineapple, and blackstrap rum come together in this offbeat, but delicious tiki drink.

Barbados Cocktail

This rum cocktail is just a little boozy and just a little sweet, with fresh lime to keep it bright. Think of it as a little island escape.