How to pour
a white rum in
Put the mint leaves and cane sugar in the highball glass and gently press them a few times with a muddler, just enough to release the oils from the leaves.
Add the lime juice and white rum and stir with a bar spoon until the sugar has dissolved.
Fill the glass to the rim with ice and stir from the bottom up so the mint is distributed throughout the glass.
Pour the sparkling water over it and garnish with a sprig of mint.
What did you think of this guide?
One click on a star is enough. If you’d like to add something, we’ll review it first before it appears here.
Save this page
Send this page to your own email so you have the instructions at hand when you’re ready to pour. You’ll also receive a €5 discount code when you spend €50 or more, for the accompanying glasses.
The story
Rum comes out of the still colorless, whether it is distilled from molasses or fresh cane juice. In Cuba and Puerto Rico, it is distilled in tall columns, keeping the spirit light and clean; this is the style that defines the image of white rum. A large proportion of this rum is then aged in oak barrels for a while. Because a clear bottle is the goal, the color is removed again with activated charcoal. What remains is pale but not empty: some of the vanilla and softness from the wood remains.
The right glass
You rarely drink white rum neat, so you choose the glass to suit the drink. For a mojito, that means a tall, straight highball glass: the mint remains visible, there is enough ice to keep the glass cold, and there is room for sparkling water. For a daiquiri, you want a small bowl without ice, so the drink arrives cold at the table and does not become diluted along the way. A hurricane or poco grande glass for the piña colada is not included with these two; you can find those with the piña colada glasses.
RCR Timeless Highball Glass 44 cl (6 pieces)
RCR Melodia Coupe Glass 16 cl (6 pieces)
Both sets together € 72,90.
The right tools
For a mojito, besides the glass, you use a muddler to press the mint and sugar, and a bar spoon to stir. These are the bar tools we use ourselves; you can find everything in our bar tools & cocktail sets.
Glass set (our choice 01) + 2 bar tools together € 70,85.
What do you make a mojito with?
For a mojito, you need white rum. Well-known bottles include Bacardi and Havana Club. On each drinks page, you can read the alcohol percentage, what it tastes like, which cocktails it pairs with, and which glass you need.
Variations & twists
The same bottle does more than just make a mojito. In a daiquiri, white rum goes with lime juice and sugar syrup in a chilled coupe; in a piña colada, with coconut and pineapple; and in a Cuba libre, with cola and lime. If you are working with fresh fruit, choose a bottle without added flavoring; that way, you taste what you add yourself. Want to read more? View all drinks and brands.
Serving tip
Chill the glass and bottle beforehand and fill the glass completely with ice before pouring, because the fuller the glass, the more slowly the ice melts. Slap the mint once between your hands instead of muddling it finely: this releases the oils without making the leaves bitter.
Good to know
White does not mean unaged
Many white rums have in fact spent time in oak barrels, sometimes for a year or longer. The drink then passes through a charcoal filter that removes the coloring compounds. What remains is a clear rum with some of the barrel flavor still intact. Whether it has been aged, and for how long, is not always stated on the label.
The Cuban and Puerto Rican style
In these countries, rum is distilled in tall columns. The distillate comes out light and clean, with few heavy flavor compounds. That gives white rum its dry, grassy character and is also why it does not overpower the other ingredients in a cocktail.
Why the mojito calls for white rum
Coloured rum would make the drink cloudy and its vanilla and caramel would overpower the mint and lime. Clear, dry rum lets those two take centre stage. The same applies to the daiquiri and the Piña Colada.
The alcohol percentage
White rum is usually around 37.5 to 40 percent ABV. In the European Union, the minimum strength for rum is 37.5 percent ABV. Higher strengths also exist; the exact percentage is stated on the label.
Filtering with activated carbon
Activated carbon binds the colour compounds the rum has absorbed from the cask. Filtering also removes some of the heaviness, making the rum lighter. It is a common process in the rum world and does not have to appear on the label.
White, gold and dark on the label
The words white, blanco, silver, gold and dark refer to the colour, not the age. There is no fixed definition attached to them. As a result, a white rum may have spent longer in a cask than a gold one from the same distillery.
Frequently asked questions
Is white rum unaged?
Not necessarily. Some is bottled unaged, but much white rum has first been aged in oak and then filtered with activated carbon. The colour is removed, but some of the flavour remains.
Why is white rum used in a mojito?
Because it is clear and dry. Coloured rum makes the glass cloudy and its vanilla and caramel push the mint and lime aside. The same applies to the daiquiri and the Piña Colada.
What is the difference from dark rum?
Colour and flavour. Dark rum retains the colour it draws from the cask, or has caramel added, and tastes fuller and sweeter. White rum is lighter, drier and more grassy, and disappears more easily into a mix.
Which glass do you use for white rum?
It depends on the drink. The mojito and the Cuba Libre call for a tall highball glass with plenty of ice, the daiquiri for a small coupe without ice, and the Piña Colada for a hurricane or Poco Grande glass.
Everything for your bar,
to one address
Glasses in hospitality quality, supplied as a set. Order today, delivered quickly.
Shop the glasses →