We never knew we needed Hot Buttered Rum in our lives... then we tried it. And this festive drink quickly has replaced many of our favorite holiday warm boozy drinks. Hot Buttered Rum is exactly what it sounds like, a delicious concoction of dark rum, butter and spices with hot water for a cozy and rich drink to sip on a chilly evening. You can find hundreds of basic hot buttered rum recipes online, but this twist on the classic uses a lovely combo of spices along with the addition of hazelnut liqueur (Frangelico) that will be the highlight of your boozy holiday season! Enjoy this tasty drink all winter long!
The holidays are the perfect time of the year for cozy spiked drinks. So don't forget to check out another one of our favorite hot drinks, Night Owl Empress Ginger Hot Toddy or Mulled Wine with Amaretto and Brandy. Or if you are looking for other wintery cocktails, try out Frosted Cranberry Empress Gin Cocktail or The Great 1908 Blizzard Cocktail.
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What is Hot Buttered Rum?
Hot Buttered Rum is pretty much what it sounds like...a warm holiday drink with rum and butter! This already wins in our book! This classic winter cocktail stands pretty tall amongst other holiday favorites like Mulled Wine, Wassel, Hot Toddies, and Boozy Hot Cocoa. But I must say this Hot Buttered Rum recipe is now topping our list of things we need to make it feel like Christmas around here!
Besides rum and butter, there are usually ground warm spices such as cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, or cloves to bring all the flavors of the season into the mix. Finally, some brown sugar or honey and hot water and you have yourself a winner! Don't forget to garnish with a cinnamon stick!
Hot Buttered Rum recipes started to appear in the United States during colonial times in New England when rum was the most widely produced type of alcohol. Although recipes have varied, the classic version with rum, butter, sugar and spices is still the base of modern versions of this cocktail today. And for a good reason, it's delicious!
Although we love this drink for the holidays, we often drink it throughout the cold winter months into January and February. In fact, January 17th is National Hot Buttered Rum Day!
Ingredients
What's in this Hazelnut Hot Buttered Rum? It has several key ingredients that we feel are important for the overall taste of the drink. Let's break them down:
- Dark Rum: We prefer to use a good quality dark rum. Dark rum already has notes of brown sugar and spices, so it is a no-brainer in this.
- Frangelico: This is an Italian hazelnut liqueur and the hazelnut flavors take this buttered rum drink from basic to incredible!
- Butter: Butter is an important component in this recipe. It gives it a rich creaminess that makes this drink so luscious! We use unsalted butter.
- Hot Water
- Brown Sugar: Light or dark brown sugar works well here. You want enough sugar to sweeten the drink.
- Cinnamon: Ground cinnamon helps to add that wintery holiday flavor to this drink.
- Nutmeg: Nutmeg is an underrated spice that is one of the quintessential flavors of the season. We highly recommend buying whole nutmeg and grating it fresh into the drink with a microplane zester. The flavor of nutmeg that is pre-ground fades fairly quickly over time, especially with a ground spice that doesn't get used often such as this one. Ground spices start to lose their flavor and aroma after about a year, so buying whole nutmeg and grating it as needed is more cost efficient and you get a better flavor when you use it.
- Vanilla extract: The vanilla rounds out the flavors of this drink for a flavorful concoction.
See recipe card for quantities.
Substitutes
Here are some substitutes that we recommend:
- Rum: If you are going to sub out the rum, spiced rum would be your best option. We don't recommend using a light rum for this recipe.
- Frangelico: This liqueur gives the drink its hazelnut flavor. If you are going to substitute Frangelico, any other hazelnut liqueur will work well here.
- Brown Sugar: We love the flavor of the brown sugar in this drink, but you can use Demerara sugar or sugar in the raw in its place if needed.
Instructions
Hot Buttered Rum is so simple to make! It is probably one of the easiest Holiday Cocktails to mix up and doesn't require any special bar equipment.
Step 1: Boil Water
We have a counter top electric water kettle for boiling water, making this drink even easier to make.
Step 2: Combine all Ingredients
The only thing you have to do is add all ingredients to the glass or mug, mix until the butter melts completely, then garnish with a cinnamon stick and/or whole star anise and serve! Cheers!
Hint: One tablespoon of butter is the most common measurement for this cocktail, but for an even richer taste, increase the butter to 1.5 tbsp! Give it a try!
Variations
There are hundreds of ways to switch up this recipe for Hot Buttered Rum. Here are a few that we recommend:
- Amaretto: We are big amaretto fans to add a nice almond flavor to drinks. You can switch out the Frangelico for Amaretto here, or even do half and half Amaretto and Frangelico.
- Maple Syrup: Add maple syrup in place of the brown sugar to give it a nice maple flavor.
- Whiskey or Bourbon: Replace the rum with Whiskey for a Hot Buttered Whiskey or Bourbon drink instead!
- Fancy it up: Top it with whipped cream to make it a bit fancier.
- Kid Friendly Mocktail: Add the butter, sugar and spices into hot water or hot milk for the kids to enjoy!
Top tip
Hot Buttered Rum drinks are perfect to batch for a crowd or make the batter in advance for an even easier drink preparation whenever you want! See Hot Buttered Rum Batter instructions below!
Make a Batch for a Crowd
This Hazelnut Hot Buttered Rum cocktail is super easy to make a big batch for a large group for a holiday party, or just to have around during the holiday season. This Hot Buttered Rum Batter recipe makes enough batter for about 24 individual servings. Here's how it's done:
Hot Buttered Rum Batter
- 1.5 cups unsalted butter, softened
- 2 cups packed brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon nutmeg
- 2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 2 teaspoon vanilla extract
To make a batch of the batter, combine all ingredients in a bowl and combine thoroughly using an electric hand mixer or stand mixer. Transfer batter to an airtight container or jar or form it into a 2-inch wide log and wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to use. This will keep for about 1 month.
To mix up a hot drink from the Hot Buttered Rum Batter, add 2 oz dark rum and 1 oz Frangelico to a glass with 4 oz of hot water. Add 1 tablespoon of the spiced butter mixture and stir until it melts completely. Enjoy!
What to eat with Hot Buttered Rum?
The richness and buttery flavor of this cocktail is perfect to pair with some tasty holiday treats. You definitely want to serve this with some gingersnaps, Linzer cookies, or gingerbread cakes, like THESE with Cranberry Cream Cheese glaze.
For an even more decadent pairing, sip on a Hazelnut Hot Buttered Rum with our Sticky Toffee Pudding or Christmas Gingerbread Trifle with Brandy Whipped Cream.
FAQ
This classic rum cocktail has a rich and creamy texture with flavors of warm winter spices with caramel and brown sugar notes. It is truly a tasty holiday treat!
Dark rum or spiced rum is the best rum to use in a Hot Buttered Rum. We prefer the depth of flavor from dark rum from its aging process, but spiced rum works well in this warm cocktail also.
Related
Looking for other recipes like this? Try these:
- Spiced Cranberry Old Fashioned Cocktail Recipe
- Shimmy Shimmy Coconut Basil Lime Gin Cocktail
- Spiced Apple Cider Moscow Mule Cocktail Recipe
- Fig Cardamom Gin Old Fashioned Cocktail
Pairing
These are our favorite desserts to serve with this cocktail:
- Creamy Coffee Panna Cotta with Chocolate Ganache
- Soft Pumpkin Ricotta Cookies with Cream Cheese Frosting
- Limoncello Ricotta Tiramisù (Easy Twist on Classic Tiramisù)
- Classic Easy Vanilla Panna Cotta with Blueberry Compote
📖 Recipe
Hazelnut Hot Buttered Rum
Ingredients
- 5 oz boiling water
- 2 oz Dark Rum
- 1 oz Hazelnut Liqueur (Frangelico)
- 1 tablespoon Butter
- 2 teaspoon Brown Sugar
- ⅛ teaspoon ground Nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon ground Cinnamon
- ⅛ teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients in a mug and stir with a cinnamon stick. When butter is melted, serve.
Nutrition
Enjoy!
If you give this Hazelnut Hot Buttered Rum a try, leave us a comment below or tag us on Instagram @cooking_with_wine!
Try out some of our other Holiday favorites:
Angela says
This drink tops our list of favorite holiday cocktails! We make a big batch of the batter and enjoy these all winter long!