A Rum Swizzle is a rum-based cocktail often called "Bermuda's national drink". The Royal Gazette has referred to it as "the legendary Sam swizzle...perfect for sharing and irresistible to locals and tourists alike" In addition to providing the "swizzle" portion of the 1933 swizzle stick product name, it has been said that this potent cocktail is "as much a part of Bermuda Island culture and cuisine as is the Bermuda onion, the vibrant hibiscus, or the graceful Bermuda Longtail."
Recipes
Different bartenders have varying interpretations of this drink. One of the older recipes was presented in the 1941 Old Mr. Boston De Luxe Official Bartender Guide. Gosling's Rum, which is based in Bermuda, publishes a recipe with two different rums from their brand line. Rum, fruit juice, and a flavored sweetener such as falernum or grenadine are the most consistent ingredients, and the drink is generally shaken or stirred with ice.
History
Icy drink mixtures with rum, first identified as swizzles and later as Rum Swizzles, have been mentioned in literature in a variety of locations since the mid 18th century: Fort Ticonderoga, New York, the Caribbean island of Saint Kitts, Bridgetown, Barbados, Great Britain, Bridgeport, Barbados, and the island of Saint Thomas in the U.S. Virgin Islands. In these earliest versions, the drink typically consisted of one part of rum diluted with five or six parts water, which was mixed by rotating between the palms of the hands a special forked stick made from a root; another account describes it as spruce beer with added rum and sugar. In his 1909 book, Beverages, Past and Present: An Historical Sketch of Their Production,Brotherhood Winery owner Edward R. Emerson asserted that Rum Swizzles originated on the Caribbean island of Saint Kitts. American naturalist and writer Frederick Albion Ober noted in 1920 that the great drink of the Barbados ice houses was the swizzle, a combination of liquors, sugar, and ice whisked to a froth by a rapidly revolved "swizzle-stick" made from the stem of a native plant, perhaps Quararibea turbinata or an allspice bush. The etymology of the word "swizzle" is unknown, but it may derive from a similar beverage known as switchel. Rum Swizzles were the drink of choice at what was purportedly the world's first cocktail party held in London, England in 1924 by novelist Alec Waugh. A reference to a "Green Swizzle" drink dates to 1925. The Rum Swizzle is also mentioned in Sinclair Lewis's 1925 novel Arrowsmith, which is set in the fictional Caribbean island of St. Hubert. In 1930, the drink was referenced in a book written by Joseph Hergesheimer, which refers to the drink containing Bacardi rum and bitters, as well as a swizzle stick made of sassafras. The Rum Swizzle was also mentioned in the 1931 autobiographical novelHalf a Loaf, penned by Sinclair Lewis's former wife Grace HeggerLewis about their life together. Today the Rum Swizzle is often associated with The Swizzle Inn of Bailey's Bay, Bermuda, whose motto is "Swizzle Inn, Swagger Out." The Swizzle Inn is known as "the home of the Rum Swizzle" and Bermuda's oldest pub, favourite drinking hole of island resident Michael Douglas As noted by the Bermuda Hotel Association:
Other swizzles
A variant created by Don the Beachcomber first served in the 1930s, the 151 Swizzle utilized overproof rum for stronger flavor. Trader Vic's Bartender's Guide presents several variant swizzle recipes including the Kingston Swizzle, the Kona Swizzle, and the Martinique Swizzle. According to that guide: The Spirit of Bermudacookbook says that the "Bermuda swizzle stick" with which this drink is traditionally stirred and garnished is a three-pronged stick often cut from an allspice bush. The Green Swizzle, a drink for which the recipe "has been lost in history" is mentioned by Bertie Wooster in "The Rummy Affair of Old Biffy" by P. G. Wodehouse: The Trader Vic's guide quoted above also has a recipe for a Green Swizzle but specifies it is "not what Bertie had at Wembley."
