Caribbean Coffee and Rum Cocktail Recipe

The Caribbean is not just a beach and all-inclusive adventure destination, it’s also a culinary heaven.

Island flavors are spicy, sweet and strong, and the cooking style reflects home-made flavors and with a touch of love. To complement the delicious fare, rum and coffee drinks are abundant on the islands, because the majority of the islands produce their own.

First, we showed you how to make a rum runner. Now, we'll teach you a Caribbean-style coffee and rum cocktail recipe. But first, let's learn about the ingredients.

Caribbean Coffee

The unique soil of the Caribbean islands provides the perfect setting for coffee bean production. While not huge exporters of coffee in the region, having competition from the likes of Colombia, Costa Rica and Brazil, Caribbean coffee has its special appeal and flavor.

The top islands producing coffee are Jamaica, with Blue Mountains here being the top region for plantations, Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic and Haiti. Along with producing their own, the islands also import coffees to support a strong Caribbean café culture.

Caribbean Rum

Rum might be the first thing on one’s mind when thinking of amazing Caribbean products. Pretty much every island produces this distilled cane-sugar based drink, each appealing to their customer’s palettes – from complex and bold rums, to the adventurous spiced and the sweet coconut rum.

Visitors can often visit distilleries, some historic, with a rich past and much to say about the way the islands have evolved, while others are newer boutique ones that cater to a smaller more specific clientele.

When it comes to producers and brands, you may have heard of top companies like Appleton from Jamaica, Bacardi from Cuba and Brugal from the Dominican Republic, but if you are true rum lover, we recommend that you explore further and get your taste buds surprised by the level of variety local rums have to offer.

Combine the Two For A Delicious Coffee Rum Cocktail

Now, what happens when you combine rum and coffee? Well, we might call it magic, but the official name is Café Caribbean. Available throughout the Caribbean, this delicious cocktail is the perfect pick-me-up and even better on a rainy day.

Strangely, this Caribbean coffee recipe is warm, so it’s the perfect thing to remind you of your sunny days on the beach, once you are back home and it’s a cold winter day.

Coffee Rum Cocktail Recipe

All you need is hot Caribbean coffee, rum, amaretto, and as a sweet bonus you can add some whipped cream and shaved almonds on top.

To prepare the mixture, pour 1 ounce of rum into an Irish coffee glass, or whatever other cup you’d like, and add half an ounce of amaretto. Then, fill the cup with hot black coffee, which will be more or less 8 ounces of coffee. Finally, top with whipped cream, garnish with shaved almonds, kick back and relax Caribbean style.

There are also ways to mix it up a little.

You can switch up the garnish – instead of almonds use chocolate powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, caramel or even sprinkles for a bit of fun. For example, around Thanksgiving, make a Café Caribbean with a touch of cinnamon, coconut and pumpkin pie spice. Another great addition or rather substitute, is replacing whipped cream with a scoop of creamy vanilla ice cream, making more of a Caribbean coffee dessert.

Finally, if you are craving nice Cafe Caribbean on a hot summer day, pour it over ice to get a refreshing and strong afternoon boost.

Other Coffee and Rum Products in the Caribbean

There are many other ways to enjoy coffee and rum products on the Caribbean islands. One of the most popular souvenirs with tourists, rum cake is a delicious and rich dessert made with something similar to a pound cake soaked in rum and sugar. They come in different shapes and sizes and always well packaged for transporting it with you back home.

For a milder alcoholic beverage that’s not rum, you can also find Caribbean coffee liqueur on most islands, which is sweet but with a kick. And if you are not feeling like actually making a Café Caribbean at home or you are not much of a drinker, you can literally just get some rum flavored coffee and add a delicious brew to your coffee shelf.

A relaxing vacation on a sunny Caribbean island is never complete without the local taste and culture. The fertile islands, rich in history and tradition produce some of the best coffee and rum in the region and offer visitors a splendid array of options on how to taste them. You can enjoy a rum cocktail, an iced coffee or combine the two for some exceptional flavors like Café Caribbean.