Bubbly Brew

This is not a whale of tale, but it does have a great story to go along with your its unique look. We’ve ventured back over to Trader Sam’s Grog Grotto where, like all good stories, it is a dark and stormy night…

A Dark ‘n’ Stormy can come one of two ways. The first is Gosling’s Black Seal, which is a dark rum, with ginger beer and a highball glass. The variation includes running a wedge of lime around the rim and then sinking it into the glass. Recipes are usually open to interpretation, but not in the case of the Dark ‘n’ Stormy. In this case, Gosling actually owns two copyrights for the recipe for the drink. The drink itself was a creation of British soldiers just after World War I who were on leave in Bermuda and enjoyed mixing Black Seal with their own homemade ginger beer.

The traditional Dark ‘n’ Stormy was named for a sky that sailors say only a fool or dead man would sail under, but Trader Sam wants you to know that there is no need to batten down the hatch on their variation. The weather-strained umbrella that adorns the cocktail, however, begs to differ. So, what’s different? The additions to Trader Sam’s Dark and Tropical Stormy are lime juice and falernum, which are setting a course to quench your thirst.

The Dark and Tropical Stormy is fizzy and zesty in all the right places. The strength of the ginger in the ginger beer and the lime make this a very tropical feeling drink, but not the sickeningly sweet type of boat drink that immediately spring to mind when the word ‘tropical’ is used. You will definitely get all of the spicy notes from the falernum, but Black Seal is the real captain of this ship.

If you like a established Dark ‘n’ Stormy, this may not be the drink for you. However, if you want to add a bit of something more to the drink, even if just to spice up your routine, swing by Trader Sam’s Grog Grotto and give the Dark and Tropical Stormy a sip or two or three. Just make sure you have a fully functioning umbrella.