Mike’s birthday is tomorrow and, since he’s my Chief Cocktail Taste-tester, I made something special that felt like a proper representation of him. Enter the Good Times Mike – a cocktail for a man who always brings the party.
On Sunday nights, we drink rum & cokes. It’s become the go-to cocktail for our Sunday night DnD Theros campaign. Full disclosure, half of us are actually on the rum & Zevia bandwagon, but “rum & Zevia cola” doesn’t roll off the tongue as nicely.
Though, on the topic of soda alternatives, I’ll take a second to speak my praise for Zevia. If you don’t know what it is, Zevia is a soda that’s sweetened with stevia, which means it’s zero calories, zero sugar, and doesn’t spike your blood sugar. I wish I could say that this post is sponsored by Zevia (because it would mean my humble blog has caught the eye of a someone more than those with whom I play DnD), but I can’t. I just love Zevia that much.
Alright, back to business. As the Sunday night DnD campaign has been running for about five years now, rum & cokes (or, “rum & Zevs”) taste like home. When I show up at the house that hosts Theros, the first two things that I get are a hello-hug and a question: “Your usual?”
Yes, indeed; I’ll take my usual rum & Zev and sink into that comforting feeling of hanging out with friends and having a simple but reliably enjoyable cocktail.
A rum & Zev has since also become Mike’s go-to for a quick-and-easy cocktail. Usually, it’s his sipper while I take a half hour to make something complex or showboat-y. The Good Times Mike is my take on elevating the classic rum & coke.
It calls for rum, coca-cola simple syrup, spiced cherry bitters, and a touch of lime. There’s a tangier taste to it than the classic rum & coke due to the reduced cola and splash of lime. The spiced cherry bitters add a hint of tart spice.
For my usual rum & Zev, I use a spiced rum. For the Good Times Mike, I used Zacapa No. 23 because it’s a smooth, slightly sweet rum that doesn’t overshadow the other flavors. But, if you prefer other rums, I think any preference would work in the Good Times Mike.
Last thing, since a classic rum & coke is carbonated I wanted to avoid the Good Times Mike feeling flat, so I topped it with a splash of soda water. Some of you are probably thinking that it would be much easier to just use goddamn Coke instead of cola syrup and soda water, to which I say you’re not wrong. But could you call it a pompous craft cocktail if I just used the basic bitch of sodas?
The Good Times Mike
Ingredients: Makes one.
- 2.5 oz Zacapa No. 23 rum
- .25 oz cola syrup
- 1.5 droppers of spiced cherry bitters
- Quarter lime squeeze
- .5 oz soda water
Recipe:
- Make the cola syrup: Pour 4 bottles of Mexican Coca-Cola into a medium/large pot. Bring to a boil and then let it simmer on medium for 25-40 minutes. Once it has reduced about halfway it should be good. You want the approximate consistency of a rich simple syrup. Let cool before mixing with the drink.
- Make the drink: Add all ingredients except the soda water to a shaker and shake with ice. Strain into a lowball (or medium glass depending on whether you want more soda water) with more ice. Top with soda water. Enjoy!
The Bourbon Dragon 