Pineapple Basil Cocktail

A beachy, tropical cocktail, the Pineapple Basil Cocktail is an amalgamation of pineapple juice, lime juice, basil leaves, soda, and rum. A fizzy, refreshing beverage, it’s perfect for warm summers and lazy afternoons. The pineapple juice is filling and sweet, the basil adds a refreshing tinge to the drink, the lime juice brings out its flavours, and the soda adds the much-needed fizz. The rum, a long-standing favourite among those who consume alcohol, ties this whole cocktail together.

Rum, besides being a versatile and punchy drink, also has a fascinating history. It originates in the West Indies and was called ‘kill-devil’ or ‘rumbulloin’. By 1667 it was referred to simply as rum. It was part of the American colonies’ slave trade. Slaves were brought from Africa and traded to the West Indies for molasses. The molasses were turned into rum in New England, which was then traded to Africa for more slaves. Rum, an important part of the early history of the US, was at times mixed with molasses and called blackstrap, and other times with cider to be turned into stonewall.

While some drink rum straight, it’s commonly mixed with other drinks, with rum and coke being one of the many popular rum drinks. The Pineapple Basil Cocktail is proof of rum’s versatile nature, moulding in as comfortably on a beach with pineapple and basil as in a dark club with coke.