Tasting: Crossfire Hurricane Rum & Cocktails

For over 60 years, The Rolling Stones have been nearly synonymous with rock ‘n’ roll. From their early days standing on the shoulders of under-appreciated blues giants to their days in exile living like outlaws to selling out stadiums and putting out their first album in almost 20 years in 2023, very few groups can rival the impact that The Stones have had on modern-day music and culture.

One small footnote in that impact is lead guitarist Keith Richards’ famous love for Jack Daniels, which became common knowledge thanks to the band’s infamous reputation for partying. It’s so well-known that I would’ve guessed that the band would enter into some kind of Jack Daniels partnership rather than one with a specialty rum brand.

A lesser-known fact about the band, however, is that multiple members of The Rolling Stones live in Jamaica. For some, like Richards, it’s been home for decades, and many of the group’s albums have been made largely in the Caribbean. The label declares their spirit, Crossfire Hurricane, which is a blend of Jamaican, Barbadian and Dominican rums as “a tribute to the islands that have inspired [The Stones] for decades.”

At first glance, Crossfire Hurricane reminds me a lot of the approachability and drinkability that you’d expect from an Irish whiskey. Of course, the rum notes are all still there, but many of its edges have been sanded down in this blend. Of course, it’s not without a punch. It just brings more honey and vanilla notes forward compared to your standard blended aged rum. It stands up well on the rocks by itself, but it begs to be mixed into a cocktail or three, like these three original creations.

Jumpin’ Jack Flash

In a shaker, combine:

1.5 oz Crossfire Hurricane Rum
.5 oz Fireball (or any cinnamon whiskey)
.5 oz lime juice (or the juice of half a lime)
3 oz coffee
2 to 4 droppers of Bittermens Habanero Shrub
2 dashes orange bitters

Shake with ice before pouring the mixture into a Collins glass and top with ginger beer. Stir with a straw to combine, sip and enjoy!

You may want to add extra ice depending on how much you shook the cocktail, but it’s largely a matter of personal preference and the real estate available in your glass.

While the official website for Crossfire Hurricane features a dark and stormy riff, this take doesn’t add anything to the formula; it’s just a legally distinct version that doesn’t use Gosling’s rum. Of course, I would be remiss if I didn’t create something inspired in part by the bottle’s namesake song, Jumpin’ Jack Flash. Fading under the weight of a slow night at the bar where I work, I originally made it as a countermeasure to the side effects of a late night the day before my shift. While it didn’t originally have any booze, blending rum and ginger beer is a tried-and-true classic, and Fireball bumps up the drink’s spiciness well and balances out the bitter cold brew with some extra sweetness. It’s a delightfully balanced drink, one that you should absolutely hear me out before pooh-poohing. It’s also great as a non-alcoholic option, substituting the Fireball out for a cinnamon syrup.

2000 Man

1 oz Crossfire Hurricane Rum
.5 oz Fernet Branca
.5 oz coconut rum (for a rounder, more chocolatey and creamy flavor, use Siesta Key coconut rum)

Inspired by the Surfer On Acid, I named this one after a little-known personal favorite from The Stones’ psychedelic-laced album, Their Satanic Majesties Request. This drink takes on a surprisingly tea-like flavor thanks to the Fernet’s herbaceous bouquet. The smooth rum, creamy coconut water and chocolatey Siesta Key combine to bring a sort of richness forward that melds incredibly well with the pineapple. The sum of these parts is an herbal, subtly sweet cocktail that’s equally complex and approachable.

Rocks Off

.75 oz Martini & Rossi Fiero Vermouth
.75 oz Meletti
.75 Crossfire Hurricane

Stir until diluted and strain into a rocks glass without ice. Garnish with an orange swath.

I made this luxurious, negroni-inspired cocktail to challenge what you might think of when you hear the phrase “rum cocktail.” While there are sweeter, more citrus-forward notes, this is no tiki cocktail or daiquiri. Instead, this balanced cocktail leads with notes of burnt caramel and orange thanks to the Meletti and Fiero vermouth (which is becoming one of my favorite cocktail ingredients these days). The Crossfire Hurricane takes a back seat here, bringing up the rear with the much more subtle addition of vanilla, making this into a bittersweet, caramel-orange-vanilla sipper that’s well worth a shot.