One might call a traditional Dark ‘N Stormy a seasonless drink. The ginger beer gives enough lightness for the summer and the dark rum can make it’s consumption in the colder months justified. I thought I’d modify the classic to make it even darker and stormier and at the same time pay homage to one of the most iconic tragically hip songs (or at least videos) in their long lineage of musical Canadiana (see below).
“The Darkest One” is a track from the underrated “In Violet Light” album and as mentioned is probably more well known for the video. It’s cast includes the band, a clowder of cats, the trailer park boys, and Don Cherry as a chicken delivery guy years before Uber eats. The boys trade the other boys 2 buckets of chicken (which I will assume was Mary Brown’s) for a car engine only to have the plethora of felines dine feverishly on the delivery. It’s a Canadian tragedy so to speak.
I started with the foundations of the dark n’ stormy…dark rum and ginger beer. In order to up the ante, I added lime and balanced it with a coffee simple syrup I made from Detour coffee roasters out of Hamilton. Finally, I added a little Amaro Sibona, an underated digestif (which has tastes of vanilla and root beer) which collectively made the cocktail both darker and stormier. I was happy with the result..it offered a little more dimension than the traditional drink yet kept its diversity as a year round option.
Although Gord is no longer with us, Don has been shunned and some of the cats may have succumbed by eating too many “little bones”, the Darkest One will forever be an example of all things Canadiana.
The Darkest One
1.5 oz of dark rum
0.5 ounces of Amaro Sibona
0.5 ounces of lime juice
0.5 oz of coffee simple syrup (1/2 brewed coffee, 1/2 sugar)
Mix above ingredients in a Collins or highball glass and top with ginger beer (I used fever tree)
Lime Garnish
Where the wild are strong
And the strong are the darkest ones
And you’re the darkest one
Oh you’re the darkest one
And if that’s what you want
Oh then you’re the darkest one
-The Darkest One, In Violet Light, The Tragically Hip
Fare..Eat..Ales 