Spiced Rum Alcohol-Free Beverage (Printable)
A rich, aromatic alcohol-free spiced rum alternative ideal for sipping or mixing in drinks.
# What You Need:
→ Base
01 - 2 3/4 cups water
02 - 2 tablespoons blackstrap molasses
03 - 2 tablespoons brown sugar
04 - 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
05 - 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
→ Spices & Flavorings
06 - 1 cinnamon stick
07 - 2 whole cloves
08 - 4 allspice berries
09 - 1 star anise
10 - 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
11 - Zest of 1 orange
12 - 1 small fresh ginger piece (thumb-sized), sliced
13 - 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
# How-To Steps:
01 - In a medium saucepan, whisk together water, blackstrap molasses, brown sugar, and apple cider vinegar until dissolved.
02 - Incorporate vanilla extract, cinnamon stick, cloves, allspice berries, star anise, ground nutmeg, orange zest, sliced ginger, and ground black pepper into the saucepan.
03 - Bring mixture to a gentle simmer over medium heat, then reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
04 - Remove from heat and let cool slightly before straining through a fine mesh sieve or cheesecloth into a clean storage container.
05 - Refrigerate before serving. Keep chilled for up to 2 weeks.
# Helpful Tips:
01 -
- It tastes genuinely complex and grown-up, nothing like a sugar bomb or a health drink.
- Ten minutes of actual hands-on time means you can have a homemade spirit-like syrup ready before dinner.
- Works in any rum-based mocktail, cola drinks, or straight over ice when you want something warming.
02 -
- If you skip straining carefully, you'll end up with sediment at the bottom—not harmful, but gritty in a way that breaks the magic.
- Steeping for longer than 10 minutes pushes the spices into territory where they start tasting bitter, so set a timer and stick to it.
03 -
- For an even richer flavor, let the spices steep an extra 5 minutes after removing from heat before straining—the heat is off but the infusion continues.
- If you can't find blackstrap molasses, dark molasses works fine, though you lose a bit of that deep, almost burnt depth.