--- title: "Honey Rum Cocktails: 3 Honey-Sweetened Recipes | Dilay" url: https://dilay1949spicedrum.com/honey-rum-cocktails description: "Make honey rum cocktails with lemon, ginger ale or chilled apple tea. Three original adaptations using added honey syrup, with clear ingredients and methods." lang: en --- # Honey Rum Cocktails: 3 Honey-Sweetened Recipes Published 24 October 2026 ◆ HONEY & SPICE ◆ Mix rum with honey for a cold lemon sour, a ginger-ale highball or a chilled apple-and-tea drink. Each recipe serves one and uses honey syrup measured separately, so you can control the sweetness without needing a honey-flavoured rum. **The honey is added to the cocktail, not the bottle.** Dilay 1949 contains no honey or added sugar and is vegan-friendly. Adding honey makes these finished drinks neither vegan nor sugar-free. Image: Lemon rum sour, iced ginger highball and apple rum drink beside a bowl of honey (https://dilay1949spicedrum.com/assets/honey-rum-cocktails-CptyozWt.jpg) ## Make a small batch of honey syrup Stir **30ml honey with 30ml warm water** until fully combined. These are equal volumes, not equal weights. Let it cool before mixing a cold drink; all syrup measures below use this 1:1 mixture. Keep it in a clean, sealed container in the fridge and make only a few days’ supply. Diluted honey does not keep like honey in the jar. Do not shake hot syrup in a sealed shaker. ## 1. Honey & Lemon Rum Sour Shaken · Served straight up · Serves 1 · 3 minutes A cold, honey-sweetened sour with fresh lemon. Unlike our sugar-syrup sour, this adaptation uses diluted honey for sweetness and leaves out egg white: no dry shake or foam layer is needed. ### Ingredients - 50ml Dilay 1949 Panjabi Spiced Rum - 25ml fresh lemon juice - 15ml cooled 1:1 honey syrup - Ice cubes - Lemon peel, to garnish ### Method 1. Chill a coupe glass. Add the rum, lemon juice and cooled honey syrup to a shaker. 2. Fill with ice, seal and shake for 10–15 seconds until the shaker feels cold. 3. Strain into the chilled coupe without ice. Express the lemon peel over the glass, then add it as a garnish. **Mixing note:** Use mild honey first so it does not dominate the lemon and spice. If your honey is particularly strong, start with 10ml syrup and adjust on your next drink. For the sugar-syrup version with optional foam, see the existing spiced rum sour (https://dilay1949spicedrum.com/spiced-rum-cocktails#spiced-rum-sour). ## 2. Honey & Ginger Rum Highball Built · Served over ice · Serves 1 · 2 minutes Ginger ale makes a lighter ginger-led drink than our ginger-beer serves. A small measure of honey syrup adds a floral note; it is an extra ingredient, not a honey-flavoured rum. ### Ingredients - 40ml Dilay 1949 Panjabi Spiced Rum - 5–10ml cooled 1:1 honey syrup - 120ml chilled ginger ale - Ice cubes - A thin slice of fresh ginger, to garnish ### Method 1. Fill a highball glass with ice. Add the rum and 5ml honey syrup, then stir briefly to combine. 2. Pour in the chilled ginger ale. Stir gently once or twice to preserve the fizz. 3. Garnish with the ginger slice. Taste before adding up to another 5ml syrup: ginger ale is already sweet. **Mixing note:** Do not shake fizzy ginger ale in a sealed shaker. Mix the rum and syrup first, then add the bubbles. Prefer ginger beer without the added honey? Use our spiced rum and ginger beer recipe (https://dilay1949spicedrum.com/spiced-rum-cocktails/ginger-beer). ## 3. Apple, Tea & Honey Rum on Ice Stirred · Served over ice · Serves 1 · 3 minutes with chilled tea ready A chilled, single-serving tea drink with a little apple juice and honey. Unsweetened black tea gives it a different base from a citrus sour or fizzy highball, without repeating our warm, spiced apple batch recipe. ### Ingredients - 40ml Dilay 1949 Panjabi Spiced Rum - 50ml brewed black tea, cooled and refrigerated - 25ml apple juice - 10ml cooled 1:1 honey syrup - Ice cubes - Thin apple slices, to garnish ### Method 1. Brew black tea following the pack instructions, remove the tea bag or leaves, then cool and refrigerate it. Measure 50ml only once it is cold. 2. Add the chilled tea, apple juice, rum and honey syrup to a mixing glass. Stir until combined. 3. Fill a rocks glass with fresh ice and pour in the mixture. Stir briefly to chill and garnish with apple slices. **Mixing note:** Use unsweetened tea and taste your apple juice first. For a less sweet drink, reduce the honey syrup to 5ml. Do not pour hot tea onto the finished cocktail. ## Choosing rum and honey Start with a mild honey and a rum whose flavour you enjoy. Dilay 1949 is a cardamom-led spiced rum (https://dilay1949spicedrum.com/) with ginger, black pepper and gentle chilli warmth. The separately added syrup supplies sweetness; the rum’s spice supplies a different aromatic layer. These measures and methods are our suggested adaptations of familiar cocktail formats, not claims of a comparative tasting. A pre-sweetened spirit, strongly flavoured honey or sweeter mixer will change the balance. Reduce the syrup first rather than assuming every bottle needs the same sweetness. ## Prefer honey in a warm drink? For honey and lemon in a warm mug, use our existing hot toddy recipe. Spiced Hot Toddy → (https://dilay1949spicedrum.com/spiced-rum-cocktails#spiced-hot-toddy) For a warm apple-and-honey batch serve, follow our existing mulled rum recipe. Mulled Spiced Rum → (https://dilay1949spicedrum.com/spiced-rum-cocktails#mulled-spiced-rum) For a broader festive selection, explore our Christmas rum cocktails (https://dilay1949spicedrum.com/christmas-rum-cocktails). ## Honey rum cocktail FAQs ### Can you mix honey with rum? Yes. For cold drinks, dilute honey with an equal volume of warm water, then cool it before measuring. This honey syrup combines more easily with chilled rum and mixers than thick honey straight from the jar. ### Does Dilay 1949 contain honey? No. Dilay 1949 is vegan-friendly and contains no honey or added sugar. In these recipes, you add honey syrup separately; it is not an ingredient in the bottle. ### Are honey rum cocktails vegan or sugar-free? No. Honey is an animal-derived ingredient and contains sugar, so these honey cocktails are neither vegan nor sugar-free even though Dilay rum itself is vegan-friendly with no added sugar. For a vegan adaptation, replace honey syrup with a suitable plant-based syrup and check all mixers; that becomes a different, non-honey drink. ### Do I need a honey-flavoured rum? No. These recipes use ordinary rum or spiced rum plus separately measured honey syrup. If using a pre-sweetened or honey-flavoured spirit, check its label and start with less syrup; the recipes will need rebalancing. ### Which honey should I use? Start with a mild, runny honey. Stronger honeys change the flavour more noticeably, so use a smaller syrup measure at first. The syrup measures on this page all refer to equal volumes of honey and water. ## Recipe references The sour adapts the rum, lemon and honey format of Difford’s Honey Bee (https://www.diffordsguide.com/cocktails/recipe/962/honey-bee); the highball adapts the honey-and-ginger combination of Sweet and Stormy (https://honey.com/recipe/sweet-and-stormy). The chilled apple-and-tea drink is our own suggested combination. Syrup preparation follows Difford’s honey syrup guidance (https://www.diffordsguide.com/g/1109/honey-and-honey-syrup/honey-syrup). For adults aged 18+. Please drink responsibly. 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No added sugar. 70cl, 40% ABV.", "image": "https://dilay1949spicedrum.com/og-image.jpg", "sku": "DILAY-1949-N01", "category": "Spirits / Spiced Rum", "aggregateRating": { "@type": "AggregateRating", "ratingValue": "5", "bestRating": "5", "reviewCount": "6" }, "review": [ { "@type": "Review", "author": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Manish" }, "reviewRating": { "@type": "Rating", "ratingValue": "5", "bestRating": "5" }, "reviewBody": "It's dangerously drinkable! Beautifully smooth with a great kick of spice." }, { "@type": "Review", "author": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Harpreet" }, "reviewRating": { "@type": "Rating", "ratingValue": "5", "bestRating": "5" }, "reviewBody": "Really smooth with plenty of character and a great balance of spice." }, { "@type": "Review", "author": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Sunny" }, "reviewRating": { "@type": "Rating", "ratingValue": "5", "bestRating": "5" }, "reviewBody": "The cardamom seriously pops, if you like cardamom you will love this." }, { "@type": "Review", "author": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Nimesh" }, "reviewRating": { "@type": "Rating", "ratingValue": "5", "bestRating": "5" }, "reviewBody": "Really nice smell, and nice flavour." }, { "@type": "Review", "author": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Jag" }, "reviewRating": { "@type": "Rating", "ratingValue": "5", "bestRating": "5" }, "reviewBody": "Amazing spiced rum, didn't expect this to be this good! Neat over ice, or mixed with coke and ice, makes for a refreshing long drink." }, { "@type": "Review", "author": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Manjinder" }, "reviewRating": { "@type": "Rating", "ratingValue": "5", "bestRating": "5" }, "reviewBody": "I found it refreshing to find a spiced rum that feels unique rather than just another vanilla-heavy blend." } ], "offers": { "@type": "Offer", "price": "40.00", "priceCurrency": "GBP", "availability": "https://schema.org/InStock", "url": "https://shop.dilay1949spicedrum.com/products/dilay-1949-panjabi-spiced-rum-70cl" } }, { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@type": "Organization", "name": "DILAY 1949", "url": "https://dilay1949spicedrum.com/", "logo": "https://dilay1949spicedrum.com/og-image.jpg", "foundingDate": "1949", "description": "Panjabi Spiced Rum makers. Born of the akhara — the energy of pehlwani and the spice box of the Panjab, bottled." }, { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@type": "WebSite", "name": "Dilay 1949 Spiced Rum", "url": "https://dilay1949spicedrum.com/" } ] ```