Bahama Mama is a sweet tropical cocktail that features coconut rum, orange juice, pineapple juice, touch of grenadine, and dark rum. After just one sip, you’ll feel all of the beachy feelings… no matter how far away you may be from the ocean!
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It’s hard waiting for a vacation sometimes. The desire to finally relax and sink your toes into warm sand while watching the ocean waves can be overwhelming! What would make that vacation dream even better is to sip on a sweet, refreshing cocktail while sitting on that beach. Isn’t that a nice dream? (Also, I know in our wildest dreams, our kids usually aren’t on the beach with us. In the case that yours are, they can enjoy a kid-friendly pink lemonade)!
Until that dream can come true, we have to rely on porches and backyards, close our eyes, and let our imagination take us away. One thing that can help the fantasy is to sip on this sweet, delicious, refreshing tropical cocktail like this one! It’s got the very best fruity summer flavor will transport you across the sea to a beautiful Caribbean island. It’s also easy to make on your own and you won’t have to tip a bartender!
A Bahama mama is a smooth combination of tropical flavors. Orange, pineapple, and coconut flavors mix together to create the most incredible summery flavor. No wonder it’s like a beach vacation in a glass! The presentation also helps set the mood because the cocktail is layered to look like a sunset. Both coconut rum and dark rum add just the right boozy quality to each sip. So, grab a glass and I’ll show you just how easy it is to make!
Ingredients Notes and Tips
Coconut Rum – Coconut rums range in sweetness, coconut flavor, and alcohol amount. Choose your favorite brand and proof!
Orange Juice – For the best taste, choose pulp-free 100% orange juice.
Pineapple Juice – You can use canned or bottled 100% pineapple juice, whichever you prefer to drink.
Grenadine – Note that grenadine is a sweet syrup, so don’t add too much or your cocktail will be too sweet.
Dark Rum – This adds a nice full-bodied spicy dimension to the cocktail to balance the coconut rum. If you have any left over, use it to make a rum runner or rum punch!
See recipe card for complete information on ingredients and quantities.
How to Make a Bahama Mama
First, add some crushed ice to the glass and then pour in coconut rum.
Next, pour in the orange juice (2) and pineapple juice (3) into the glass.
Then, carefully and slowly pour in grenadine juice next to the inside rim of the glass (4). Grenadine is very dense and heavy so it will naturally sink to the bottom of the glass.
Finally, slowly pour the dark rum over the top and let it float.
Serving: You can serve a Bahama mama layered because it looks beautiful, but it will need to be stirred before drinking. So use a straw or a long spoon to stir the cocktail for a few seconds to mix all ingredients.
Recipe FAQs
Coconut Rum – Not all coconut rums are created equal, so make sure to use your favorite! They can be sweeter, stronger, or have more coconut flavor. RumHaven brand, for example, is sweet and not strong. It tastes more like coconut liqueur, mild and very sweet. Parrot Bay 90 proof rum has a very strong coconut taste but it is quite strong. So make rum selection according to your personal preference.
Dark rum – This full bodied, spicy flavor with a hint of molasses is a great balance to the sweetness of juices and coconut rum.
The presentation value of a Bahama mama is really nice! There’s a gorgeous layered look to it that resembles a picturesque sunset.
With that being said, it’s not a great experience to take a tip of straight dark rum followed by a fruity cocktail. It’s best to give the cocktail a mix right before serving. Feel free to snap a picture of it before stirring to show off, of course!
Yes, Bahama Mama is a sweet, fruity, tropical flavored cocktail. If you want to make it less sweet, you can use silver rum instead of coconut rum. It will taste less tropical because you are taking away the coconut flavor but it will be less sweet.
These two cocktail are actually quite different in flavor and ingredients. They do have dark rum, and orange juice in common but that’s it.
Bahama Mama features a combination of orange juice, pineapple juice, coconut rum, and fark rum. There is a splash of grenadine for pink tint and a little sweet touch.
Mai Tai is more orange and almond flavor forward and features fresh lime juice, simple syrup, orgeat syrup, orange curacao, light and dark rum,
More Summer Cocktail Recipes to Try
If you’ve made my Bahama mama recipe and found a lot of good information here, PLEASE leave a 🌟 star rating! Let me know how you liked it by leaving the 📝 comment below as well. Don’t forget to subscribe to my newsletter!
Bahama Mama Cocktail
Ingredients
- 2 oz coconut rum
- 2 oz orange juice
- 2 oz pineapple juice
- 1/4 oz grenadine
- 1/2 oz dark rum
Instructions
- Add some crushed ice to the glass.
- Pour in orange juice, pineapple juice, and coconut rum into the glass.
- Carefully and slowly pour in grenadine juice next to the inside rim of the glass. Grenadine is very dense and heavy so it will naturally sink to the bottom of the glass.
- Slowly pour the dark rum over the top and let it float on top.
- Serve Bahama Mama layered but it does need to be stirred before drinking. So use a straw or a long spoon to stir the cocktail for a few seconds to mix all ingredients.
Video
Notes
- Coconut rum: choose your favorite! Not all coconut rums are created equal, so make sure to use your favorite! They can be sweeter, stronger, or have more coconut flavor. RumHaven brand, for example, is sweet and not strong. It tastes more like coconut liqueur, mild and very sweet. Parrot Bay 90 proof rum has a very strong coconut taste but it is quite strong. So make rum selection according to your personal preference.
- Pour in grenadine: carefully and slowly pour in grenadine juice next to the inside rim of the glass, it can be touching the inside wall of the glass. Grenadine is very dense and heavy so it will naturally sink to the bottom of the glass.
- Serving: You can serve a Bahama mama layered because it looks beautiful, but it will need to be stirred before drinking. So use a straw or a long spoon to stir the cocktail for a few seconds to mix all ingredients.
Jack says
Great drink to sit by the pool or just plain relaxing
LyubaB says
I completely agree, Jack!
Judy says
Yummy!
LyubaB says
Thanks, Judy!
Carol says
Drinking this makes me feel like I’m on vacation!