Hot Buttered Rum

• This warming concoction was once dismissed as outmoded, but modern bartenders are reviving it. The basic recipe is simple: Pour a generous measure of dark rum into a coffee glass, then top it up with boiling water. Add a small pat of butter to the top of the drink; the heat of the rum and water will gradually melt it, forming a thin layer. Recipes vary: Some call for sweeteners like sugar or maple syrup, while others add spices like cinnamon, cloves or nutmeg. Some versions substitute apple juice or cider for the hot water.

Rum Punch

• Another traditional drink, hot rum punch is sweet and fruity, with enough tart citrus flavor to keep it interesting. Like all punches, recipes vary, but the basic ingredients are lemon juice, rum, brandy, sugar, water and spices. Mix the juice, rum, sugar and brandy first, then top up with boiling water, tasting as you go; this will allow you to dilute the punch to the level that's best for you. Add spices as desired. Don't try to serve this punch in a punch bowl; it'll cool very quickly.

Rum and Cider

• Hot spiced apple cider is a classic winter warmer, and a shot of rum adds a potent kick. As with many other hot rum drinks, this mixture can include additional spices such as nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves and allspice, as well as vanilla or lemon zest. Non-alcoholic soft cider is traditional, but heated, spiced hard cider can also benefit from a splash of dark rum in the mix.

Rum Toddy

• Whiskey is traditional in the concoction of toddy, a mixture of liquor, honey, lemon, spices and hot water that's not only a warming drink but a traditional remedy for coughs, colds and sore throats, but some toddy recipes replace the whiskey with rum. Spices such as ginger or cinnamon -- often in the form of a cinnamon stick in the glass -- help heat up a toddy. One variation replaces the hot water with hot black tea to add caffeine to the steaming drink.