By Kathryn Reed

Rum is one of Sue’s favorite spirits. It has something to do with all those fruity drinks that can be made with it. But I have to be in the mood for a sweet drink.

To compromise, she created the concoction below. I’m a native of Florida, so that’s how she came up with the drink.

I would have thought with the ingredients involved it would have been sweet. I was pleasantly surprised it wasn’t. It was also a good sipping drink – as in, neither of us wanted to guzzle it and immediately have another. That can be a problem with sweet drinks, especially on a warm Tahoe summer day.

Sweet vermouth isn’t something we have had in the house before, so I’ll be interested to see what else she uses it for.

Florida Girl

2 ounces white rum

¾ ounce fresh lime juice

½ ounce sweet vermouth

½ ounce sweet crème de cacao

½ tsp grenadine

2 ounces club soda

1 lime wheel for garnish

Mix the ingredients in a cocktail shaker; fill shaker with ice. Strain into a chilled glass. Garnish with lime.