Hello June!!  Not only does June bring longer days and warmer temperatures, but in the cocktail world June is also National Iced Tea Month. I love to use tea for mixing cocktails because tea can be served hot or iced.  I can create a comforting cup of toddy or an iced refreshing beverage.  I had lots of ideas about creating a drink for this post, but I couldn’t narrow down my choice of liquor.  Imagine my excitement when I received a bottle of Blue Chair Bay Coconut Spiced Rum to experiment with.

Blue Chair Bay Premium Rum is a brand created by singer-songwriter Kenny Chesney.  It’s sold in three flavors: White Rum, Coconut Rum, and Coconut Spiced Rum. For this recipe I used the Coconut Spiced Rum because I knew the coconut flavor would add a hint of sweetness and the spice would give it an unexpected twist. Don’t let the “spiced” fool you…this rum  has subtle spice much like a Cider and not at all like a Bloody Mary. I decided to play up the spices in the rum because the coconut flavor naturally compliments and acts as a natural sweetener for the tea. The Cinnamon Simple Syrup is easy to make: heat 1 cup of water, add 4 cinnamon sticks, 4 tablespoons of sugar, and boil for 10 minutes. This recipe serves one, but as always you can multiply the measurements and serve more. This is just one of two entries into the Blue Chair Bay Blogtender Nation.

For more information and recipes with Blue Chair Bay Premium Rum visit http://bit.ly/T8evTg  and their Facebook http://on.fb.me/1opiAw2