Five of the best: London rum bars

As Rumfest, London's annual rum festival, rolls into town for another weekend packed full of molasses, steel drums and inebriation, we thought it an appropriate time to take a look at some of the capital’s best rum bars with the help of its founder, the Rum Ambassador, Ian Burrell. Here are his top picks:

Cottons Rhum Shack

With a 300-strong collection, Cottons boasts the widest rum selection in the UK. A great place to relax at the bar with a warming short or expertly-mixed highball cocktail, as the name suggests Cottons is slightly shabby, but in that endearingly Jamaican beach shack kind of way that makes you feel at home They also serve delicious traditional Caribbean fare, including jerk chicken, Bajan fish fritters and chickpea curry.

55 Chalk Farm Road, NW1, cottons-restaurant.co.uk

Artesian Bar

Certainly the most glamorous venue on our list, Artesian sits in the general grandeur of Marylebone’s Langham Hotel. While you’re more likely to find suited business men sipping expensive tipples than a bamboo bar and lashings of overproof rum, their dedication to the spicy stuff is admirable. With a 50-strong list of rums to try, this is the place for a decadent, and expertly mixed, world-leading cocktail.

Langham Hotel, 1C Portland Place, W1B 1JA, artesian-bar.co.uk

Trailer Happiness

This intimate lounge bar and cocktail den was one of the first in town to really take the Tiki revival to its logical conclusion. Knowingly kitsch, and hopefully tongue-in-cheek, Trailer Happiness serves impressively traditional rum cocktails committed to the Californian bartending scene of the 1960s.

77 Portobello Road, W11 2DY, trailerhappiness.com

Wax Jambu

While a bit overwhelming on a Saturday night – think brash groups and generally painful house music – they offer an upstairs hideaway sure to delight north London’s rum lovers. Wax’s Rum Cove offers a selection of 70 rums and a menu of hand-crafted Caribbean cocktails, all served in a relaxed, candle-lit area kitted out like a sunken galleon (very Pirates of the Caribbean).

144-145 Upper Street, N1 1QY, waxjambu.co.uk

Mahiki

Wade through the garish regulars and mock-Polynesian façade and Mahiki can be a good option for early evening rum cocktails (and no, the prices aren’t as brutal as you might think). A surprisingly experienced and friendly bar team mix a winning Dark & Stormy, and Mahiki’s proficiency in the rum department comes highly recommended by the Rum Ambassador. However this one does also come with an ES Going Out warning: tread carefully after dark as Mayfair’s moneyed party-goers can get way out of hand.

1 Dover Street, W1S 4LD, mahiki.com

Rumfest is the world’s biggest rum festival and will be held this weekend (October 13 and 14) at The ExCel London. For more info visit rumfest.co.uk.