Jack Tar Cocktail Recipe ｜ A Bold 3-Ingredient Yokohama Rum Classic

Name: Jack Tar Recipe: A Bold 3-Ingredient Yokohama Rum Classic
Prep time: 3 minutes
Total time: 3 minutes
Yield: 1 cocktail
Cuisine: Japanese
Ingredients: Ronrico 151 — 1 oz (30ml); Southern Comfort — 1/2 oz (15ml); Lime juice — 1/2 oz (15ml); Crushed ice; Straw

A Jack Tar cocktail with crushed ice piled high in a rocks glass, garnished with a mint sprig and lime wheel, on a wooden bar counter, beside a "Recipe no.110 Jack tar" title card

Japanese version・日本語版へ

Jack Tar carries a name that’s exactly what it sounds like: an old English nickname for common sailors, taken from the tar they used to waterproof rigging, a fitting name for a drink born in Yokohama’s Chinatown at a jazz bar built to resemble an old sailing ship.

Ronrico 151’s remarkable 75.5% ABV meets Southern Comfort’s peach-forward sweetness and lime’s crisp acidity, packed with crushed ice into the cool look of a ship at anchor.

Pour one tonight, a sailor’s spirit of adventure carried on a port-town breeze.

Table of Contents

Recipe & Method

Ingredients

Rows of spirit bottles lining a bar's back shelves, illuminated by warm pendant lighting above a wooden counter

Recipe no.110

Ronrico 151 — 1 oz (30ml)
Southern Comfort — 1/2 oz (15ml)
Lime juice — 1/2 oz (15ml)
Crushed ice
Straw

“Crushed ice” means finely crushed ice.

Recommended Gold Rum Brand

Method

A bartender in a burgundy vest shaking a cocktail shaker over her shoulder in a dimly lit bar

Step

Prep

Prepare the crushed ice ahead of time. Since it melts fast, add it to the glass only at the end.

Step

Combine the ingredients

Add Ronrico 151, Southern Comfort, lime juice, and ice to a shaker.

Step

Shake

Shake thoroughly, then strain into a glass.

How to Use a Shaker

Step

Finish

Pack in the crushed ice without letting any melted water get in. Add a straw for easy sipping.

・Technique ｜ Shake
・Glass ｜ Old Fashioned glass
・ABV ｜ Around 36-37%
・Best Enjoyed ｜ Daytime

Jack Tar in Detail

Origin & Characteristics

A bottle of Ronrico 151 gold rum on a bar counter, with shelves of spirit bottles in the background

Photo | Ronrico 151 | Image courtesy of Suntory

Jack Tar is Yokohama’s own cocktail, said to have originated at Windjammer, a jazz bar in the city’s Chinatown built to resemble an old sailing ship, complete with wooden rails and lanterns, and known for a menu carrying over 200 original cocktails. The name borrows “Jack Tar,” an old English nickname for common sailors of the 18th and 19th centuries, taken from the tar they used to waterproof rigging and clothing — a fitting name for a drink born in a port city where foreign sailors once passed through in droves.

Ronrico 151 forms the base, a gold rum with a genuinely remarkable 75.5% ABV and a rich, complex flavor. Southern Comfort adds peach-forward fruit sweetness, and lime juice brings crisp acidity. Packed with crushed ice, the glass takes on the cool look of a ship at anchor in harbor.

I’d call this one deceptively smooth for its strength — fruity sweetness arrives first, lime’s brightness follows quickly, and rum’s real power only shows itself as it settles in the throat, lingering well after the glass is empty. It’s a cocktail built for imagining a sailor’s spirit of adventure, carried on a port-town breeze.

Points, Twists & Best Food Pairings

A row of golden pan-fried gyoza dumplings garnished with chopped scallions and cilantro, served on a bamboo leaf on a white plate

Food Pairings

Shumai or gyoza — Chinatown’s own dumplings echo the drink’s origin story, and lime’s acidity cuts cleanly through the savory filling’s richness.
Grilled pineapple — Southern Comfort’s peach-forward sweetness plays beautifully against caramelized fruit, deepening the drink’s tropical undertone.
Salted cashews — Their roasted, buttery crunch balances the rum’s intensity, echoing the drink’s underlying sweetness without competing with it.

Bartender’s Tip

A common mistake is packing the crushed ice too slowly, letting it start melting before it even reaches the glass. Prepare the ice at the very last moment and pack it in fast — that’s what keeps the drink cold without watering down its punch.

Twists

Pineapple Jack Tar — Add a splash of pineapple juice for a fruitier, more tropical profile that leans into rum’s island roots.
Ginger Jack Tar — Top with a splash of ginger beer for a spicier, more effervescent version.
Mint Jack Tar — Muddle a few mint leaves into the shaker for a cooling, aromatic lift.

I’d always use genuinely fresh-squeezed lime juice here — with a rum this powerful, bottled juice simply can’t cut through it the way fresh acidity can.