Five Tips for the Perfect Old Fashioned from Alejandro Bolivar of El Floridita
Alejandro Bolivar, head bartender at the legendary Cuban bar El Floridita likes to talk cocktails and …
Rum Advent Calendar: Joshua Singh reveals (almost) everything!
The end of the year is approaching and the special rum Advent calendar is back. This year, the calenda…
Ferrand Plantation Foundation
Disclaimer: this is not a rum bottle! As time goes by, it becomes more and more important to protect r…
Scot Anthony McCallum releases a port cask finish rum!
After working for Hart Brothers and Ian Macleod, independent blenders and bottlers from Scotland, Anthony has decided to sail on his own adventures and offer a selection of Scottish whiskies but also a secret Caribbean rum, a 2009 single estate with a port cask finish. House Of…
Dos Maderas: Nothing better than two casks to get things going again
Dos Maderas, a Bodegas Williams & Humbert brand, has managed to find its place in the sun in the already packed “sweet” rum industry. Blending Caribbean rums and then ageing them in old casks in Jerez, W&H style… You’re probably familiar with Dos Maderas 5 + 5…
Hampden LROK White: a whitewash victory
This is a limited edition with “xxx” bottles! – is “xxx” a misprint or does it mean “play as long as you win”? Hampden LROK White gives you a great opportunity to compare it to its aged counterpart! Brace yourself for an explosion in your mouth, although…
Mezan’s Jamaica Long Pond 2000 – Cask Strength
Jamaica Long Pond 2000 is Mezan’s new cuvée, produced by the Long Pond distillery (aged for 3 years on site, and then for 15 years on the continent). Each one of these 4 single casks complies with Mezan’s new charter entitled “Untouched”: unsweetened, uncoloured, and unchill filtered.…
Appleton comes in a gift box featuring spirits glasses!
Appleton is not the most extrovert Jamaican, nor one to speak louder than everybody else and boast about spectacular gr/hlap’s. Appleton focuses on tastiness, finesse… No wonder this rum comes attractively presented in a gift box featuring 2 tasting glasses whose size meets rum tasting requirements. Appleton…
Millonario goes one better!
After creating its 10 Aniversario Reserva (ABV: 40%) to appeal to the general public, Millonario is now releasing a Peruvian rum to please those barmen eager to add pep to their cocktails! Millonario 10 Cinquenta (as in 50), bottled at… 50%, has more character, more taste, goes…
Habitation Long Pond White, a loving heart, and… a punch in the face
Yet another white rum released by Habitation Velier. As a reminder, a previous collection saw the release of a white Habitation Velier Port Mourant. A master stroke given the production costs associated to white rum… It is well known that high ester rums also serve as ingredients…
Back to the past with Plantation The Collector
Doesn’t Steve Remsberg look a little like “Doc” in Back to the Future? Let’s present The Collector in 3 steps: Origins Steve Remsberg, one of the main rum collectors in the world, still has a few bottles of his favourite rum, an old Jamaican rum dating back…
Cañero: proudly Dominican!
Founded by Barcelo, this distillery only processes Dominican sugar cane. Fun fact: in the early 19th century, 180 distilleries were active in the Dominican Republic! Cañero features a solera 12 as its common base, but also benefits from additional ageing (between 6 and 9 months) in Normandin-Mercier…
Botran Cobre is not just a spiced rum!
What does “Botran Cobre” mean? Those unfortunate who picked German as a second language may ask this question… Well, “cobre” means copper in Spanish. The base is a blend of young and aged rums (matured in accordance with the Solera system), the older one being 20 years’…
Saint Lucia Distillers celebrate local artists
Let’s put it bluntly, the content hasn’t changed, but the packaging has. Colours, colours and more colours characterise this limited edition created by artist Llewellyn Xavier. Chairman’s Reserve – Original limited edition by Llewellyn Xavier 70 cl – 40% Distribution: Dugas
Botafogo: This is sugar, this is Portugal!
These spiced rums, aptly named “Botafogo” (which means “set on fire” in Portuguese), are built around Jamaican spirits mostly. Botafogo Spiced Rum has two versions. From one to the other “heavy rum” levels vary, so do the spices and… so does the price of course! The packaging…
A dictator wearing a kilt!
Here’s a style suggestion for the ladies from Dictador at the next Whisky Live event! There’s a lot of kilt in this Dictador line called “2 Masters”, due to the whisky finish in special casks. Obviously, the first “Master” is the one created by brand Dictador’s own…
Kiyomi : Pure Beauty of Okinawa
Personally, I like it when rum is dirty… This white rum is called “Kiyomi”, which means “pure beauty”, the distillery is called “Helios”, named after the Greek god of the sun… Distilled in column stills, Kiyomi is made from molasses. We are told that the sugar cane…
Treating yourself with New Grove
This new New Grove Savoir Faire from Mauritius is a treat. Aged in 2009 Limousin oak casks hand-picked by LMDW. The flavour range is described as “infinite”, including 360° fruits and more… Magic from the Island of Mauritius… New Grove – Savoir Faire (Single Cask #395) 2009…
Mhoba’mbastic!
In the SiSwati language, “Mhoba” means… sugar cane! Furthermore, this South African pot distilled rum is made from pure sugar cane juice! The cane comes from the farm… What farm, pray tell? Well, the farm… at the Mhoba Rum Distillery! Sugar cane cutting is performed manually. Using…
Naga Triple Wood: triply powerful
Naga is an Indonesian rum made by fermenting molasses with Javanese red rice yeast and ageing distillates in Jati and Bourbon casks. After the initial maturation process, Naga is then aged in cherry wood casks, which increases its pre-bottling alcohol content, at which point this former double-cask-aged…
Cane Island deals the cards
… and wins a few awards in the process. Cane Island has been around for a while, but it’s the talk of the town because, from now on, Bruant Distribution will be responsible for making sure the brand is available in all of France’s “good spots”. The…
An orange label does not necessarily mean Velier!
This is the Indies column, so let’s talk about an independent producer… Oops! They’ve done it again… Le Gus’t have a policy of allowing young wildlife (I mean “rums”) to grow up (I mean “age”) in their natural habitat (I mean “in a tropical environment”). In this…
Rhum fest paris 2019 : more than 50 countries on stage !
Save the date if you haven’t already: Rhum Fest Paris is taking over the Grande Halle du Parc Floral de Vincennes from 13 to 15 April. Now in its sixth year, Rhum Fest Paris is bigger than ever: more stands, more brands, more rum, more activities and…
Maxence Traverse of Honi Honi talks about the growth of rum in Asia
As rum consumption increases and interest in the spirit gains global traction, naturally, it’s seeping into Asian markets. To find out a little more about what’s happening with this rising star abroad, we interviewed Hong Kong based French bar owner, Maxence Traverse. With about thirty years of…
Two Indies Rum: Looking Beyond The Clichés
When the acclaimed single malt producer from India, Amrut Distilleries, decided to produce the country’s first natural rum crafted with Jaggery, they knew it wasn’t going to be an easy road ahead. In an exclusive interview Ashok Chokalingam, International Brand Ambassador and Head of Sales, Amrut Distilleries…
Year after year – the 24 Days of Rum Christmas calendar
It is this time of the year again where the team from 1423.dk – World Class Spirits delights us with a special treat for Christmas – the 24 Days of Rum calendar. True rum fans are already well-familiarized with the calendar as this year’s release is the…
William Hinton: the agricole rum made in Madeira finally available in France
Bruant has taken over the distribution of products by William Hinton, one of the five agricole rum distilleries on the island. This distillery produces a remarkable white rum bottled at 69%, resulting from natural fermentation, available in very limited edition. But the major item in their permanent…
South Africa’s Rum Revolution
For a country that produces some 2.2 million tons of sugar per season, South Africa was slow in entering the rum game. Happily, its craft-rum revolution is now well under way, with micro distilleries fast multiplying. Deep South Produced in Kommetjie since 2017, Copeland small-batch white rum is…
The History of Rum Lives in a New Orleans House – The Remsberg Collection
Walking through the front door of Stephen Remsberg’s modest New Orleans house is akin to entering Valhalla. But rather than fallen Norse warriors, the inhabitants are historic rums, many predating U.S. prohibition: The original bottles poured for the first daiquiris and the rum Donn Beach used in…
Clairin rums have gained a little more wisdom!
Did I say “more wisdom”? More time certainly! What do I mean? Three Clairins, two Michel Sajous and one Casimir, spent 19 months in different Caroni casks! The ageing of Clairins is an ancient practice that started being documented as early as the XIXth century, although unfortunately…
Habitation Velier: Jamaica and Barbados running a tight ship!
Since he treated us to a high ester Habitation Velier HLCF, Luca Gargano has kept releasing lighter versions with less esters and less alcohol ! HLCF alcohol: 68.5%, esters: 550 g/hlpa; LROK alcohol: 67%, esters: 375 g/hlpa; LFCH alcohol: 60,5%, esters: 200 g/hlpa. Can’t complain, taste is…
A1710: a string of Perles!
2018 vintages by the shoveful! Talking about the new blends by A1710: Nuée Ardente and Soleil de Minuit… Let’s begin with Nuée Ardente 44.8%, a blend of 7 rums aged for 10 to 18 years. More woody notes and character, a direct result (we’ve been told) of…
Plantation Rum : On your marks, get set, go!
Thinking of the way Plantation communicates with their audience, everything is carefully thought out… The brand has a specific aura, their packaging is well-designed, their backstory nicely crafted: as a result, you always feel like opening their new bottles, which they release at a (not too) sustained…
