October 2020 - Rum In the News

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                                PLANTATION RUMS

Plantation Rum has released a new rum from the Fiji Islands, PLANTATION ISLE OF FIJI, a permanent addition to the Plantation portfolio. Still relatively unknown a few years ago, Fijian rums have made a name for themselves among connoisseurs and curious drinkers eager to explore new rum horizons. Alexandre Gabriel, Plantation’s Founder and Master Blender, who is fascinated by the diversity of terroirs and interested in regional spirits production, is always on the quest for extraordinary rum-making partners. It is this curiosity that has led him to many relationships with similarly inclined producers, like Liam F. Costello of the Rum Co. of Fiji.  Honesty, transparency, integrity, rigor and creativity are the values that are shared by both men in their pursuit of making spirits for all to enjoy. Innumerable tastings and dynamic discussions between the two men resulted in the Plantation Isle of Fiji Rum. Liam F. Costello, Rum Co. of Fiji said, “I can’t think of a better, more passionate and like-minded partner than Alexandre Gabriel to not only learn from and be challenged by, but to support our vision of taking our rums from Fiji to the global stage.” Alexandre Gabriel adds, “At Plantation, we always strive for the best rums, a high-quality product that will highlight an interesting culture with a specific decades or centuries-old heritage and know-how. Working with Liam is extremely enjoyable because it is like working with a kindred spirit. Someone willing and able to put forward Fijian’s excellence in the Rum culture.” Great rums begin with sugarcane and on Fiji, sugarcane has flourished for more than 6,000 years in the fertile volcanic soils of the archipelago. This soil also acts as a great filter for the abundant summer rains that are transformed into spring water. Sugarcane, spring water and the hot and humid climate of the island adds incredible layers of flavor and personality to Fijian rums. While the angels’ share is significant, the aging process is more intense than in a temperate climate, lending complexity with exotic accents. The cultivation and production of Fijian rums is rooted in the local culture and employs artisanal techniques that are still carried out by hand. The Isle of Fiji rum is a blend distilled in pot and column stills at Rum Co. of Fiji. It is carefully blended by a skillful team of experts led by Alexandre Gabriel and Liam F. Costello. It is aged two-to-three years in ex-Bourbon casks in Fiji and one additional year in Ferrand casks in France. This proprietary Plantation double-ageing technique gives Isle of Fiji its intense then delicate aroma and builds the perfect balance between fruity and nutty compounds. It is bottled at 40% ABV.

Also from Fiji is the first rum of Plantation’s new ‘Birds of Paradise’ Vintage Collection, PLANTATION FIJI VINTAGE 2005 Limited Edition. Distilled entirely in triple column stills and aged for 14 years in 200 liter Bourbon casks in the mild climate of the Fiji Islands, this rum developed an expansive palette of different flavors. Building on this is Plantation Rum’s proprietary second maturation, for Fiji Vintage 2005 this means one year spent maturing in 350 liter Ferrand French Oak barrels in the House’s cellars in Cognac. Gabriel and Costello’s curation of casks in Fiji followed by this final aging process in a continental climate, gives Fiji Vintage 2005 its unique character, aroma and flavor. Each step of the way, both the Fiji and the French teams worked hand in hand. A pianist in his spare time, Alexandre Gabriel likes to integrate his living experience into making his products. The Four Hands Program is a reference to his favorite instrument, the piano, where two artists playing the same piece is called ‘four hands.’ In making rum, this same expression highlights a philosophy that Alexandre values as the core of the Plantation brand - working together to preserve the culture of rum and its traditions. Plantation vintage rums are the fruit of a collaboration between Alexandre Gabriel and like-minded distillers. Together, they select barrels, sampling until finding the right note. Fiji Vintage 2005 is bottled at 50.2% ABV. https://www.plantationrum.com/

              BLACKWELL 007 LIMITED RELEASE

In celebration of the November release of the latest James Bond film, No Time to Die, Blackwell Rum is delighted to announce that it has partnered with the 007 film franchise. Chris Blackwell, the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame member and owner of Ian Fleming’s former residence, GoldenEye, is launching a special 007 Limited Edition release of his Blackwell Fine Jamaican Rum. The Fine Jamaican Rum is inspired by his family’s time-honored recipe. This aged, rich and fragrant dark gold rum is filled with the warmth and sensuality of Jamaica. “James Bond has been a big part of my life, from my childhood lunches with Ian Fleming at GoldenEye to being a location scout on the first movie, Dr. No (1962). It was a pleasure working alongside the No Time To Die production team in Jamaica, providing our iconic rum for the set in James Bond’s house, which has made this very special relationship come full circle.” Chris Blackwell was born into a family long-settled in Jamaica, exporting bananas, coconuts and rum, since 1625. Early on, Chris had an ear for music. In 1959, he founded Island Records, bringing reggae, and the sounds of Jamaica, to the world. With Blackwell Fine Jamaican Rum, Chris has brought the taste of Jamaica to the world since launching it in 2008. Taken from his family’s time-honored recipe, and enjoyed by the many musician and artist friends visiting Chris at GoldenEye, this deep, rich and fragrant rum is filled with the warmth and sensuality of Jamaica, making it one of the finest gifts the island has to offer. A portion of Blackwell Rum’s proceeds are donated to the Oracabessa Foundation. The Foundation was established in 1997 with the mission to serve as a catalyst for the sustainable development of Oracabessa and its environs. The limited-edition rum features an augmented reality experience available via a QR code on the bottle, where Blackwell, who is best known for discovering Bob Marley, comes to life to share life stories, music selections, cocktail recipes and more. “It’s just that I’d rather die of drink than of thirst” — James Bond in Ian Fleming’s Thunderball.  https://www.blackwellrum.com/

                                       BACARDI 

Ready-to-drink canned cocktails have flourished during the pandemic. As drink producers have moved away from malt-based cocktails and started using premium spirits, the category has taken off. Lisa Pfenning, Vice President of Bacardi North America, told Chilled magazine “It’s impossible to ignore the pandemic and its effect on drinking culture, which makes the RTD line from Bacardi as appealing as ever. I think it matters to people that it comes from a trusted brand. They want something with a great flavor profile. What I like about our RTD line is that it is made with real rum, Bacardi rum. You are getting a genuine, high quality spirit in your cocktail in a can.” BACARDÍ Lime & Soda has natural and crisp lime flavor and aromas of lime zest and glistening bright citrus notes paired with bubbly soda water for a refreshing serve. BACARDÍ Limon & Lemonade has a fresh citrus taste from a blend of bold lemon flavor with hints of lime and grapefruit balanced with refreshingly sweet and tart lemonade. BACARDÍ Rum Punch offers a unique blend of naturally fresh pineapple, sweet orange, and ripe mango flavor with a hint of passion fruit. In other news, Bacardi is re-launching its 2011 Oakheart spiced rum as Bacardi Spiced. “As the leader in the rum category with more than 158 years in the business, Bacardi is ready to re-stake its claim in the spiced rum segment,” Lisa Pfenning said. “Consumers consistently turn to Bacardi for the latest in rum trends, and the spiced segment is no different. We’ve watched this category closely in recent years and see it as a massive opportunity for the brand, so we’re very excited for consumers to trade up the competition for Bacardi Spiced.” This fall, the brand is embarking on a media partnership across various platforms to engage sports fans. It will take part in DraftKings new free-to-play NFL Pick’Em competition, spanning week one through seventeen of the regular season. Additionally, the rum is sponsoring DraftKings ‘Performance of the Week,’ a top-performing social highlight at the sports betting company. The rum will also be live with Spotify, with curated host reads on The Bill Simmons Podcast, The Ryen Russillo Podcast and The NFL Show. https://www.bacardi.com/

                      SAILOR JERRY LAWSUIT

Bloomberg Law News reported that the family of famed tattoo artist Norman Keith Collins, also known as Sailor Jerry, have settled their claims in Hawaii federal court that the makers of Sailor Jerry rum infringed the late artist’s publicity rights. After his death 1973, Collins’ wife had a verbal agreement to sell the contents of his tattoo parlor to Michael Malone, another artist who Collins mentored. Malone created the Sailor Jerry Rum Brand and associated merchandise and later sold it to William Grant & Sons, Ltd. Collins’ heirs, operating as N.K. Collins LLC, sued William Grant & Sons for violating his publicity rights. However, the court ruled in favor of the large spirits corporation in July on the family’s claim under the Hawaii Publicity Rights Act because the law was passed decades after Collins’ death and didn’t apply retroactively. Other claims brought by the heirs were allowed to continue or be refiled.

                     HARD TRUTH DISTILLING

Founded in 2015, Hard Truth Distilling Co. has grown from a small operation in the upper rooms of a pizza restaurant to an 18,000-square foot state-of-the-art distillery featuring Vendome Copper & Brass Works equipment. Their White Rum and Toasted Coconut Rum have received good reviews and their White Oak Reserve Rum won a Silver Medal at the American Distilling Institute Craft Spirits Awards. Their latest release, Toasted Coconut Rum Cream won a 95 Points rating from Wine Enthusiast Magazine. Bryan Smith, Master Distiller and General Manager at Hard Truth Distilling Co. told Distillery Trail “I’m a big fan of really great cream liqueurs. When working on the flavor profile of this spirit, it was important to me that we maintained the natural flavor of fresh dairy cream while adding in the DNA of our Toasted Coconut Rum. If you’re looking for dessert in a bottle, this is your spirit.” Ed Ryan CEO of BWQOHT Inc., the parent umbrella of Big Woods Restaurants, Quaff ON! Brewing Co. and Hard Truth Distilling Co. added “The release of our first cream liqueur comes just in time for the holiday season. Cream liqueurs have always been a seasonal favorite, and this island-inspired spirit can provide the tropical getaway many of us have been dreaming about while as we’ve spent more time at home.” https://www.hardtruthhills.com/distillery/

                              ANGOSTURA

Angostura’s latest release is White Oak Watermelon Flavoured Rum, a limited edition, natural flavored rum that has no artificial flavors or additives. It’s made from natural watermelon and it’s exceptionally smooth; the first sip gives you a crisp and fresh taste of watermelon. It’s the third innovation of White Oak Flavored Rum to be launched in less than a year. In November 2019, Angostura® introduced White Oak Sorrel Flavored Rum that became a phenomenal success. In February 2020, White Oak Coconut Flavored Rum entered the market, and took Carnival celebrations to another level. Chairman of Angostura, Terrence Bharath says, “The White Oak Watermelon Flavoured Rum was crafted with our consumers in mind because Angostura® understands the importance of building on its anchor products. The global demand is expanding in the flavored rums segment and it is a natural progression to introduce variants of our star product. Once the seal is broken on a bottle you are captivated by its aroma which fills the room. The taste is unique, the smoothness and refinement of the product is unmatched. We are proud once again to be a leader in the drinks industry.” In light of the challenges facing the global economy brought on by the pandemic, the economic viability of companies in the food and beverage industry, hinges on creativity, innovation and the ability to be flexible. Angostura®, like many other companies around the world, has turned to this route and continues to innovate to meet changing demands and protocols. When Angostura® first announced that it was introducing White Oak Watermelon Flavoured Rum, we launched 150 limited edition packages and we were pleased to see that these were sold out in less than 24 hours. The requests have been overwhelming both locally and regionally and customers eagerly await the release of this new and exciting flavor. White Oak is one of Angostura’s flagship rum brands that continues to be a leader in the market not just in Trinidad and Tobago but in the Caribbean.

In other news, this summer Angostura commissioned its state-of-the-art, Water Resource Recovery and Anaerobic Digester facility, after over one year of project planning and construction. A contract was signed with German-based engineering firm, Chriwa Umwelt-Systemtechnik und Service GmbH (CUSS), in March 2019. The company was selected after multiple rounds of assessment and review of tender proposals. This multi-million-dollar project was initially anticipated to be completed in April 2020 after re-engineering works on the facility began in September 2019. When the first COVID-19 case was announced in Trinidad in March 2020, the process was already advanced at that time. Angostura was about to begin corrosion repairs on the Anaerobic Digester, another phase before the project’s completion, which was being spearheaded by a team of foreign experts from the United Kingdom, Russia and Serbia. However, when it was announced on March 21st, 2020 that T&T’s borders were being closed on March 22nd, 2020 at midnight, the foreign experts quickly left the country to return to their homes as many other countries were also closing their borders in a bid to protect their citizens from the spread of COVID-19. Consequently, Angostura had to figure out how to keep the project on track without the input from the international experts. This caused a major setback and delayed the project by four months. As a result of the re-engineering works on the facility, daily distillery production was reduced by sixty-eight percent. The delay in completing the project also led to an increase in the cost of production for alcohol due to overhead costs and reduced output. In fact, the cost of production increased by approximately sixty percent as Angostura was producing less alcohol from its distillery daily. During this period, Angostura stepped in to assist the country by producing 70,000 bottles of hand sanitizer to fight the COVID-19 pandemic. This meant that the company was using its very limited supply of alcohol to serve the greater good of society despite the needs of its own operations. Now that the plant is being commissioned, it will allow Angostura to increase its production to 13,500 LOA (Liters of Alcohol) per day, a significant increase over its daily production average for the past three years. http://www.angostura.com

                 CARIBBEAN RUM AWARDS

Caribbean Journal first launched the Caribbean Rum Awards in 2018. Now in its third year, the CRA has become the region’s most exclusive celebration of rum, focused in the heart of St Barth’s capital, Gustavia. Each year, a team of judges from the Caribbean and around the world descend upon St Barth to judge a coveted selection of the Caribbean’s best rums, including “Uber-Premium” categories of rum and rhum agricole that gather the most expensive rums on the market for an unparalleled competition.  It’s all centered at the home of the Caribbean Rum Awards, Christopher Davis’ Rhum Room in Gustavia, where you can find the largest selection of fine Caribbean rums on earth, including the world’s largest selection of rhum agricole. Visitors to the Caribbean Rum Awards enjoy a full-day expo of top-level Caribbean rums, a ti-punch workshop and seminar and can purchase tickets to a gala dinner at the adjacent Quarter Kitchen and Cocktail Lab that pairs fine gastronomy with crafted cocktail pairings. “This year’s Caribbean Rum Awards will again honor the best of rum-making in the Caribbean,” said Alexander Britell, editor and publisher of Caribbean Journal. “We’re proud to partner with Christopher Davis and the St Barth Rum Festival for what will be an exciting, high-level experience tailored for the current realities of travel.” The event will kick off with a Ti’ Punch Happy Hour by WIMCO, followed by a series of evening rum and cigar experiences and VIP master classes. “What an honor to spend a great week of events with rum, passionate connoisseurs and interested learners as well,” said Christopher Davis, proprietor of the Rhum Room and the Quarter Kitchen & Cocktail Lab, and founder of the St Barth Rum Festival. “What surprises me the most about this year is regardless of all the worldwide issues we are still able to put together an incredible Rum Festival program, as almost all other festivals are cancelled. People are excited to come to St Barth to visit and to taste fabulous rums from around the Caribbean.” This year’s Caribbean Rum Awards will be held in St Barth, November 10th through the 15th. In addition to the awards there will be Master Classes from Rhum Karukera, Rhum Neisson and Rhum La Favorite. On November 14th, there will be a multiple-course rum pairing dinner at Quarter Kitchen and Cocktail Lab led by top chefs taking patrons on a culinary journey, with the best rhums agricoles and spectacular, rare cigars to follow. https://www.caribbeanrumawards.com/

            MORE SANCTIONS ON CUBAN RUM

Late last month, President Donald Trump announced new sanctions on Cuba, restricting imports of Cuban rum and cigars and banning Americans from staying at properties owned by the Cuban government. The move comes as Trump is trying to lock in the Cuban American vote in the key battleground state of Florida before the November 3rd presidential election. “Today, as part of our continuing fight against communist oppression, I am announcing that the Treasury Department will prohibit US travelers from staying at properties owned by the Cuban government,” Trump said at a White House event. “We’re also further restricting the importation of alcohol and Cuban tobacco,” Trump said during a ceremony honoring Bay of Pigs veterans and commemorating the 40th anniversary of the 1980 Mariel boatlift that brought 120,000 Cubans to Miami. Since taking office in January 2017, Trump has sought to unwind a detente with Cuba pursued by his Democratic predecessor, President Barack Obama.