European flavour

Europe’s getting to grips with rum and promises a diverse spirit

Europe’s got a long history with rum, with the continent playing its role in empires and even forming part of the daily sustenance for sailors in Britain’s Navy. In some ways, the diversity of Europe and this history has helped shape the varieties and styles of rum that we enjoy today and Europe enjoys it rum as much (if not more), as anywhere else.

If we fast-forward four centuries since those sailors were imbibing their Rum Ration, Europe is increasingly getting on-board the bandwagon for rum again, largely driven by its cocktail capitals; London, Paris and Berlin using Caribbean rums as a base. However, increasingly rum is being produced in Europe too and there’s liquid to get excited about.

The Portuguese island of Madeira is proving one such hot-spot in recent months. Madeira has a long history of sugar-production and is said to have at one point boasted around 200 distilleries, but perhaps suffered from the producers failing to market their products abroad. However, that appears as though it’s about to change, with rum from the island now giving its eponymous fortified wine a run for its money.

Madeira typically produces agricole rum, and one producer that seems intent on bucking the trend is Engenhos do Norte, who has recently taken its rum to shows in London and Berlin. Its brands; Rum North, Branca, Lido, 970 Rum and 980 are worth getting your hands on for a taste of Portuguese spirit.

O’Reizinho is another distillery on the island, with a hint of its quality getting better known due to an independent bottling by That Boutique-y Rum Company (TBRC).

Bottlers in Europe taking Caribbean rums and blending them under their own label grow in number and quality too. Independent bottler, TBRC has in recent times done a great job of bringing to light lesser known and often closed distilleries, while major spirits players Berry Bros. & Rudd have an excellent collection of bottlings from around the globe.

However, if the typical image of rum is palm trees and sandy beaches, European rum brings with it a different aesthetic – who fancies rum produced in East London, for example? There’s great quality waiting to be found and as rum regains its popularity, Europe will be playing its part in showing the diversity of the spirit.