Step aside, gin – it’s the summer of rum
Gin was once the spirit of choice, but Richard Godwin looks at how a new contender is finally catching up
At some hazy point in the past 18 months, Britons corked up the sauvignon blanc and turned off the draught beer, and we all became mixologists. Perhaps so much time at home had left us shaken, stirred – or simply muddled, but cocktails and aperitivos suddenly became the new national go-to comfort drink.
Reports from the spirits front line back this up. Sales of trendy bitter orange aperitif Aperol have shot up by 148 per cent compared with the same month last year, while sales of Pimm’s have been boosted by more than 100 per cent. Pampelle Grapefruit Aperitif sales are up by an astonishing 4,850 per cent compared with last year, with Noilly Prat Dry consumption increasing by 64 per cent and Martini Extra Dry sales by 35 per cent.
But what every virgin or fullstrength home bartender knows is that cocktails are not worth a swizzle stick if they don’t feature rum. Indeed, there is no spirit – possibly, no liquid – that can compare.
When the sun is shining, who could resist a properly made daiquiri or an ice-cold Mai Tai? And when the sun isn’t shining, well, rum is essentially distilled sunshine, the next best thing.
It’s versatile too – no spirit has such range. “The diversity of rum is the most exciting thing about it,” says Shannon Mustipher, New York bartender and author of Tiki: Modern Tropical Cocktails (Rizzoli), which is full of fun rum ideas. Rum, she points out, is made in more than 90 countries and there are no universal rules regarding how it’s made.
“The result is, there’s a flavour profile and expression to suit any palate,” says Mustipher, “any taste, any occasion. You can be a gin drinker and find a rum that works for you – and you can be a Scotch drinker and find a rum that works for you.”
Mustipher is one of many figures who have changed rum’s image in recent years, bringing a renewed appreciation for its variety and finesse, confronting the murkier areas of its history and (most importantly) using it to make fresh, delicious, creative drinks, such as the Parasol, her banana-and-pineapple spiked take on the daiquiri.
And while craft bartending types have been banging on about rum for years, it appears that the usually gin-mad British public are cottoning on, too.
Waitrose reported a 64 per cent increase in rum sales earlier this year, while Dawn Davies, head buyer for online retailer The Whisky Exchange, reports growth both in terms of volume (up by 63 per cent in the past two years) and in value (up by 120 per cent) which means customers are splashing out on more expensive rums.
“Rum has the sweetness, it has the approachability,” Davies says. “People have become much better at mixing cocktails during lockdown. People are finally bored of gin.”
Craft rums are now popping up: the number of brands has increased from 50 in 2009 to 200 this year, according to analysts BBB+. And many of the new rums are distilled here with imported molasses, such as Cabby’s Rum, an award-winning light rum made by London taxi driver Moses Odong.
All this dovetails nicely with the great lockdown trend for homebound escapism. There is one sure-fire way to trump your neighbour’s hot tub and that is to buy your own hot tub and place a swim-up Tiki bar next to it. And once you have invested in, say, a John Lewis Honolulu Tiki bar (£575), you will want to fill it with rare rums, tropical fruits, novelty glassware and Del Boy-style garnishes, and learn how to make a Jungle Bird cocktail.
Which rum is which?
The sheer range of rum styles is exciting for those with the time, cash and/or liver to invest, but it can be intimidating. Suffice to say, there is a world of overproof demeraras, French rhums agricoles and cult sipping rums
to explore if you’re so minded – but if what you want to do is make a wide range of delicious drinks, you’re looking at just two styles: light and dark.
The light (aka “white”) stuff was typically made in the Spanish-speaking Caribbean. It’s usually aged a little but then charcoal-filtered so it comes out transparent, dry-ish, fruity and playful. This is the rum that’s used in classic Cuban cocktails such as the daiquiri and El Presidente as well as the UK’s two most googled cocktails: the mojito and the piña colada.
Then there’s dark rum, a category that spans fruity golden rums that have spent around five years in the barrel to treacly Jamaican rums and elegant blends that easily match single malts for complexity. You’ll want to mix these in funky tropical punches and potions, but dark rum also makes a wonderful substitute for bourbon in Manhattans, old fashioneds and so on.
And if I had to get one of each?
When it comes to light rum, seek out Flor de Caña Extra Secco from Guatemala, El Dorado 3-year-old from Guyana or (top choice!) Veritas from the exemplary Barbadian distillery, Foursquare. My main advice would be to avoid the ubiquitous white Bacardi, because… drum roll... it’s not that nice! (Though many of Bacardi’s dark rums are exceptional.) Havana Club is better.
For a good all-round dark rum that will be nice to sip but not too fancy to mix, Mount Gay Eclipse is a steal at around £20 and anything from Foursquare, Doorly’s, Diplomatico or Plantation is worth mainlining. The Appleton distillery in Jamaica is excellent, and Duppy Share is a pick of the new-wave blended rums.
What about spiced rum?
Mostly swill, I’m afraid. There’s nothing wrong with infusing rum with tropical spices and fruits. Sadly, most of the commercial varieties taste of fake vanilla and little else and novelties such as Peaky Blinders rum should be approached with caution.
Still, there are great spiced rums out there. Foursquare Spiced is matchless and Spice Hunter is dry and subtle. Gin drinkers, meanwhile, may be converted by Five Rivers Indian Spiced. It’s a rare example of a spiced light rum, inspired by the Punjab. It makes a stellar daiquiri and goes dandily with tonic.