Early on my path to rum wonkdom, after exhausting the rum selections at my pitiful state liquor stores, a certain set of elegant looking and pricey bottles caught my eye while scouring the shelves at an out-of-state liquor store. The labels read Berry Bros. & Rudd, and each bottle held rum from a different country.... Continue Reading →
Plantation’s New Xaymaca Special Dry – Deeply Deconstructed
When Maison Ferrand (parent company of Plantation Rum) purchased the Barbados-based West Indies Rum Distillery in 2017, it came with a bonus: One-third ownership of Jamaica’s Long Pond and Clarendon distilleries. While master blender Alexandre Gabriel is no stranger to Jamaican rums – witness Plantation’s Jamaican vintage rums and blends like O.F.T.D. Overproof--in the past... Continue Reading →
Liquid & Logistics: Inside E&A Scheer, Master Bulk Rum Blenders
Idyllic images come to mind when picturing rum: Sweeping Caribbean cane fields, historic pot and column stills. Barrels slowly maturing in the hot sun for decades. A master blender wandering the warehouse, carefully selecting barrels to produce the perfect blend, bottled and transported to your local bar or liquor store. While this narrative may be... Continue Reading →
Plantation O.F.T.D. Overproof: Behind the Scenes and Deeply Deconstructed
In this enlightened era of bespoke, high-end distilled spirits, we celebrate the soloist – the carefully nurtured, single estate gems rising to the top of category: Pappy Van Winkle 23 year bourbon, Fuenteseca Reserva 21 year tequila, Appleton 50 year rum, Macallan M Single Malt, and so on. Each represents a high point, a moment... Continue Reading →
The Main Rum Company: Vintage Cask Valhalla
The seaside city of Liverpool, England (yes, home of the Beatles), was one of England’s major shipping hubs in the not-so-distant past. Magnificent ocean liners like the RMS Titanic, Lusitania, and Queen Mary were all registered there. The city is also infamous for its part in the triangle trade, where rum, sugar, finished goods, and... Continue Reading →
The most important rum company you’ve never heard of: E&A Scheer – Rum Merchants to the World
Walking through the canal district of central Amsterdam can be disorienting to all your senses. The cobbled streets and sidewalks are narrow and filled with what seems an endless stream of bicycles, mobile and stationary. The 17th century-era row houses lining the canals are all similar in style and color -- three stories tall and... Continue Reading →