Vol. 7, No. 10 | My Life in Three Rums (And an Event)
Hey Ya’ll!
Finally, I’m remembering to mention something that I’m doing before it happens. I’ll be making cocktails on Tuesday (August 30th) at Muchacho for their Bar Besties series. Yes, that means these will be the slowest drinks that have ever come out of their bar.
I haven’t been behind a bar in about five years. I’m not counting when I had the Holy Sip space because that entire concept was centered around intentional drinking and had no menu. I wanted people to connect and actually listen to the story behind each drink. I thought about trying to replicate that concept for Tuesday but finally accepted that it wasn’t realistic. So instead, I’ll share the stories here:
My overall idea was that August is rum month so this was a perfect time to encourage people to reconsider rum. I’ve been waiting for rum to have its moment for the past 10 years and it hasn’t happened yet. Every two years there’s an article in some beverage magazine with false promises.
Here’s where I landed:
Cocktail 1 - Punch #2
Rum: Wray + Nephew
Wray + Nephew is my first rum. I don’t remember the first time I ever had it because it’s so commonly used as medicine that I could have been as young as 5. As an adult, I fell in love with it the when I audaciously used it to make a daiquiri. Two full ounces of Wray + Nephew in a cocktail. It was magnificent. Before that, I’d only ever used a dash or two in a rum punch. Speaking of punch, this cocktail is not a rum punch. It’s sorrel, the second most popular punch-like drink in Jamaica. While it’s normally consumed at Christmas, I think we should drink it all the time. (And we’re damn near at Christmas anyway.)
Cocktail 2 - Island Outpost
Rum: Blackwell Rum
My first ambassador role was with Blackwell Rum. I was such a huge fan of the rum that Studio No 7 was one of the top-selling accounts of the rum. It’s made at the Appleton distillery and blended by Joy Spence. However, it’s Chris Blackwell’s rum and his entrepreneurial story is what I fell in love with. This cocktail is a riff on a daiquiri and is named after Chris’ collection of hotels in Jamaica.
Cocktail 3 - Barcy
Rum: Santa Teresa 1796
My last cocktail features Santa Teresa 1796, a Spanish style rum from Venezuela. Santa Teresa is in the Bacardí portfolio which is my now. When I was in Barcelona a few years ago, I fell in love with vermouth and vermouth culture. This is a reverse Manhattan and Santa Teresa is perfect for it because it sips like a bourbon and helps balance out the sweetness from the Noilly Prat Rouge.
I haven’t mentioned St~Germain, but at this point it should be a given that it will be present. The first two cocktails use St~Germain and also tie into the story. In cocktail number one there is 1.5 oz of St~Germain because this is another spirit that people always think you can only use a bar spoon of. And like in cocktail number two, St~Germain was founded by a creative entrepreneur and it’s one of the reasons I love the brand so much.
I hope to see some of your faces on Tuesday and please don’t yell at me when it takes me five minutes to make your drink.
Shannon