I can’t believe it’s nearly 12 months since Revolucion opened on Peter Street. It’s where myself and Claire (now off gallivanting in Canada) had our first rum cocktail from a teapot.
This visit was a lot more sedate, if just as rum filled. Rum Club is a tasting event held regularly at Revolucion. This month the star of the show is Eldorado Rum. They’ve collaborated with Love Drinks and Revolucion De Cuba bars across the country to create three signature cocktails as well as holding events so those of us who want to learn about rum can do so.
How else are you going to find out that waste CO2 from the distillery is pumped into the local fizzy pop factory? Or that the age statement is that of the youngest rum in the bottle? Or that El Dorado has the few remaining wooden stills left in the world?
Our evening began with a welcome Daiquiri and an introduction to El Dorado. Our first tasting was the 3 year old white rum. Although aged in Jack Daniels barrels, this rum is charcoal filtered which removes the colour but keeps the flavour, and is used primarily for cocktail making, hence the filtration.
Neat, the rum has lots of white chocolate and light vanilla flavours, along with tropical fruit, particularly pineapple on the finish. Surprisingly, given that it’s a mixing rum, it doesn’t have any spike or fire to it, it stays smooth.
The cocktail made with this rum is the Coconut Daiquiri. Lime, rum and coconut are not an unusual pairing and this works so well. Of course the reason could be Keeley‘s cocktail shaking skills as our bartender for the evening, Marcin, insisted on a little audience participation.
Our second rum was the 5 year old. This is a blend of rums 5-9 years old and totally different to it’s clear cousin. Dark chocolate features, along with much more tropical fruit and a touch of spice. I could pick up much more of the Bourbon from the barrels.
The cocktail created using this rum is a Ting-Ito. This lovechild of the Mai Tai and Mojito, uses lime, bitters, rum and Ting. Clean and refreshing, it’s one of those dangerous cocktails where you don’t realise quite how much you’ve had until you try to stand up.
Onto our penultimate rum, the 12 year old. This is sipping rum – easily enjoyed on it’s own. More molasses, Christmas cake, more vanillin, a touch of coffee, a touch of liquorice. As a lover of whisky, this really is more my style of rum.
The last of our cocktails was based on an Old Fashioned, the El Matador – created by our host bartender. The usual ingredients – sugar, bitters, orange peel and, in this case, rum, are joined by a little Amaretto. This was my favourite of the night – the Amaretto is enough to enhance, but not overpower, the rum was still dominant, orange on the nose. Yum.
And so, sadly, to our final rum, the 15 year old. Bitter dark chocolate, candied orange peel, spice all on the palate with a nice dry finish that lingers a bit longer than the 12 year old. What a perfect rum to finish on.
And sadly finish we did. Whilst Keeley and I then headed upstairs for our tea (yes we’d been drinking on empty tummies) and a little coconut rum, this isn’t the end of the rum fun. August Bank Holiday weekend sees RUMble in the Jungle. And the Rum Club will no doubt be back very soon with another free tasting.
Perfect excuse for more rum, surely?
