My good friend Shane - the talented singer/songwriter of ‘Hi-Tide’ duo fame -pulled up to Kaibo Beach the other day, bringing with him a bottle of rum. Turns out the rum was a gift for for me; a fine quality in any friendship I always say. As friends should, we opened the bottle and poured ourselves a glass each, dug our toes into the sand, and watched the boats pull in and out of the dock. Shane’s a true island guy. He’s in tune with the ebb and the flow of island life, quite literally, and metaphorically. Sharing a rum with Shane on the beach was probably the highlight of my otherwise average day.
Island Company rum is fairly new to the market. Positioning itself as “Simply the Smoothest”, I could not agree more; the offering is quite slick. The front of the label promises the delights of ‘five times distilled’, ‘zero carbs’ and ‘gluten free’. The back of the label goes bolder by promising ‘an exceptionally clean aged rum that has never existed before...Welcome to Paradise’. Maybe it was the rum; maybe it was that I needed a pause in my day; maybe it was Shane; it doesn't matter. This rum offers to fulfil the common dream that mankind shares - the belief that someday we will all get away to the beach, where we will soak up rays, and sip boat drinks while the sun sets. On that premise, it certainly delivered.
Appearance: blonde, light yellow straw
Aroma: delicate citrus and bamboo wood
Taste: clean and dry, intense vanilla, caramel, hints of black pepper spice. Slight sweetness of muscavado sugar
After taste: lingering cracked black pepper, vanilla essence
Suggested sipping environment: On the beach, poured over ice cubes of local coconut water, shared with a good friend.
