cocktails that they had enjoyed at bars and restaurants before the pandemic closures . Rum has benefited . “ Rum has a high rating in the off-premise ,” says Marc Farrel , founder of Ten To One Rum . “ The shift to the at-home cocktail concept , I think that will continue to work in rum ’ s favor .” “ Rum is a very versatile spirit ,” he adds . “ As more consumers learn how to unlock that versatility , they will see the full range of cocktails that rum can make .” Echoing Farrel is Couvreur of Mount Gay . “ We can expect to see more and more infusion of rum in cocktails where it traditionally has not been ,” says Couvreur .
“ Soon , rum will no longer just be associated with sugary vacation drinks , but also as a well-made spirit that brings unique flavor profiles to a variety of consumption occasions , from sipping to cocktails or simply adding elegant mixers .”
released a single barrel rum .” For whiskey drinkers who love single barrel bourbons and special finishes , all these aspects translate naturally into rum .
“ You see the DJ up in their booth turning their dials up and down ; well , for bourbon drinkers , all the dials are the same in rum ,” says McLaughlin , at Old Line Spirits . “ Vanillas , spice , age — they ’ re largely the same in rum , just delivered in different levels . In general , rum is delivering to consumers a lot of the same things as bourbon , just in a different manner .” The results speak for themselves . “ Appleton Estate saw a 13 % trend increase ahead of total rum ( up 0.1 %) in 2023 ( Nielsen 2024 ), which was led largely by the brand ’ s aged rum : 8 Year Old , 12 Year Old and 21 Year Old ,” says Melanie Batchelor , managing director , Campari America . “ Like many categories , rum has seen standard and value spirits decline while the super-premium segment gains momentum . As consumers look to trade up , brands with strong aged portfolios and a healthy stock of aged rums , like Appleton Estate , are positioned well for growth ."
“ Appleton Estate has seen an appetite for limited , highend offerings ,” she adds . “ Appleton Estate 17 Year Old Legend — an exclusive and faithful recreation of the legendary 17 Year Old rum that was crafted by J . Wray & Nephew on the Estate in the 1940s and is known worldwide as the storied inspiration for the creation of the original Mai Tai cocktail — was released in June 2023 and sold out in minutes through the brand ’ s digital channels . In 2023 , Appleton Estate also debuted two new vintages within its coveted Hearts Collection : 1993 and 2002 .”
CRAFT COCKTAILS
Among the lasting developments brought by the Covid- 19 lockdowns is everybody ’ s home bar becoming so well stocked . More people now know how to make the kinds of
QUALITY , TRANSPARENCY , SUSTAINABILITY
Consumers today , especially younger generations , care greatly about what goes into what they eat and drink . A healthier lifestyle transcends everything these people consume , with the idea that this also means higher quality .
“ Bartenders and consumers have increasingly come to understand that quality ingredients and skilled production methods truly matter when crafting better spirits ,” says Scott Shaw , chief commercial officer at Copalli Rum . “ Our rums are produced from fresh-pressed sugar cane juice , from organic heirloom sugar cane that we sustainably grow and harvest in our own fields in Southern Belize .”
“ We don ’ t use molasses and we don ’ t add sugar , as so many other rums do ,” he adds . “ And when you have high-quality , flavorful rum like ours , it simply makes for better tasting cocktails .” Agreeing with him is Meisler , of Serralles USA . “ You hear people say they don ’ t like rum because rum is too sweet ,” he says . “ Well , rum is not sweet . The sugar that people put into rum , that ’ s what ’ s sweet . It ’ s the only way to make rum sweet . We don ’ t add sugar to Don Q . We let the barrel do the talking .”
As consumers continue researching everything , and categories like tequila start adding “ additive free ” to their bottles , rum will likely have to follow suit .
“ I ’ m a major advocate of transparent and all-natural in rums ,” says Farrell of Ten To One . “ Leaning into super-clean liquid and transparency has been a tenet for us from day one . Ten To One has no additives in it . Which is a point of tension in the industry , because consumers have come to expect the opposite . For so long , many brands have added sugar or coloring .”
“ Consumers today are trending towards a different perspective now ,” he adds . “ They have a desire for clean products and for transparency . And transparency means two different things . It means what ’ s in the bottle and the question of provenance . It ’ s important to invest equally in both .
32 Beverage Dynamics • Summer 2024 www . beveragedynamics . com