Most folks probably think of rum as the liquor you shoot on a dock while eating cracked conch, pour into vats with fruit juice, or watch getting mixed at one of those bars with the spinning daiquiri machines. And then there's a rum like St. Lucia Distillers Chairman's Reserve Rum.
First off, we should mention that our bottle came gratis from Artisan Brands, which dropped off a box of liquor at the New Times office today. Artisan is one of the liquor distributors for New Times' Pairings event, and we'll sample a few of its offerings in the coming days.
The offer of free rum had called most of our office over to the bottle.
Truth is, we had few rum drinkers in the group, but the whiskey and
scotch drinkers were quick converts. One mixed it with a can of Pepsi,
but it was damned fine simply over ice.
Chairman's Reserve looks as dark as a bourbon, with an amber color
approaching a port. Like most rums, it doesn't have much of a nose
beyond, well, rum. But the taste is complex, and unlike a fine whiskey
or scotch, the flavors are up-front. There's vanilla and fruit and
spice, and definitely vanilla from that oak that it was aged in. It's
sweet too -- it's fermented from molasses, after all.
Stay tuned for our next Pairings taste test: Luna Sueño Tequila Añejo.
