Having a Rum Time

Having a Rum Time in Scotland

By Janice Hopper

Jacine Rutasikwa and her partner Paul Rutasikwa are making waves with their Scottish produced rums, Matugga and Liv. Every bottle is distilled from scratch in Scotland, crafted with Scottish water and infused with Scottish, East African and Jamaican botanicals, but the Livingston distillers have just scooped a significant new investment.

In March 2022, the awardwinning producers sought £300,000 of investment through crowdfunding to expand their team and purchase additional distillery kit to increase their output eight-fold. The funds were raised in just two weeks, welcoming more than 200 new shareholders who have bought into the company’s plans to take Scottish rum worldwide by blending distilling skills honed in Scotland with their proud African and Caribbean roots.

With this healthy cash boost, head distiller Paul hopes to accelerate Matugga’s export strategy and he’s planning work on a sugarcane plantation in his native Uganda, where the family have 120 acres of land situated just north of the capital city of Kampala. Paul says, “The African market is buoyant but craft drinks companies in the UK don’t see the opportunity. When it comes to export, UK companies immediately think of Asia and North America - but they are missing out on huge demand, appetite and spending power across African nations.’

‘We are fortunate to have the contacts, cultural affinity, family ties and product-market fit to be an early mover,’ continues Paul. ‘Our team shares a common desire to support the livelihoods of sugarcane growers in East Africa. We are developing a sugarcane plantation on our family land that will employ and train local agricultural workers. By harvesting cane from our land and converting it into highquality distilling molasses we will become a ‘Cane to Cask’ rum producer.”

The couple hopes to capitalise on the rising popularity of rum, which had a global market of £17.2bn in 2021. The UK rum market alone grew by 37% in just two years from 2019 – amounting to £1.3bn last year, so it’s a burgeoning market. Jacine and Paul’s distillery creates ‘Matugga’ and ‘Liv’ rum, two different brands, each with their own identity. Matugga is a gourmet range of premium smoky golden rums aged in exbourbon casks, and aromatic masala chai spiced rums, aimed at rum aficionados (RRP £40£55 / 70cl).

The ‘Liv’ brand is inspired by the pride Jacine and Paul feel in their adopted hometown of Livingston. Liv has a more youthful vibe, aimed at a younger clientele who know their own minds and enjoy trying something new. This is a new collection of unaged artisan white and spiced rums and flavoured rum liqueurs that are infused with Scottish fruits and botanicals (RRP £23-£31 / 50cl).

Matugga was set up back in 2018. Prior to this Jacine was a Chartered Marketer and Paul was a Chartered Civil Engineer. They spotted a gap in the market for craft rums that have been created from scratch in the UK and took the opportunity

to branch out to embrace distilling, farming and running a company together. Matugga currently employs seven people in Scotland across production, sales and marketing. They also use honey sourced from John Mellis in the Borders, fresh Scottish raspberries from local shops, Scottish heather, and as much lavender from their front garden as possible.

Jacine, who is believed to be the UK’s first black female distillery owner, says, “When starting a business, black entrepreneurs, female entrepreneurs and particularly black female entrepreneurs face huge barriers and often struggle to get to the next phase for a number of reasons – whether its access to finance, networks, education or mentorship. There are still, sadly, systemic inequalities and individual and institutional biases at play. But we’re lucky that since moving to Scotland we’ve encountered a highly supportive community who value our craftsmanship.”

On the plus side, tapping into their international land ownership and cultural knowledge, gives Jacine and Paul an edge. Jacine says, “Our company and brands draw upon our rich ‘Rum Triad’ – rooted in Jamaica’s rum making traditions (I’m of Jamaican heritage); showcasing the culture and flavours of East Africa (Paul was born in Uganda); blended with Scotland’s proud distilling heritage. As a result, we are producing some of the most adventurous and unique rum expressions available anywhere in the world.”

Learning from the Scottish “ginaissance”, the pair have helped to spark the “rumaissance”. They’re also keenly exploring other revenue streams at the distillery, including immersive tours, virtual tastings, retail pop-ups and private cask investments, with plans to launch a new rum club, a rum school and a contract distilling service too.

Jacine continues: “We can’t keep up, our distillery is now at full capacity. The rum market is ready for disruption. Hardly any major retailers stock locally made craft rum, but the appetite is there so we need to think big to be ready to meet that opportunity. We are producing New World rum and we’re rewriting the rulebook.”

Matugga is certainly turning heads, attracting celebrity fans including chef James Martin, who featured the rum on his Saturday morning ITV television show. The distillery has already sold more than 25,000 bottles through its online stores, as well as retailers such as the Co-op, Master of Malt and DUGAS, a leading French distributor.

In terms of research, Matugga is collaborating with HeriotWatt University on a project to characterise the composition of its distillery waste (pot ales) and find new ways to reduce the carbon footprint of the distillery. This research programme is supported by The Scottish Food & Drink Net Zero Challenge Fund.

Jacine concludes, “Not only do people get invested in our products, but they become invested in our story. People think what we’re doing is different, and there’s been incredible support and goodwill from our community.“

As we head into the lazy, hazy, crazy days of summer, Scottish rum may be coming a glass near you soon.

FACTBOX Visit Matugga Distillery here - matuggarum.com

Explore the crowdfunding campaign here - crowdcube. com/companies/matuggadistillery/pitches/bVNXjb

Jacine and Paul Rutasikwa - Matugga Distillers

Matugga Rum

Janice Hopper is a freelance writer based in Aberdeen who’s written features, copy and social media text for a range of publications and clients. Her Scottish family travel blog, Scots2Travel.com, covers child-friendly short breaks, attractions and activities.