Chef profile

HATTIERS RUM

www.hattiers.com We find out more about Devon-based Hattiers Rum from Founder and CEO, Philip Everett-Lyons

Do you have a signature product?

Our signature rum would have to be our first release ‘Egremont’. When Hattiers Rum launched in 2017, Egremont Premium Reserve Rum was the result of eighteen months of research, development and tasting, followed by more research, more development, more tasting (followed by much more of the same) until eventually, the first release was ready. Quickly it began to gain recognition from respected and admired individuals and institutions across the globe, so we knew that our approach to fine rum was right. The same unscrupulous attention to detail and quality was the catalyst behind the two newest additions to the Hattiers range, but more on them later…

What makes your products different?

In early November 2020, Hattiers Rum officially became B Corp certified, joining over 3,500 companies, in 150 industries across 73 countries. They were independently verified by the B Lab as ‘using business as a force for good, adhering to the highest standards of social and environmental performance, public transparency and accountability. Hattiers Rum is delighted to be the first British B Corp Rum and only the second in the world. Hattiers Rum has also been plastic-free from day one. During the blending process, Hattiers Rum use local soft Dartmoor water resulting in their unique multi-award-winning rums. Naturally filtered by layer upon layer of ancient granite, the soft Dartmoor water balances the alcoholic strength of their base rum. We are proud not to use colourants in our rums to make them appear darker and do not add sugar to any of our blends.

Have you developed anything new lately?

Lockdown last year gave us the perfect opportunity to finalise two new blends that had been in development for some time and in October 2020, two new rums joined the Hattiers Range — ‘Eminence’, a blended aged white rum and ‘Resolute’, a blended aged navy strength rum. Since launch, both rums have been hugely popular and have turned heads in the rum industry, with Hattiers Rum once again gaining globally respected awards and recognition for producing blends that comfortably sit beside some of the finest single estate rums from around the world.

Have you won any awards recently?

We were recently awarded Gold at the 2021 International Wine & Spirit Competition (IWSC) for ‘Eminence’ our blended aged white rum (42% ABV) and scored an impressive 95 out of a possible 100 at the prestigious competition.

Loving Lyme

We chat to Lyme Regis chef Harriet Mansell

Congratulations on the opening of your latest venture, Lilac! Can you tell us a bit about what we can expect when we visit?

Thank you! Lilac is a wine bar and neighbourhood eatery serving small plates. It’s somewhere you can pop in for a glass of wine and some nibbles, or a long lunch of shared plates. It’s the place we want to go on our days off! Lilac has the same overarching ethos as our sister restaurant, Robin Wylde, with a focus on vegetables, seasonality, locality, reduction of waste and sustainability

Anything we really MUST try?!

Langham Sparkling on tap, their col fondo… is a must try! And the coffee, it’s incredible.

You opened Robin Wylde in October — how was opening during the pandemic?

It was a laugh a minute! And continues to be… but what can I say… we’re thrill seekers…

How do the two venues differ?

Robin Wylde is a fine dining restaurant, catering for 20 covers, with one sitting a day… you eat dinner, you’re there for a few hours, with a tasting menu and optional drinks flight. Lilac is a big open cellar, a bar, neighbourhood eatery, a laidback day to night approach.

Why Lyme Regis?

Initially I needed a venue to trial a restaurant concept… and that was the pop-up kitchen on Broad Street. After four days a week at the pop-up kitchen, I realised there was a distinct gap in the market for the style of food I wanted to do and I decided that perhaps Lyme Regis might be the place.

Do you have any favourite local ingredients and suppliers you like to use?

Chideock Champignons — they do insane shitake, and king oyster mushrooms, and are absolutely mad foragers. At this time of year, it's chanterelles and in the autumn all the others. There’s also Phil the mushroom farmer in Charmouth. You can’t beat mushrooms, can you? I’ve also been using lots of Rose petals recently. We’ve been putting them in ice creams and that’s pretty cool.

When did you know you wanted to become a chef?

I wanted a restaurant from when I was 12 — that was always a lifelong ambition. But then school and family told me to go and get a proper job that would earn me money so I could save up to then purchase a restaurant later in life. But it doesn’t work like that, and you realise pretty early on that if you want to have a restaurant, and you have a passion for food and cooking, that you kind of need to be a chef.

Who is your biggest culinary inspiration?

There’s so many! But definitely Dominique Crenn. She’s mega, absolutely mega. She’s the first female chef to get three Michelin stars in America. She’s battled cancer, and come out the other side, and she’s still running her own restaurants. She’s actually got a formal restaurant and a more casual neighbourhood eatery in San Francisco and if you watch her on Netflix, she looks as if she’s absolutely in her element.

Have you got any kitchen hacks you can share to help us with our cooking at home?

If you want to preserve the shelf life of your berries — strawberries etc. just dilute a bit of vinegar into a big bowl of cold water and wash your berries in that then lay them all out on a paper towel or something after. The vinegar kills the yeast off the skin of the fruit and they’ll keep for weeks unspoilt in your fridge. I learnt that as a yacht chef crossing the Atlantic!

What’s next for you?!

Boutique accommodation… Boutique, bouji accommodation… it makes sense! But perhaps not straightaway. But everyone knows if you want to run a business like this all year round you need accommodation. www.lilacwine.co.uk / www.robinwylde.com