ISSUE 14 - Rum Edition
September 2018 - £4.95
FE ATURE D S P IR IT
AUTUMN TRENDS The cocktails and spirits shaking things up this season
L A DO LCE V ITA COCK TA I L S Creative rum cocktails from Cork and Top
TO P U K RU M F ES T IVA L S An insider glimpse of the best rum events
I N SIDE: DEA D M AN’S F INGE R S | HAP P YD OWN | M IGH T Y F INE
M UD DL E
Is s ue No . 14 - Th e Ru m Ed i t i o n
YO, HO, HO AND A BOTTLE OF RUM...
Editor: Claire White
As sales of rum in the UK top £1 billion a year for the first time, join us in celebrating the spirit’s rise to the top!
Contributors: Claire White Elisa Bouchon
Prepare to brace yourself for rum’s takeover with our September subscription box featuring Dead Man’s Fingers rum.
Photography: Stephen Spiers Elisa Bouchon
Combining the tastes of the Caribbean with Cornwall, the rum has made quite the name for itself in the UK and we’ll be sharing why tourists flocked to the rum shack for a tot or two.
For all editorial and advertising enquiries, please contact: info@tipplebox.co.uk
We’ll also delve into the history of some of the world’s most famous rum cocktails, the Zombie and Pina Colada, as you prepare to shake up the delicious tiki cocktails at home. That’s not all! We’ve some extra rum cocktail recipes for you to enjoy at home this month with cocktail stylist Elisa Bouchon, alongside exploring the UK’s top rum festivals.
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It’s time to join the rum revolution...
Cheers, Claire
INSIDE OUR SEPTEMBER CLUB BOX:
CONTENTS
Dead Man’s Fingers Two varieties of Cornwall’s small-batch rum with Dead Man’s Fingers spiced and coconut varieties.
01
HappyDown Lychee Guava Chilli A crafted sparkling canned cocktail with an intriguing blend of fruit and spices, making the ideal Zombie accompaniment.
03
Norfolk Cordial Redcurrant & Grapefruit Matching fresh redcurrants with bitter grapefruit, Norfolk Cordial use only natural ingredients to create concentrated a cordial that is the perfect cocktail addition.
05
RubyBlue Wild Blueberry Liqueur This special blend of whole wild blueberries infused with Irish spirit creates a delicately sweet but fresh flavour, that’s a fitting match for rum. Frobishers Pineapple Juice Pineapple and rum go hand-in-hand, Frobishers use pineapples sourced from top quality growers in the plantations of Costa Rica for their tropical juice. Coconut & Pineapple Mix Our bespoke garnish pack from Gintensify is the go-to garnish, adding the finishing touch to any Pina Colada.
09
11
13
15
17
WELCOME
Ed it or’ s l et t er Ins ide t his mon t h’ s box
TIPPLER’S TRENDS
Da tes for your dia r y Bo tt l es & ba rs
T I P P L E R ’ S TA L E S
Autumn’ s hot t est c oc kt a il t ren ds Th is mon t h’ s rum c oc kt a il s
TIPPLER’S TIME
Dea d Ma n’ s Fin g ers Ha ppyDow n
T I P P L E R ’ S T R E AT S
Mi ght y Fin e hon eyc omb
TIPPLER’S TIPS & TRICKS
La Dol c e Vit a rum c oc kt a il s
TIPPLER’S TREASURES
To p rum fest iva l s
TIPPLER’S TOAST
Co mpet it ion # Ta gMyTippl e
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TIPPLER’S TRENDS
D AT E S F O R Y O U R D I A R Y
LONDON MEZCAL WEEK
10-16th September
Mezcal hasn’t quite overtaken tequila in the popularity stakes in Mexico’s top tipples, but London Mezcal Week will return for a second year in honor of agave spirits. Focussing on traditionally made Mezcal brands, get ready for a week-long fiesta across London celebrating Mexican culture, art, food and drink with pop-up Mezcalerias and special drinks available for the week across the capital.
N AT I O N A L C A C H A Ç A D AY
13th September
Recognised as Dia Nacional da Cachaça in Brazil, the date commemorates when cachaça returned to the country. As sales for imported spirits decreased, the distilled sugarcane spirit was banned by the King of Portugal in 1635. It was not until September in 1661, when a group of producers in Rio de Janerio rebelled and took over the city government in an uprising referred to as the Cachaça revolt, that made way for the spirit’s re-legalisation on September 13th 1661.
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R U M P U N C H D AY
20th September
Any excuse for more rum… International Rum Punch Day celebrates the traditional age-old recipe that dates back to the 17th century. Barbadian Rum Punch is one of the oldest in the world with a simple recipe that even has a national rhyme: “one of sour, two of sweet, three of strong, four of weak’, referring to the proportions of ingredients in the recipe.
TIPPLER’S TRENDS
BOTTLES & BARS
R U M -B E L I E VA B L E M E N U
Cubana, Sheffield
Sheffield bar Cubana is embracing the rise of rum with its new menu. Featuring over 220 different rums, the majority produced in the Caribbean and Latin America, their new menu (or should we say book) features tasting notes for every single rum. From the traditional locations to surprising spots including Japan and Germany, the menu will also feature six ever-changing bottlings, with a taster of the rare rums priced up to £30.
M U S TA R D L I Q U E U R
£14.95 via Master of Malt
We’re all for trying new liqueurs in our cocktails - but this one’s dividing opinions. Recommended to add a twist on the Bloody Mary and Tom Collins, Gabriel Boudier Mustard Liqueur is now available online. Created by Maria Vieira from the East London Liquor Company, the liqueur is made by macerating black and brown mustard seeds in alcohol for two weeks before being mixed with ingredients including pepper, sugar and honey.
BAR IN BLOOM
Liverpool / Bristol
Liverpool and Bristol have gained a new bar this summer in the form of The Florist. Apt to its name, the bar has a floral theme down to the cocktails which are inspired by three types of floristry - an English summer garden, Japanese ikebana flower design and ‘modern contemporary’. The bars will also offer sensory enhancing masterclasses with cocktails and floristry, adding a fresh twist to the traditional bar scene.
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T I P P L E R ’ S TA L E S
A U T U M N ’ S H O T T E S T C O C K TA I L TRENDS
We may be celebrating rum’s rise, but what about the other spirits and cocktails that have been making headlines this summer? We’re sharing our top trendy tipples for you to try at home. Check out our full end of summer range at TippleBox.com
ESPRESSO MARTINI
6 O’CLOCK G&T’S
One of hottest cocktails of the year, the Espresso Martini combines the ever-growing coffee culture with a splash of spirit. Due to its popularity, there’s already festivals dedicated to the drink while the cocktail has transferred to ready-to-drink versions to keep up with demand. Our Espresso Martini Box features all the ingredients you need to enjoy two glasses at home, alongside its famed cocktail cousin the White Russian.
A refreshing gin and tonic never goes amiss and has continued to grow in popularity throughout the summer. Our 6 O’clock Gin and tonic set features the London Dry Gin from England in our bespoke G&T box, with two tonics to enjoy the perfect serve as recommended by the distillery, including up to eight G&Ts per box - depending on your preferred strength!
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ELEPHANT GIN
C R A F T G I N C O C K TA I L S
Fancy enjoying cocktails while raising money for charity? Supporting The David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust and its Orphans’ Project, 15% of Elephant Gin’s miniature bottles profit goes towards supporting the initiative which is recognised as one of the most successful orphan elephant rescue and rehabilitation programmes in the world. Our Elephant Gin box features two miniature bottles of the gin, alongside everything you need to enjoy the Horton Hears A Hound & Kir Royale cocktails.
The perfect way to transition your gin love into cocktails is by easing in with our simple recipes. Featuring the classic G&T alongside the Limoncello Collins, our craft gin cocktail box features Wales’ finest Brecon Gin, giving you a taster of the endless possibilities of gin cocktail making.
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T I P P L E R ’ S TA L E S
T H I S M O N T H ’ S R U M C O C K TA I L S
Rum has been a staple ingredient to thousands of cocktails for over 200 years, with the oldest rum cocktail recipe, the Daiquiri, dating back to the 1800s. To celebrate rum’s world-renowned cocktail culture, we’re sharing the tale of the tipples with two world-famous rum cocktails as featured in September’s Tipple Box subscription box.
PINA COL ADA
ZOMBIE
The classic and renowned Puerto Rican cocktail the Pina Colada cocktail is so popular that its history is contested by three Puerto Rican bartenders who claim to have made the first.
Famed for its strength and being served in limited amounts, the Zombie is a tiki cocktail invented by Ernest Beaumont Gantt.
The first and most widely told tale dates back to 1952 at Caribe Hilton Hotel’s Beachcomber Bar when bartender Ramon Monchito Marrero was asked to create a signature drink that captured the flavours of the island. After three months experimenting, he created a blend of rum, cream of coconut and pineapple.
When Ernest arrived in LA in 1993, after travelling and working as a bootlegger during the Prohibition, he discovered a newly vacated tailor shop just off Hollywood Boulevard and decided to open his own bar.
It is then thought that Ricardo Gracia tweaked the original recipe and served this in a hollowed out pineapple instead of the traditional coconut shell, due to a strike by the coconut cutters union. The final tale is credited to Barrachina Restaurant, who have even erected a plaque outside claiming its creation, by Spanish mixologist Ramon Portas Mingot, an author of various cocktail books who worked in bars in Buenos Aires. Regardless of its creator, the cocktail soon spread across the world in the 1970s thanks to the introduction of tiki bars and electric blenders. The Pina Colada was quickly declared the national drink of Puerto Rico and was then cemented into pop culture thanks to Rupert Holmes’ single ‘Escape’.
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Using trinkets and ornaments he’d collected on his travels from the South Pacific, he also scavenged boats from the harbour to decorate the bar unbeknowingly creating the world’s first tiki bar Don’s Beachcomber. At the time, rum was one of the least expensive spirits and had been sampled regularly by Ernest on his travels so he set out to create a menu focussed on rum-based drinks. The bar quickly became the hotspot for cocktails in Hollywood, especially with famous visitors, and is said to have invented numerous cocktails including the famous Zombie. Due to the bar’s reputation and quirky decor, Ernest changed his name to Donn Beach. As Donn would say: “If you can’t get to paradise, I’ll bring it to you!”.
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TIPPLER’S TIME
DEAD MAN’S FINGERS
THE DEADLIEST COMBINATION St Ives is one of the UK’s seaside hotspots, known for its beautiful beaches, delicious seafood and summer surfers. But, did you know it’s home to its own rum? Dead Man’s Fingers is the house spiced rum at the well-known The Rum & Crab Shack, nestled in the harbour.
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A local’s favourite destination in the picturesque town, serving up freshly caught seafood and a selection of quality rum, bar owner Neytha Hayes and co-founder Chris McGuire decided to launch the shack, inspired by a night enjoying premium rum Diplomatico Reserva Exclusiva from Venezuela. With the bar showcasing their love for rums, it was in 2015 that the duo opted to launch their own bottle, influenced by their love of Cornish culture.
SPICED CORNISH RUM WITH CARRIBEAN ROOTS
Aiming to reflect the heritage in the rum’s taste, alongside paying homage to the rum that started it all, their rum consists of a combination of Carribean rums that are blended and bottled in Cornwall. Combining flavours including Cornish cuisine favourite saffron cake, alongside Pedro Ximenez ice cream - a regular favourite served at The Rum & Crab Shack alongside more traditional rum spices including vanilla and raisins, they created a spiced rum that can be enjoyed with ice or any mixer.
L AUNCHED 2016
L O C AT I O N St. Ives, Cornwall
TA S T I N G N O T E S
Saffron cake, Sweet Pedro Ximenez ice cream, caramel, vanilla and cinnamon.
D E A D M A N S F I N G E R S .C O M @deadmansfingers
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TIPPLER’S TIME
HAPPYDOWN
When it comes to creating a cocktail, herbs aren’t an unusual addition.
and mint, and lychee, guava and chilli as featured in September’s Tipple Box.
After all, the classic Mojito mixes mint with lime to create its well-loved taste.
Combining fresh lychee, oriental guava and a dash of chilli, the alcohol content for the cans comes from fortified wine. Each can contains all natural flavourings, zero preservatives and are gluten free and suitable for vegans.
Now, rosemary and basil in cocktails has become a must-have combination on menus. Whether the herbs are muddled, mixed or garnished, bars continually push the boundaries in cocktail combinations. What about cocktails on-the-go? Fed up of canned cocktails using the same repetitive flavours, HappyDown created award-winning crafted sparkling canned cocktails with an intriguing blend of fruit and spices, that recently won silver at the IWSC 2018. Selecting premium fruit flavours before infusing them with a herb or spice, HappyDown’s flavours include raspberry, pomegranate and basil, lemon, cucumber
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Alongside being enjoyed straight from the can, the versatile flavours can be mixed into classic cocktail recipes giving an extra boost of flavour and spirit alike our in-house Zombie. HappyDown can be found in Tesco stores nationwide.
T I P P L E R ’ S T R E AT S
MIGHTY FINE HONEYCOMB
It was in 2014 in a small chocolate shop in Camden Lock that Mighty Fine Honeycomb started life. The chocolate shop was far from an ordinary sweet shop, selling unique combinations including tequila truffles, chocolate robots and bacon dipped in dark chocolate, but it was their handmade honeycomb that continually created the biggest buzz. Due to its popularity in store, with the bags of honeycomb selling out daily, they were soon picked up by retailer Harvey Nichols. It was upon realising there was something special about their well-loved recipe, that owners Kit Tomlinson and Ross Newton shut up shop and decided to focus on creating their honeycomb brand. Sourcing honey from various countries, Mighty Fine handcraft each honeycomb bar using only natural ingredients and a technique that keeps the honeycomb lighter and crisper before coating the honeycomb in Belgian chocolate. As British honey is one of their ingredient sources, they decided to give something back to the bees who make their honeycomb possible. A percentage of their profits go direct to Friends of the Honey Bee, a campaign organised by the British Beekeepers Association to halt the decreasing number of Britain’s honeybees. September’s Tipple Box features their salted caramel honeycomb bar, the perfect sweet accompaniment to our rum cocktails!
To celebrate, you can receive 20% off all Mighty Fine Honeycomb products via Amazon by using the code
MUDDLE101
at the Mighty Fine checkout!
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TIPPLER’S TIPS & TRICKS
L A D O L C E V I TA R U M C O C K TA I L S As we’re embracing all things rum this month, we’re sharing an extra few cocktail recipes with Cork and Top. Launched by Elisa Bouchon, from a French wine family from the Bordeaux region, she grew up surrounded by delicious drinks in beautiful surroundings. With a design education from Paris and experience in mixology, Cork and Top was created in early 2018. Describing her cocktail creations, Elisa explained: “My style of drinks is rather complex in taste, but using only a few ingredient, often taken from the common kitchen. With my pictures, I try to translate them to a feminine ‘dolce vita’ atmosphere.” You can see more of Elisa’s Cocktail Creations via corkandtop.com and via @destination_cocktail on Instagram!
DARK RUBY 30ml Spiced Rum 30ml Ruby Port 15ml Coffee Liqueur Method: Stir all ingredients together before pouring over ice in a chilled glass before garnishing with orange zest. Th e Ru m Edi t i on - 1 3
CUBANO S B A G L I AT O 30ml White Rum 30ml Campari Prosecco (To Top) Method: Build ingredients into a glass and top up with Prosecco. Garnish with an orange zest.
B R E A K FA S T I N CORFU 50ml Dark Rum 35ml Greek Yoghurt 15ml Honey Syrup 3 dashes Walnut Bitters Method: Add all ingredients to a shaker with ice and shake vigorously to combine yoghurt and rum. Fine strain into a chilled glass.
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TIPPLER’S TREASURES
T H E B E S T R U M F E S T I VA L S
Autumn is approaching and as the UK’s music festival scene draws to a close, the rum festival season is only just getting started. Rum cocktails are the perfect transition from summer to autumn and venues across the UK will celebrate the spirit with dedicated events for rum lovers.
T H E R U M F E S T I VA L Lincoln 14-15th September Edinburgh 28-29th September
Showcasing over 100 rums and rum cocktails from across the globe, The Rum Festival will make its return to Lincoln and Edinburgh following successful 2017 events. Alongside plentiful rum sampling, the festival will also feature cocktails, live music and street food.
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R U M & R E G G A E F E S T I VA L Nottingham 15th September
Rum and music are synonymous so why not combine the two favourites with the Rum & Reggae Festival? Transforming venues into a tropical paradise, the festival will take you on a rum journey across the world, including the chance to taste rare and craft rums from the West Indies, Cuba, South America and the US. Reggae acts will provide the soundtrack to your day with carnival dancers adding to the entertainment. You’ll also be able to tuck into Jamaican food for a full-rounded celebration!
G I N & R U M F E S T I VA L Birmingham 7-8th September Derby 13th October
Looking to convince someone to join the rum revolution? This festival may have the answer with its combination of rum and gin. With seven themed bars, alongside talks and masterclasses from gin and rum producers, you can embrace the best of both spirit worlds, alongside live entertainment and local street food.
RUMFEST
London 20-21st October London will play host to an international celebration of rum and cane spirit featuring over 400 rums from across the world. From world exclusive tastings to seminars and masterclasses with globally-renowned brands, the one-off event will take place at the ILEC Conference Centre for rum-fanatics and will include a specialist rum auction on Saturday for those looking to expand, or start, their rum collection.
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TIPPLER’S TOAST
WIN A TRIO OF RUM!
This month we’ve a bumper competition for any rum lover. We’re giving you the chance to win three bottles of Dead Man Finger’s Rum, as featured in September’s cocktail club box.
We’ve teamed up with the distillery to give you the chance to win a bottle each of their three editions spiced, coconut and coffee rum! For your chance to win our biggest prize yet, simply visit Tipple Box on Facebook and enter via our Giveaway section! T&Cs apply
NEXT MONTH AUTUMN EDITION
Autumn is almost upon us and Halloween is creeping around the corner so we’re sharing tricks and treats in October’s Muddle Magazine. We’ll delve into the latest cocktail news, ahead of Edinburgh Cocktail Week, and we’ll also tell the tale of October’s featured spirit LoneWolf. LoneWolf will feature in October’s subscription box with the Werewolf and Clover Club cocktails! Let us know what you think of this month’s edition and box via Facebook, Twitter and Instagram! Th e Ru m Edi t i on - 1 7
TIPPLER’S TOAST
# TA G M Y T I P P L E WIN A BESPOKE BARWARE SET Enjoying your Tipple Box? You can enter our monthly competition simply by sharing your cocktails on social media.
Simply post your images using #TagMyTipple to enter! You can win all the tools you need to shake up barquality cocktails each month, including a Tipple Box shaker, bar spoon, bar blade and jigger.
THIS MONTH’S WINNER: MARK O’BRIEN @TIPPLEBOX #TAGMYTIPPLE
Each month, one lucky winner will be selected to win our bespoke barware set and see their photo published in Muddle Magazine. Our latest winner is subscriber Mark O’Brien who shared his pre-night out tipple! Before you get snapping, check out #TagMyTipple to see the photos from our cocktail lovers across the UK!
REFER A FRIEND
Why not share the Tipple Box experience with your friends?
throughout the year, with the chance to compare cocktail notes each month.
If you’re a subscriber to our Cocktail Club, you can invite your friends to join the club to enjoy their first box for just £14.
For each friend that joins and remains as a member for the second month, you’ll receive credit on your account to redeem in our shop against loyalty products including barware and boxes.
You’ll both receive monthly cocktail deliveries, insider drink industry knowledge and exclusive discounts
Find your exclusive referral code via the My Account section at TippleBox.com Th e Rum Ed itio n- 1 8