There can be little doubt about it: Britain likes a drink. Considered by some as the core of the “drinksphere”, it’s home to pioneers in everything from cider to gin, but rum has barely registered on the radar. Unless you’re James Lambert, managing director of Lyme Bay Winery, that is.
“We wanted to make a spiced rum, but not as we know it,” says Lambert, whose winery is set just a few miles from the sandy Devon coastline. The location is intricately entwined with the creation of their signature dark spirit, whose full name – Jack Ratt’s Lugger Spiced Rum – comes from infamous smuggler Jack Rattenbury.
“Reading Jack’s book, Memoirs of a Smuggler, it just spoke to us, as it’s what we’re all about. There’s cheekiness, innovation and that sense of trying to be a little bit roguish – we just felt his character suited so well what we were trying to do with the rum,” says Lambert. In true Rattenbury form, the winery is not afraid to venture into the unknown. “We have a bit of an obsession with all things ‘off the beaten path’, says sales manager Sara Walters, who has worked at Lyme Bay for 10 years. “The fact that there was no one in Devon making a spiced rum made for an irresistible challenge, particularly given our rich smuggling history.”
Sales manager Sara Walters and managing director James Lambert. ‘We wanted to make a spiced rum, but not as we know it,’ says Lambert
Taking inspiration from these tales, Lyme Bay embarked on its own voyage of discovery. It created a bottle design to convey the spirit of Jack Rattenbury – a black label to match his black-painted boat, and rakish typography – all the while showcasing the winery’s trademark elegance.
So, what sits within the distinctive bottle? A blend of two premium rums, which took more than 18 months to select. “The first [is] an aged rum from Trinidad and Tobago,” says Lambert, who had also looked into Jamaican rums. “The more we experimented, the more we realised that, although more expensive, using an aged rum as a base gave so much more interest and quality to the product, acting as a foundation for the spices,” he continues.
Upon arriving in Devon, this exotic import is aged in a solera system, where it matures alongside older versions, aged up to six years. After years spent in charred-oak bourbon barrels from Tennessee, the rum is ready to provide the base character for Lugger Rum, bringing with it hints of caramel and molasses to give a complex and superior taste.
The second spirit added to the blend is a premium Guyanan rum, “from the homeland of demerara sugar,” says Lambert. But if the mention of sugar sets your teeth on edge, don’t worry: this rum offers a soothing kiss of natural sweetness without having to add excessive amounts of sugar.
Spices complete the symphony. Nutmeg, stem and ground stem ginger, cinnamon, orange peel, clove and vanilla are introduced to create an inviting yet complex flavour combination. “The intention was always to make a high-quality spirit,” says Lambert. “Many commercial spiced rums have an overpowering vanilla essence, but it was important to us to follow a more craft approach.” For Lugger Rum, they mellowed out the vanilla tones to bring forward the natural flavours of both rums, re-enforcing them with a distinct array of spices.
That’s all well and good, but one imagines that the rum’s namesake would ask only one question: “How do I drink it?” Although the combination of rums with the charred-oak barrels has created a dark spirit that’s flawless in cocktails or with simple mixers, I like nothing more than three large ice cubes and a nice splash on the rocks. Sourced from afar, yet aged on our doorstep – and sitting at a refreshingly mid-tier price point – Lugger Rum is ideal for those who want something a little special in their glass.
Lugger Rum is a Caribbean rum aged in Devon, featuring sophisticated notes of orange peel, nutmeg, cloves and vanilla. Pick up a bottle at Waitrose today
