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Posts Tagged ‘Hawaiian Rum’

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Review: Old Lahaina Gold Rum

Posted by Arctic Wolf on June 10, 2012

Just before last Christmas some friends of mine visited Hawaii. Because they are friends, and they know I like to try rums from different parts of the world, they brought back a bottle of rum for me called Old Lahaina Gold Rum from Maui Distillers. It is an authentic Hawaiian rum made from sugar and molasses from Hawaii’s HC&S Maui Plantation.

Maui Distillers was originally conceived in 1999, and the work to build a distillery within the site of the Old Paia Sugar Mill began in 2003. In 2009, the new distillery was producing rum which was sold throughout the state of Hawaii. According to the distillers website, their rum is produced on two 500 gallon, steam fired, Badger “pot stills”, which were originally constructed in 1946. One of these stills has been fitted with a “multi-tray fractioning column”, and this still is used to produce their base rum.

This Old Lahaina Gold Rum is described as both a mixer and a sipper on the Maui Distillers Website

Here is an excerpt from my review:

“… Caramel and toffee lead out with a light spiciness that heats up the mouth just a little. I taste a light influence of cinnamon and tobacco as well as imprints of charred sugars…”

Here is a link to my full review:

Review: Old Lahaina Gold Rum

I have included a nice cocktail with the review which I call, the Chinook.

Please enjoy the review and my cocktail recipe!

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Review: Kōloa Kaua`i Spice Hawaiian Rum

Posted by Arctic Wolf on September 8, 2011

Nestled on the Island of Kaua`i, the Kōloa Rum Company is making history. It started ten years ago when the company was first incorporated. A seven-year struggle through red tape and government bureaucracy ensued before the necessary permits and licenses were granted, and finally on April 1, 2009, the Kōloa Rum Company obtained a license to distill their rum. The first legally distilled rum in the Island’s history.

I have previous reviewed the Kōloa Kaua`i White Hawaiian Rum, the Kōloa Kaua`i Gold Hawaiian Rum, and the Kōloa Kaua`i Dark Hawaiian Rum. In each case I have marveled that such a young company was able to produce rums of such quality. Early this summer the Kōloa Rum Company sent me a sample of their new spice rum and that rum is the subject of this review.

Here is an excerpt:

“… the initial nose is very pleasant with that sweet caramelized sugar rising into the air with a variety of spices. Vanilla and nutmeg seem prevalent, and I detect cinnamon and cloves in the air as well. Other spices are indistinct but I seem to sense allspice, and orange peel in the breezes as well…”

And here is a link to the full review:

Review: Kōloa Kaua`i Spice Hawaiian Rum

I have included a nice recipe which combines pineapple and raspberry with the spice rum and I call it, The Raspberry Smooch.

Please enjoy the review and the cocktail provided!

Posted in Cocktails & Recipes, Flavouerd Rums, Rum, Rum Reviews | Tagged: , , , , , | Comments Off on Review: Kōloa Kaua`i Spice Hawaiian Rum

Review: Kōloa Kaua`i Dark Hawaiian Rum

Posted by Arctic Wolf on September 16, 2010

Photo courtesy DakineImages.com/Jo Evans (http://dakineimages.com)

It was at the Rum Renaissance in Miami Florida this past May that I was first introduced to Kōloa Kaua`i Hawaiian Rum. Although The Kōloa Rum Company had been ‘up and rumming’ for only a little more than a year, the Kōloa Kaua`i Dark Hawaiian Rum garnered one of prestigious gold medals at the Rumxp Tasting Competition which was in held conjunction with the event. This was a remarkable feat considering that the license to distill alcohol had been issued only one year previous, on April 1, 2009.

I decided I had better get to know this company a little better, and after I emailed my information request, I was contacted by Jeanne Toulon, Director of Public Relations, for the Kōloa Rum Company.  Jeanne was only too happy to help me out and soon deluged me with news clippings, a cool video and as much information as she could stuff into the large brown envelope that she sent my way.  (I was even given a small sample of the crystallized brown sugar from the Gay and Robinson Plantation which is the basic raw material from which all of the Kōloa Rum is distilled. )

Photo Courtesy Jeanne Toulon (Kōloa Rum Company)

Her generosity also extended to a sample bottle of each of the rums in the Kōloa range to review at my leisure here on my blog. Sadly I have come to the last of these sample bottles, happily it is a sample of the Kōloa Kaua`i Dark Hawaiian Rum, the Gold medal winner at Rum Renaissance.

Here is an excerpt from my review:

“…The rum is gentle and brings forward initial flavours of vanilla, dark molasses, and sweet caramel. A layer of hotter spices lies underneath and warms the mouth. In particular I seem to get a nice accent of cloves which brings about a certain depth of flavour…”

You may read the full review here:

Kōloa Kaua`i Dark Hawaiian Rum

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Review: Kōloa Kaua`i White Hawaiian Rum

Posted by Arctic Wolf on September 2, 2010

 

Olokele Sugar Mill on the Gay & Robinson Plantation: Photo Courtesy Jeanne Toulon (Kōloa Rum Company)

Kōloa Kaua`i White Hawaiian Rum is a white rum produced fresh from a 1210 gallon copper pot still with no barrel aging.  The actual base material for the distillation is not molasses, but rather the Gay and Robinson Plantation crystallized sugar.  I am told that the sugar has a higher than normal molasses content, and having been given a sample of the raw sugar, indeed it carries forward a wonderful molasses aroma.  From this distillate, and using the vintage copper pot still, all of the Kōloa Rum is made in a batch style.  The resulting white rum is about as pure as rum can be,  bottled fresh with no barrel aging.

This style of rum is unusual for me to taste and sample as most white rums I have reviewed here on my blog are aged rums which have been filtered clear. The fact that this rum is bottled fresh means that we are getting a glimpse into the unaged and unaltered structure of Kōloa Rums.

Here is an Excerpt from my review:

“…I taste a pleasing combination of light peppery spice and the vegetal tones one gets from a spirit bottled fresh from the still. Banana peel, a ribbon of mild anise,  and lime accents swim in the currents of a very light honeyed rummy caramel…”

You may read the full review here:

Review: Kōloa Kaua`i White Hawaiian Rum

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Review: Kōloa Kaua`i Gold Hawaiian Rum

Posted by Arctic Wolf on August 19, 2010

Harvesting the Cane at Gay and Robinson (Photo Courtesy Jeanne Toulon)

Nestled on the Island of Kaua`i, the Kōloa Rum Company is making history. It started nine years ago when the company was first incorporated. A seven-year struggle through red tape and government bureaucracy ensued before the necessary permits and licenses were granted, and finally on April 1, 2009, the Kōloa Rum Company was granted a license to distill their rum. The first legally distilled rum in the Island’s history.

Photo Courtesy of The Koloa Rum Company

The Kōloa rums are not made from traditional molasses, rather they are distilled from the crystallized sugar produced at the local Gay and Robinson Sugar Factory. This sugar, produced from 100% Kaua`i cane, has a higher than normal molasses content,  and as such, the sugar is a good starting point for making artisan rum. All of the rum is distilled using a vintage 1210 gallon copper pot still which was purchased in Kentucky, and transported first by train, and then by boat all the way to Hawaii.

My introduction to the Kōloa Rum Company’s Hawaiian rums was at Rum Renaissance in Miami, Florida. The Kōloa Dark Rum won a Gold Medal at the festival in the Rum XP Tasting Competition, and this was my first clue that something special might be happening in Hawaii. A gold medal rum, produced by a company which was just beginning to spread its wings…. I decided to investigate.

After contacting the Kōloa Rum Company, I was sent samples of their entire range for my review. I decided to start the review series with the Kōloa Kaua`i Gold Hawaiian Rum.

Here is an Excerpt from my review:

“…A surprising mild flavour is the initial impression I received when I sipped the gold rum for the first time. Again the flavour of the Gay and Robinson crystallized sugar comes though very clearly. It is a honeyed, caramel flavour which is sweet and inviting. Citrus zest, and light peppery spices follow with perhaps a little plantain or banana in the mid palate…”

You may Read the Full Review Here:

Review:Kōloa Kaua`i Gold Hawaiian Rum

Posted in Cocktails & Recipes, Dark Rums, Rum, Rum Reviews | Tagged: , , , , , | Comments Off on Review: Kōloa Kaua`i Gold Hawaiian Rum

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