from tiki to premium: rum keeps growing

The new Rhumbar at the Mirage
Hotel in Las Vegas
from tiki to
premium: rum
keeps growing
By Jack Robertiello
The Zombie, Rhumbar
here are many contributors to rum’s surging popularity
today: the growth of Latin culture and population, the
increasing number of flavored rums and the country’s love affair
with the Mojito are only three. But don’t forget the effect of Tiki.
Based on the celebrated work of two
restaurant pioneers of the 1930s (Donn
“the Beachcomber” Beach and “Trader Vic”
Bergeron), the South Pacific-themed fad has
made its way back as a component in many
bars today. Best known for wacky Polynesian
décor, bamboo fixtures, island bric-a-brac
and gaudy serving vessels like volcano bowls,
it’s the drinks made with three, four or more
rums that have put Tiki back on the map.
And while many of the rum-focused
operations are only tangentially Tiki, they
have discovered the wisdom of stocking 50
or more rums at a time, and of developing
customer loyalty through education about
its history and about regional and stylistic
differences in production.
Even brands are making the Tiki connection: Tommy Bahama Rum recently
introduced some collector’s edition value
added packaging that embodies a Tiki theme
through artwork, textured packaging and
summer cocktail recipes.
Bacardi’s new Seven Tiki pays tribute to
the South Pacific legend of Polynesian navigators, The Great Fleet, and the Tikis they
carved into seven canoes. This spiced rum is
made from quality sugarcane, sun-baked Indonesian nutmeg, Madagascar vanilla beans
and other mellow spices.
CATEGORY FOCUS
Martin Cate, who helped establish Forbidden Island in Alameda, CA, as an international Tiki destination, soon will open
Smuggler’s Cove in San Francisco, a bar
designed to celebrate rum with Tiki drinks,
traditional Caribbean beverages including
those served in pre-Prohibition Havana,
and a selection of rare rums.
“From having a very traditional Tiki bar
with a good rum selection, I found people really love Tiki drinks, but I wanted to broaden the spectrum as I learned more about
rum,” Cate says. “Tiki drinks are a great part
of classic cocktails but rum’s story is so much
older, and people in the Caribbean have
been drinking some wonderful, elegant and
sophisticated rum cocktails.” Cate intends
to broaden even the selection of rums he
serves from the well, making classic Bajan
cocktails with rum from Barbados, or Cuban
drinks with lighter, Cuban-style rum.
In Las Vegas, the recently opened Rhumbar, at the Mirage Hotel is far from Tiki style,
but behind the bar guests find 50 or so rums
and the drinks include Tiki classics, says
Michael Frey, managing partner. A modern
interpretation of classic Caribbean culture,
Rhumbar’s menu includes such drinks as
the Trader Vic-inspired “1944 Mai Tai” and
“Donn the Beachcomber’s Zombie”.
It’s a national trend. At the RumBa at
the InterContinental Hotel in Boston, nearly 100 rums and rum-based drinks make the
menu, including the “Caribbean Swizzle”
(Gosling’s Black Seal, lime juice, Angostura
Bitters and pineapple ginger beer) and the
Mai Tai (Appleton Reserve 15 year old, Barbancourt Estate Reserve, orange curacao,
orgeat rock candy syrup and lime juice).
This fall, Skyy Spirits’ Flor de Caña is
illuminating a rum cocktail specialty: the
punch. NYC bartender Phil Ward, known
for his trendy tequila bar, Mayahuel, is collaborating with Flor de Caña to create signature punch recipes using seasonal ingredients like cinnamon and teas.
Of course, the Mojito has a lot to do with
breaking the rum and cola habit (though anecdotal bar reports indicate the tandem still
dominates). But with RumBa and other bars
using fresh squeezed sugarcane and Caribbean mint in their Mojitos, tweaking recipes
with grilled pineapple and using more pricey
rums, it’s no wonder that premium rums
grew 8% in 2008, according to the Distilled
Spirits Council (DISCUS).
Rum Marketing
The Mojito offers many marketing opportunities. Don Q rum has been ramping
up its U.S. expansion through events including a reception at New York City’s Jazz
at Lincoln Center, where Esteban Ordonez
of NYC bar Apoteke presented his version
of a Mojito using Don Q Grand Añejo and
yerba buena, while mixologist James Menite
of the Porterhouse restaurant created the
“Rum Plum” and “Caribbean Club Punch”
using Don Q Cristal.
“It's a good time to be a fan of premium
rums, with more brands from more countries now available,” says Dori Bryant of
Polished Palate, who has hosted rum events
since 2002. “When I held that first event,
there were precious few experts focusing on
cane-based spirits. Now there are dozens
who devote volumes to reviewing and promoting rum.”
As the rum category has grown, more
suppliers are developing products and introducing new brands. Diageo is building support for their national launch of Guatemalan
Ron Zacapa by highlighting its quality as a
standalone beverage, unusual for a category
where mixability has long been the keyword.
Likewise, Infinium Spirits’ popular Zaya
Gran Reserva Rum is produced in Trinidad, where the rum rests in medium charred
white oak barrels, for a minimum of 12 years.
The result is a rum that is smooth and fullbodied, meant to be sipped.
Making that connection with other
high-end spirits helps rum’s imagery at the
premium end, says John Pennacchio, director
of spirits for Kobrand Corporation, importer
of Jamaica’s Appleton rum. Making consumers aware of Appleton’s sipping quality is the
goal of a new ad campaign, “Sip Up,” aimed
at whiskey and brown spirit drinkers. “We’ve
seen a heightened consumer demand for a
more flavorful and complex taste experience,
which plays perfectly to our Appleton Estate
distilled rums,” says Pennacchio. One ad
reads: “It spent 12 years in a barrel. The last
thing it wants to see is the inside of a blender,”
while trade info communicates how Appleton
is made from estate-grown sugarcane in copper
spot stills.
Appleton gets its ‘Sip Up’
message across with
outdoor advertising
Ron Matusalem
Ron Abuelo
Other rums are working hard in this sipping arena. Ron Abuelo is another estategrown super-premium rum, produced in
Panama by Varela Hermanos. According to
Steve Armstrong, national sales manager for
Varela Imports, the company intends to expand beyond Florida, where it is especially
popular, and New York. “Aged rum is easier
to get into than Scotch and even bourbon,”
says Armstrong. “For most consumers, it’s
an easier entry point for straight spirits.”
The company currently offers an Añejo and
Añejo 7 Year Old, and the Añejo 12 Year
Old rum will be rolled out later this year via
a recently signed deal with Van Gogh Imports for broader U.S. distribution.
“
CATEGORY FOCUS
Premi
um Rum Since 1760
- from Andrea Bearbower,
Cruzan brand education manager
■ Rum is made in most parts of the world
where sugarcane is produced, but most
come from the Caribbean with about 85%
of the volume produced in Puerto Rico.
■ Rum continues to be the second largest
distilled spirits category. IWSR forecasts
that rum will continue to grow from 22.7
million cases in 2007 to 28.7 million cases
by 2012. Additionally, as the economy
becomes more uncertain, consumers flock
to familiar cocktails and more reasonably
priced spirit categories, like rum.
■ The spirit made from fermented molasses
came to be called rum in English, rhum in
French and ron in Spanish. In the Caribbean,
it was considered a cure-all for various
tropical ailments and afflictions. Plantation
owners also sold it to naval ships that were
stationed in the Caribbean, often offering
a discount in order to keep friendly ships
close by and pirate ships away.
■ Through Prohibition and into the ‘30s,
Americans began visiting the Caribbean, in
greater numbers, returning from vacations
with a taste for Planters Punch and other
tropical cocktails. The Mojito, for example,
enjoyed its first wave of popularity during
the 1930s. It was discovered by Americans
in Havana and made fashionable by
Ernest Hemingway.
■ The ‘40s saw the Mai Tai emerge as a
popular “exotic” cocktail. Throughout the
‘60s and ‘70s, as vodka became the
dominant white spirit in America, countless
tiki bars kept Piña-Coladas, Daiquiris,
Cold-Rum Punches, Hot Toddies and
other rum cocktails on the drink menu.
■ The mojito started to come back strong in
the ’80s, beginning in Miami’s South
Beach. In the early ‘90s an interest in Nuevo
Latino cuisine brought more classic rum
cocktails back to the table – a trend that
continues today.
2 parts Cruzan Aged Light
2 Parts Cruzan Aged Dark
Dash bitters
1/4 parts simple syrup
1/2 parts fresh lemon juice
1 1/2 parts fresh orange juice
1 1/2 parts fresh grapefruit juice
Service Provider: Beam Global Spirits & Wines, Inc.
Trading Up
Even in such tough economic times,
brands see the wisdom in adding top shelf
extensions; Mount Gay has released Mount
Gay 1703 Old Cask Selection, an aged premium dark made from rums 10 to 30 years
old. The new label’s suggested retail price
nears $100.
Marketing is still key for high-end rums:
in addition to Tiki packaging, Tommy Bahama has its own bar at the new Yankee Stadium in New York, a branding opportunity
meant to capture the essence of the Tommy
Bahama message to relax, have fun and enjoy
life to the fullest.
Other brands are focusing on Internet
marketing. Pyrat rum’s new website gives
consumers an opportunity to learn more
about its first consumer-focused brand campaign to support the high-end rum from Anguilla. Trade-focused print advertisements for
Pyrat, “the enlightened ultra-premium dark
rum,” started appearing in 2008 in trade publications. “Rum was one of the top growth
categories in the spirits industry last year,
up 3% from 2007,” says Matt Carroll, chief
marketing officer at The Patrón Spirits Company. “As the popularity of rum continues
to increase, we see great potential for more
people to discover and enjoy our portfolio of
ultra-premium selections.”
Even rums from the Dominican Republic, long neglected in the U.S., are taking advantage of premiumization. Originally, Ron
Matusalem Rum was founded in Cuba in
1872. Since it was forced out of the country
by Castro, garnering the nickname “rebel of
rums”, Matusalem, part of the Proximo Spirits
portfolio, is now produced in the Dominican
Republic. Its distillation and blending techniques uniquely come from the solera aging
system familiarized by sherry and brandy production. There is a longstanding fascination
with Cuban tradition stateside and Matusalem manages to capture its spirit.
Brugal Extra Viejo, for the first time
available in the U.S., is being promoted as
sippable straight or on the rocks. The recent
launch rounds out the collection from the
Brugal family, making rum in the Dominican
Tommy Bahama’s bar in
new Yankee Stadium
Vizcaya
Brugal
Republic since 1888. Brugal is the largestselling rum brand in the Dominican Republic and among the top five rum brands in
the world, and Extra Viejo is a blend of their
older reserves.
Also from the DR comes Vizcaya VXOP
Cask 21, following a Cuban tradition since
1960, using fresh pressed sugarcane juice
fermented and distilled in small batches and
aged in oak barrels that formerly held bourbon. This process, more common in French
Caribbean rums like Rhum Clement and
Barbancourt, has made Vizcaya a frequent
award winner at competitions lately.
For Atlantico, another super-premium
product, the rums made in the Dominican
Republic hold great promise. Atlantico is
made with small batch, aged rums blended
together, and the blend is then married in
small bourbon barrels for a year or two. Then,
using a solera process, the rums rest for 15 to
25 years.
CATEGORY FOCUS
spiced rum, has expanded its line
to include Coconut, Raspberry
and Vanilla offerings.
Pernod Ricard-owned Malibu
has recently rolled-out Tropical
Melon, which joins original coconut, banana, mango, passion fruit
and pineapple in the lineup. Like
with other Malibu flavors, Tropical Melon starts with coconutflavored rum, with watermelon
and cantaloupe flavors added.
Malibu will spend much of the
$3 million launch online. “The
Malibu consumer is generally 21
to 26 years old who spends much
of their lives online, and that’s
Cruzan
where we’re driving our activiMalibu’s new Island Melon
makes a splash
ties,” says Lisa McCann, senior
brand manager for Pernod Ricard.
“We’re getting high tech, working with sites
like Hulu to integrate the melon idea, and
we’ve developed widgets and online applications for the iPhone, and viral videos.”
The brand is also hooking up a two-year
deal as official spirits sponsor of the Association of Volleyball Professionals (AVP)
Crocs Tour, integrating signage and a sponsor “village” into the nationally televised
events and supporting the program with local advertising and retail display materials.
And they have partnered with Reefcheck,
a non-profit monitoring the world’s island
reefs. A limited edition bottle launched in
July is part of the program.
The recent roll-out of Pernod Ricard’s offBacardi’s Dragon Berry
Captain Morgan
premise focused Seagram’s Smooth Brazilian
Rum (white, citrus and raspberry) ramps up
the competition in the nationally-supported
value sub-category, with retail promotions,
trade advertising, a range of POS materials,
off-premise sampling and targeted Internet
programming to reach younger consumers.
Premium brands may be hot right now,
For spiced rum Captain Morgan, marbut flavors have also played a role in growketing is key. The brand has ended its “Got
ing the category altogether. Category leader
a Little Captain in You” campaign, and
Bacardi is rolling out new packaging for its
launched one designed to tie the brand to
eight flavors and launched strawberry-flalegal drinking age males. Called “Calling
vored Dragon Berry, made with anti-oxidant
all Captains,” it includes television and onrich dragonfruit. Bringing on new flavors is
line spending, focusing on 21- to 25-year
important in building brand loyalty, says
old males who spend at least 10 hours per
Gordon Chisholm, brand director. “People
week on social websites like Facebook and
are relying on trusted brands in economic
MySpace, and texting and Twitter. The
hard times.” Bacardi is also adding Bacardi
brand will continue its off-premise focus
Classic Cocktail Raspberry Mojito, second
on key time periods – Mardi Gras, the
in its ready-to-drink portfolio.
NCCA Men’s Basketball Tournament, MeAdmiral Nelson’s, long recognized for its
morial Day, Fourth of July, Halloween and
Creative Branding
year-end holidays. This summer they’ll get
Captain Morgan and cola to compete with
domestic beer through what marketers are
calling a “40 pack” – a 1.75 L bottle of Captain Morgan with a 2 L bottle of cola. Also
of significance, they are introducing Parrot
Bay Strawberry and Parrot Bay Orange, two
new fruity, mixable flavors.
Sailor Jerry tapped into film to promote
their Original Spiced Navy Rum. The feature-length documentary, Hori Smoku Sailor
Jerry, focusing on the famous tattoo artist
who branded his ink on thousands of World
War II soldiers based in Hawaii, was released
this summer, adding a human dimension to
the brand.
10 Cane is engaging the on-premise
with its new logoed pitcher. Filled with icy
cold mojitos or fresh daiquiris, the 10 Cane
Pitcher is ideal for rooftop, terrace, patio,
beach and pool venues, and holds five to
six cocktails. All venues that feature the 10
Cane Pitcher will receive custom bar staff
and waitstaff training as well as program
tools and point of sale materials.
The St. Croix, USVI-produced Cruzan,
which recently moved to Beam Global, has
a redesigned bottle upgrade meant to highlight its origins and advance the brand up
the premium ladder. A national advertising
campaign focuses on the brand’s St. Croix
origins. “Beam has done testing on who is
the rum consumer, and we’ve developed a
profile of what we call the rum tribe, a group
with a really high optimism level and we’re
using that in advertising,” says Andrea Bearbower, Cruzan brand education manager.
With nine flavors (banana, black cherry,
citrus, coconut, guava, mango, pineapple,
raspberry and vanilla), Cruzan has developed a reputation as a casual rum, but its
Single Barrel has garnered support from rum
aficionados and Cruzan151 proof will return
to the U.S. soon.
Its return in one way can be credited to
the Tiki resurgence, especially the popularity of the Zombie, which requires not only
white, gold and dark rum, but also a 151
float. No wonder Donn the Beachcomber
limited customers to two on any given
night. Rum in general doesn’t deserve the
head-pounding, party punch reputation it
once earned through misuse of drinks like
the Zombie, but when well made, Tiki
drinks show how versatile and delicious
rums are, yet another way to help speed the
category’s premiumization. ■