Top shelf drinks: Plantation pineapple rum
To celebrate the release of the Water’s Edge’s new bar drinks menu, Yohann will discuss a new addition to our bar every month. For the first feature, he talks to us about one of his personal favourites: the Plantation Pineapple Stiggins’ Fancy rum…
Pineapple rum, the revival of an old drink
Plantation’s pineapple rum is the result of the collaboration between Plantation cellar master Alexandre Gabriel and David Wondrich, arguably the most recognised cocktail historian of all time.
The drink was created to share between friends and colleagues at the Tale of the Cocktails festival in 2014. Due its success it went on to become a permanent feature to Plantation’s portfolio. But is pineapple rum all that new? Maybe not!
Pineapple rum has been a thing since the 18th century. Although not widely popular, you could still find it in the islands where rum makers would soak pineapple into their rum barrels to give them flavour and sweetness.
It was immortalised in Charles Dickens’ novel ‘The Pickwick Papers’ where pineapple rum is the main character Reverend Stiggins’ favourite drink. This is then no surprise that the character lends its name to the newly released drink nearly two centuries later.
How is Plantation pineapple rum made?
Alexandre Gabriel drew on old recipes and his own expertise. He steeped the flesh of pineapples in his Plantation original dark rum (an aged rum). He then distilled the pineapple rind with his Plantation 3 Stars white rum. The two rums are blended together and left in a barrel for three months to rest.
What’S the best way to drink it?
Definitely on the rocks, to be able to appreciate all the subtle notes of pineapple. This is proper rum and not a sweet drink.
It also mixes perfectly in cocktail. The best example would be a daiquiri – 50ml of pineapple rum, 25ml of lime juice and 15ml of sugar syrup. Perfection in its simplicity.
