“People taste a cocktail first when they see it,” says Rodriguez, head bartender at the West Village watering hole. “We want to make sure everything is attractive.”
One of Happy Hour’s latest big hits is a rum-based frozen daiquiri that features a peach ring as a garnish. It is indicative of the cocktail industry’s attempts to shake things up and generate some buzz for rum, a distilled alcoholic drink made from sugarcane juice or molasses.
Rum’s biggest problem
“Rum can easily hold its own with other spirits, it should be taken seriously and not dismissed,” said Nick Jackson, head brewer at The Rum House, a Times Square bar.
As Gen Z enters the legal drinking age, rum producers have a new opportunity to boost their sales.
Fellows says cocktail purveyors have done some solid work introducing rum through popular cocktails like the mojito and pina daiquiri, or reinventing classics like the old fashioned, which is typically made with whiskey. But while Patrón, along with new brands like Casamigos, have helped reinvent tequila to be less about sharp shots and more about refined cocktails and sipping, rum has a lot of work to do.
Hunting for a champion
“Rum is still waiting for that premium player to revive rum,” Fellows said.
Across the spirits industry, category “champions” such as Absolut, Patrón, and Maker’s Mark have lifted the prestige and pricing power of vodka, tequila, and bourbon, respectively. But rum has yet to produce a notable champion. Only 3% of rum sales volume in the US is made up of “super premium” bottles, DISCUS data shows, bottles sold for $30 or more. That’s well behind American whiskey at 18% and Mexican-based tequila and mezcal, at 25%.
Belizean-based Copalli Rum says some legacy producers built their brands on cheaper ingredients, like molasses, while he prefers to use sugar cane. “If you use better ingredients, you get a better product,” said David Bart, CEO at Copalli.
Copalli sells three different rum expressions, including a cacao rum that gives the rum a chocolate flavor that’s especially suitable for an espresso martini. All of the sugarcane and cacao used by Copalli is grown and harvested on site in the jungles of Belize. Copalli’s rums are also free of added flavors, colors, or additives, and Bart says future innovations will also come from ingredients found in the rainforest.
And while tequila has gotten a jolt from a slew of celebrity-endorsed brands ranging from actor George Clooney to model Kendall Jenner, Bart says rum producers should focus their messaging more on heritage and quality ingredients. “We are not serious about hiring a big celebrity to promote our brand,” he said. “I think that’s a bit over the top.”
The challenge of selling
Bacardi isn’t too afraid to link rums to pop culture. To solidify the brand’s relationship with Gen Z drinkers, it partnered with singer Camila Cabello and created a digital video featuring her song “I LUV IT.” There’s even a Cabello made with Bacardi cocktail, a rum punch with Bacardi, passion fruit, and St-Germain liqueur.
Musicians were especially attracted by rum. Bruno Mars, Ciara, and Kenny Chesney all have rum endorsements. Those offerings, along with a number of new entrants into the category, have created a highly competitive rum market, Bacardi said.
“These challenges also present exciting opportunities,” said Lisa Pfenning, vice president of Bacardi’s rum portfolio in the Americas. He says rum could benefit from raising consumer awareness of the diversity of alcohol. One of Bacardi’s newest offerings, the citrus-infused Sevillian Orange Cask Finish, has been created to be paired with cocktails or enjoyed as a still.
Rum brand Planteray includes rums made in 16 different countries, from Jamaica to Paraguay. New launches include rum infused with pineapple or coconut. Some rums come from a combination of stocks from different regions around the world. Planteray’s Sealander is blended with rums produced in Fiji, Barbados and Mauritius.
Planteray finds inspiration in the variety of rums, noting that even within the same country, flavors can develop in different ways. In Jamaica, for example, rums from the south tend to be lighter than those made in the north. “That’s the beauty of rum,” said Lamy.
That difference may also pose a slight marketing challenge. Rum is imported from more than 50 countries, ranging from heavy hitters like Jamaica, Barbados, and Guatemala and lesser known rums from Suriname, Argentina, and the Bahamas. Unlike tequila and cognac, which are only produced in Mexico and France, respectively, rum’s story can be a bit more muddled given all the different approaches to distilling, aging, and flavors.
“It forces us to make people think differently about rum,” Bart said. “It can be done anywhere.”
Rum is also made in the United States, where Parlor Cay Rum is based. Launched in 2022, it produces rum from Gulf Coast sugar cane from several states including Alabama and Texas.
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