Rum Tasting (Belated Birthday Present)
Posted on July 28, 2023 by Ching under Events, Food and Drink.
What do you get a guy who already has everything for his birthday? Well, this year, I decided it would be a rum tasting. Brian and I have never really been much into material things and usually gravitate toward experiences instead and so, this year, his surprise gift from me was a rum tasting experience at home.
We didn’t really make any plans last month other than celebrating with family. Unlike me, who enjoys never ending celebrations until the end of time, Brian is more low key. I asked him what he wanted to do for his birthday and he said, “Absolutely nothing.” Therefore, as part of this year’s gift to him, I honored his request and I planned absolutely nothing on his birthday. I did want to surprise him with a rum tasting and it worked out that the first date that would work was in July so we managed to avoid his birthday month altogether.
My friend Dustin Herman who manages R & J Discount Liquor was our rum tasting tour guide. He told me we could have up to ten people so we invited Jay and Becca Dill, Justin and Tina Huntington, Ramon Lozano (who was staying with us that weekend), Kyle Stakel, Dustin’s GF Katie, Ed and Cindy Egan, and Molly and Cory Sager (they were in town too). Molly and Cory ended up heading back to Great Bend a day early and then Cindy and Ed didn’t end up making it on account of Ed not feeling the best. We actually thought we were going to end up with too many people at first because of out of town friends who I found out last minute were going to be in town to play in Scott’s charity pickleball tournament but, after the last minute cancellations, we ended up with just the right number.
There were 16 teams in the pickleball tournament so we had to start an hour earlier than planned. The early start resulted in everyone needing an afternoon nap. Ramon was no exception.
We decided to provide pizza and wings and a fruit and cheese tray to make sure no one drank on an empty stomach before Dustin took us around the world tasting rums from various regions.
We also had some sliced pineapples, mangoes, and charcuterie to chase down the rums we sampled. That was a good call because the rums were very strong.
We tried some rums from various places..
- Barbados – Mt Gray Eclipse, the Real McCoy
- Jamaica – Wray Nephew, OFTD
- United States – Cutwater Tiki (San Diego, CA), Coppel Muse (Fort Collins, CO)
- Puerto Rico – Don Q Cristal
It wasn’t actually part of the tasting, but Dustin also brought a bottle of Ron Zacapa (Brian’s favorite rum) which is from Guatemala. He poured some for Brian to try alongside the Real McCoy for comparison. Surprisingly, Brian decided he liked the Real McCoy better so the experience resulted in Brian finding a new favorite rum.
After the tasting, Dustin and Katie made Mai Tais for everyone. They were strong!
It was our first time hosting a curated rum tasting at our house and we didn’t know what to expect. The whole experience was fabulous but my favorite part was when Brian tasted the Zacapa and the Real McCoy one after the other. I didn’t think he would find something that he would like better than his favorite rum so that was a pleasant surprise.
Brian and I enjoyed it so much that we are already thinking of hosting another. Not sure what spirit we will do next. Maybe bourbon. Until then, GNG.
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