Rum Fever

St Aubin 1819 Vanilla infused rum was next on my list. This time more of a premium rum at 450 Rupees for a 750 ml bottle compared to around Rs 200 for a Green Island of the same size (AUD $16 and AUD $7 respectively), I was expecting big things. Everything about the rum screamed good quality, the gold lettering on the label and the numerous references to being both ‘premium’ and ‘pure’. Did I mention an entire vanilla bean floating merrily inside the bottle? I was expecting big things and, boy, did that rum deliver!

I thought the Green Island rum was amazing, but this stuff just lift the bar that much higher. That first smell is enough to send lesser men weak at the knees. I didn’t want to just mix it with fruit juice – it seemed like such a waste. I decided to do something I’ve never done before, something crazy. I had a rum on the rocks (I guess I was feeling lucky). Fan-freaking-tastic. It was smooth. Like, really smooth. For comparison, I bought a bottle of Johnnie Walker Double Black Scotch duty-free that I haven’t been able to enjoy neat. This stuff is something else. There’s something magical in that combination of rum, vanilla and ice. All the flavours dance delicately across the palate…

Ok, maybe that’s getting a little bit carried away (remember my rum fever…) but this is seriously a great tasting rum, very smooth but, at 40% alcohol, still has that little kick to it at the end. We all certified it to be the best (the rum fever is catching). If they’d let me keep my extra fingers, I’d be giving the crew down at St Aubin a high-12.