INDUSTRY | 002
Is Rum the Next Big Thing?
Rum has been going to be the ‘next big thing’ for the last few years, and has already overtaken the gin market. Gin is now totally saturated with so many new start distilleries.
So is 2023 the year for Rum to take off?
For gin you buy rectified spirit and add peels, barks, seeds, spices, fruits, flowers and hey presto!
Rum is not as easy to produce as gin; you must ferment the sugarcane honey before distillation. And it takes even longer to produce aged dark rums.
Nevertheless, Dark Rum is a fascinating category with all the credentials of rare and collectable Scotch: It’s a dark, complex and lustrous spirit. It has age statements, rarity, the benefit of provenance, strong people stories, and interesting expressions.
The global market is around 150m nine-litre cases and slowly rising.
But the premium rum category is growing at more than 24% CAGR! This category is gaining ground due to the rapid premiumization by dark rum distillers. Separating the premium from the run-of-the-mill by aging, using different woods in aging, limited editions bottles as well as higher ABV expressions.
Aficionados will make a distinction between the English style from Jamaica, Barbados and St Lucia, Ron from Spanish speaking Puerto Rico and Cuba made from molasses (sugarcane byproduct), and Rhum in the French agricole style and usually made from sugar cane juice from Guadeloupe, Martinique and PARAGUAY.
