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Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/685968
www.cheersonline.com 15 June 2016 • BUY THE BARREL In olden days, bars purchased rum by the barrel to slake customers' thirst. A few operators have brought back that practice. "People have discovered that we have the best rum selection in town, as well as being the rum cocktail destination," says Miguel Lopez, bar manager at Isla, a Caribbean Cantina, in Austin, TX. The Tiki and rum bar has more than 130 expressions, but perhaps the most prized are the two barrels it purchased, Mount Gay Black Barrel and Papa's Pilar 24-Year- Old Solera. To promote the barrels, bartenders offer tastes. Staves from the barrels mounted on the bar's wall offer a conversation topic. "We even use one of the rums in our Bananas Foster for brunch," Lopez says. He's also developed cocktails to show off the rums' distinctive characteristics. "We buy barrels of whiskey all the time; since we have so many restaurants, we can spread out those purchases," says Matt Tocco, director of beverage for Strategic Hospitality. The Nashville, TN- based restaurant group includes The Patterson House, Pinewood Social, The Catbird Seat, Merchants, Le Sel and the new bar Bastion. Tocco loves rum, and recently obtained a single-barrel release from Richland Rum distillery in Georgia. The producer grows its own sugarcane, notes the beverage director, who toured the facility with a few of his bartenders. Tocco plans to create a rum cocktail that will be promoted across all the venues. HUMIDOR CLIMATE Sugarcane and tobacco grow together in the same climate and terroir, so pairing rum and cigars is a natural, say afi cionados. "Many cigar smokers are accustomed to enjoying a cigar with a glass of single malt Scotch, but we maintain that cigars pair better with rum," says Allen. Stogie connoisseurs can relax and smoke in the courtyard at The Breadfruit, where servers are ready with rum pairing suggestions, including fl ights. A recent Breadfruit "Flight to Jamaica" offered three tastes of different Appleton Estate rums. Guests are welcome to bring their own, or choose from the restaurant's humidor stocked with about 100 cigars. Former New York mayor and cigar lover Rudy Giuliani indulged in a smoke during a recent visit Allen recalls. "He said, I can't do this in a New York restaurant anymore." La Descarga also celebrates rum and cigars. Getting into the speakeasy involves a secret entrance through the back of a clothes wardrobe and scaling a catwalk that looks down on the main bar area where salsa bands play, burlesque dancers strut their stuff, and bartenders shake up cocktails. "It's like they are instantly transported to Havana," says Roberts. The well-ventilated cigar lounge offers a quieter experience. Guests can smoke their own or purchase hand-crafted stogies, and enjoy rum fl ights specially designed to pair with smokes. WHISKEY COMBO "Bourbon is huge in Tennessee; it's part of the heritage. We embrace whiskey and that dominates a lot of our programs. But we also sell a lot of rum," says Tocco. One successful strategy he's hit upon is to pair rum with whiskey in cocktails. "It's like hiding a pill in peanut butter to fool your pet into taking its medicine," he laughs. "Seriously, the fl avors of whiskey and rum complement each other and work well together." This tactic works especially well at Strategic Hospitality's Pinewood Social, a hybrid cocktail bar, coffee bar, bowling alley, bocce court, swimming pool and restaurant. A prime example is The Expense of Honesty cocktail ($13), which combines Old Forester Signature bourbon with Brugal anejo rum and Arehucas Ron Miel (from the Canary Islands) with some demerara sugar SUGARCANE AND TOBACCO GROW TOGETHER IN THE SAME CLIMATE AND TERROIR, SO PAIRING RUM AND CIGARS IS A NATURAL, SAY AFICIONADOS. The "Flight to Jamaica" at Breadfruit offered three tastes of different Appleton Estate rums. PHOTO CREDIT: ASHLEY HYLBERT