Cheers is dedicated to delivering hospitality professionals the information, insights and data necessary to drive their beverage business by covering trends and innovations in operations, merchandising, service and training.
Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/68609
Y ou'll love Sammy Hagar's new Beach Bar Rum, made right here in the islands next door to Sammy's home! Using the best sugar cane in the world, Hawaiian Maui Gold sugar cane and hand-distilled in small batches, Sammy's new rum is the true Spirit of Aloha. Maui Rocker Pineapple juice, lemon sour , orange curacao, a dash of grenadine and Sammy's Beach Bar Rum. Garnished with fresh island pineapple. HMS Host had a Captain Morgan promotion last summer that ran in about 150 locations. A Hawaiian promotion (to the right) was also part of the lineup. Sammy's Rum Rocks Neat as can be over ice…as Sammy says, "One sip and you'll surr ender". range from $6 to about $35. "Our mission from opening day was to educate people about rum," adds the owner. Six variously priced tasting fl ights of four themed rums help school customers. Advanced afi cionados join the Kill Devil Club; as customers drink their way through the premium sipping rums, they write tasting notes and check off . Th ose who taste all 104 bottles are awarded a commemorative plaque and a bottle of their favorite rum; hundreds are working on the goal, 36 completed it so far, four scholars have accomplished it twice. "I keep hearing sipping rum is going to be the next big thing," says Davis at HMSHost, "but we just don't see a demand for those superpremium products." But she concedes that the airport environment may not be the best place for travelers to experiment as tables turn fast. "We don't stock a lot of expensive rums because they just tend to sit on the back bar and that's not our clientele," echoes Shea at Rum Club. His stock totals about 50 bottles, and staff ers will custom-design fl ights for customers interested in learning more. FLAVOR IN FAVOR? Taking a page from vodka's playbook, more rum producers are adding fl avored rums beyond spiced and coconut to their portfolios. Th e new product churn is attracting attention to the rum category. Flavor introductions are often the premise for promotions at Bacardi Mojito Bars, which carry all the fl avors, says Davis at HMSHost. When Bacardi's Arctic Grape Rum debuted, www.cheersonline.com fl avored Mojitos and Daiquiris were featured. Plans are also in the works for Dragon Berry Mojitos. Rum Club also doesn't stock any fl avored rums. "Th ey are not dark rum as an after-dinner cordial. Other house infusions are often on tap, like the current pineapple-ginger rum. "We see the growth in the fl avored rums. New products are pulling interest into the category," believes Helmerick at Red Robin. "I think it's because there are a lot of new products on the market." It's clear, whether from well-crafted cocktails or sophisticated for a serious bar," says Shea, who is developing his own spiced rum infusion for use in cocktails. Th e Rhum Bar at Stillwater also crafts its own vanilla-fl avored sipping, the rum category is seeing more serious interest from consumers these days, and operators are responding to that demand. At the Rhum Bar at Stillwater, Carithers has plans to expand the operation's rum selections. "At Red Robin, watching the infl ux of new rum brands coming into the market, and creating new drinks that our guests are looking for," comments Helmerick. Th omas Henry Strenk is a Brooklyn-based freelancer who writes about all things drinkable. The Cheers' handbooks are available at www.bevinfostore.com. JUNE 2012 | 31