By Kevin Wilkerson, PubClub.com Spirits Editor
Coconut Rum.
I want some,
Everytime I drink it,
I have fun
— Coconut Rum, Rick Steffen
Normally, I am not much for flavored rums. Coconut rums, in particular, are just too sweet for me.
Then I tried Kōloa Kaua’i Hawaiian coconut rum and was blown away by it. Not expecting much, I passed on the fairly time-consuming method of making my usual juice-and-rum cocktail and instead just poured it into a glass with diet soda.
My first sip was like being hit on the head with a coconut. Either that, or scaling up a palm tree to break one open myself and having fresh coconut pour into my drink. The overwhelming flavor of fresh coconut consumed my entire senses. It was obvious, after just one sip, that this was no ordinary flavored coconut rum. It was fantastic, perfectly balanced with the soda (which to me is unusual for a good rum) and I wanted more.
I also wanted to share it with others so I gave a taste to a rum-loving friend whom, like me, was initially skeptical. He prefers the deeper rum flavors of the Caribbean as opposed to the flavored ones, which we both generally consider to be made for non-rum lovers to compete with flavored vodkas.
“Oh WOW,” he exclaimed. “That’s really good.”
“Yes, I TOLD you,” I said in return.
Kōloa Coconut Rum is made from pure cane sugar, distilled in a vintage 1,210 gallon, steam-powered copper pot still and cut with filtered water from the ancient Mount Waiʻaleʻale. The rum is distilled two times at 160 – 180 ABV. Its taste is of “roasted coconut and piña colada undertones,” according to the Kōloa website.
At between $35-40 a bottle this is a must-have for any lover of rum, coconut rum or spirits in general.
Coconut Rum,
Feeling Numb,
Can’t get enough,
Coconut rum
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