A Rum for James Bond, 007

Words by Colin Hamdpen-White

The first scene of the first James Bond film, Dr No, opens in Jamaica as James Bond author Ian Fleming had a house there and spent a lot of time there, including writing many of the Bond novels. It seems incredible that it has taken until now for a rum, especially a Jamaican rum, to be released for the franchise.

Ian Fleming’s Jamaican home “GoldenEye” is now owned by Chris Blackwell of Island Records fame. Chris has developed GoldenEye as a resort for visitors, opening the house up to visitors in 2011 and as well as a love for Bond, he has a love for rum. Having produced rum for a number of years, he has now joined forces with the 007 franchise and launched a special 007 limited edition of his Blackwell Fine Jamaican Rum.

It brings me great pleasure to write this. I also have a strong love for Jamaican rum and the Hampden distillery on the island is the same as my family name. I had high expectations for this rum, and it doesn’t disappoint. The rum is aged and very fragrant, warming and rich. Having been aged in American oak barrels there is a good degree of sweetness and the spirit, created from sugar cane using both column and pot stills, has very good balance and complex flavours; more than one would expect of a single distillation blended rum.

Chris Blackwell doesn’t create the rum himself; he ages rums and for this expression worked with Jamaican distillers J. Wray and Nephew, who are well known Jamaican rum producers making the “Uncle Wray” rums.

Chris says “James Bond has been a big part of my life, from my childhood lunches with Ian Fleming at GoldenEye to being a location scout on the first movie, Dr. No (1962). It was a pleasure working alongside the No Time To Die production team in Jamaica providing our iconic rum for the set in James Bond’s house, which has made this very special relationship come full circle.” says Blackwell. 

The limited-edition rum features an augmented reality experience available via the website on the bottle where Chris Blackwell comes to life to share life stories, music selections, cocktail recipes, and gives more information about the rum.

The rum will be available in good drinks shops, bars and restaurants from November 2020 and will retail for £35 in the UK. It will be available on-line, and also in France and Italy. 

Are you a rum lover? If so, make sure you check out these luxury rums, and if you’re looking for a bit of variety, have a look at these four rums from across the globe.

Brilliant rums under £30

Rum is a difficult category to delve into and decipher which bottles on the shelf will taste good. It seems that the rum category, as with many spirits, is as much about the brand as the area of the world in which the rum is made. There are some rums that are great value for money and more than that, they taste much better than their price tag would suggest. You will certainly recognise the names of some of the rums below, but you may not have tasted them recently. Others may be completely unknown, but if you love rum, I would definitely try them. Some of them are spiced, but none of these are flavoured, I may cover that another time, but for now I’m keeping it traditional.

Dead Man’s Fingers

Dead Man’s Fingers is a spiced rum made in St Ives in Cornwall, UK. It’s made on the premises at the Rum and Crab Shack which, if you’re down that way in the future, serves great food, and of course their own rum. This rum is a blend of Caribbean rums with a decent dose of spices. So why not order “Three fingers of Dead Man’s Fingers”! 

ABV: 37.5%
Size: 700ml
Buy it now for £18

The Duppy Share Caribbean Rum

In the world of whisky, it is the angels who take their share of the spirit as it matures, but in the Caribbean, it is the Duppy spirits who travel around the islands taking their cut. That is the story of where this rum gets its name. Matured in ex bourbon barrels, there is a mix of rum from Barbados which is five years old and rum from Jamaica, which is three years old.

ABV: 40%
Size: 700ml
Buy it now for £26

Goslings Black Seal

There is a black seal on the label, but the name originally comes from the black wax seal which was used to seal the bottles. Made with rums from pot stills and continuous stills, this rum has been produced in Bermuda since 1806. This is the perfect rum for a Dark’n’Stormy cocktail, which is lucky really as the Gosling brothers hold the trademark to that cocktail.

ABV: 40%
Size: 700ml
Buy it now for £23

Mount Gay Black Barrel

Black barrel gets its name from the heavily charred barrels in which it is matured, and it’s those barrels that give it the flavour which punches well above its price point. The rums are created in a double distillation in a pot still, and a single distillation in a column still. The larger proportion comes from the double distillation. Altogether, a brilliant rum.

ABV: 43%
Size: 700ml
Buy it now for £27

Appleton Estate Signature Blend

This rum is matured in smaller barrels than normal, giving the spirit more contact with the wood and a richer flavour in a shorter period of time. Called the “Signature Blend”, it is rounded out by marrying the rums in oak casks before bottling. Fruity and full of flavour, it is excellent value and tastes like rum that costs double the price.

ABV: 40%
Size: 700ml
Buy it now for £16

Kraken Black Spiced Rum

Named after the legendary sea monster, this rum is incredibly rich and very spicy. It has been in the UK for ten years now and it has gained a reputation for being a great rum. At its recommended retail price of £26, Kracken is very well priced and tastes like rums that are over £40, so at £20 on Amazon right now, it is an absolute bargain.

ABV: 40%
Size: 700ml
Buy it now for £20 

Lamb’s Navy Dark Rum

This rum has a long history and a great reputation for value for money. Made from rums from Trinidad and Tobago and Guyana, it is smooth and easy. Where it really shines beyond much more expensive rums is with a mixer. The flavours in this rum are made for mixing and I’d rather have this with coke than many rums four times the price. 

ABV: 40%
Size: 700ml
Buy it now for £14 

Ableforth’s Rumbullion!

Here is my exception to the title of this piece. Ableforth’s Rumbullion is one rum worth spending just a touch more than my £30 upper limit. It has won a bunch of awards and it’s not hard to see why. With high proof Caribbean rum at its core, it is richly spiced with Madagascan vanilla and zesty orange peel. Small amounts of cassia and cardamom are also added. This rum is great to enjoy neat, or on ice with a squeeze of fresh lime.

ABV: 42.6%
Size: 700ml
Buy it now for £31.69 

For more on rums from around the world, Aidy Smith gives us the best four rums to look out for.