British rums are booming, but the flavour potential that comes with them remains relatively untapped behind the bar. Millie Milliken asks makers why bartenders should be paying attention.

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Rum making in Britain is nothing new – and its colonial history with and trading of rum is a shameful one tied to slavery. In the 18th century, port cities such as London, Glasgow and Bristol were producing rum in light of the sugar boom and the rise in refineries, but as the rise in grain spirits like whisky and gin prospered in the decades that followed, rum’s production waned.

Until now. The past 10 years has seen a steady stream of British rum producers come to market, with a post-Covid boom putting the category firmly on the map. “It’s actually now a thing,” says Manchester Rum Fest organiser Dave Marsland, “and a legit thing.” From Cornwall to Orkney, Hertfordshire to the Isle of Man, British rum production seems to be booming.

Home style

How British rum is made differs from distillery to distillery. It’s no secret that the majority of makers are buying in molasses or other sugar resources (and some buy spirit too), but the rise of ‘from scratch’ rums is making this category more nuanced. “Ten years ago there were a few producers in the UK, but the taste profile was much of a muchness,” says rum expert Peter Holland, who is UK brand ambassador for Foursquare. “In the past few years, things have got exciting.”

J Gow on Orkney’s Lamb Holm island cultivates yeast from local orchids a couple of weeks a year; Drop Works in Nottinghamshire uses the world’s first wild Trinity yeast to make its unaged Funk Drop; while Libations Rum in Leeds is “tropically ageing” rum in a heated maturation warehouse – said to be the only one in the UK.

One of the early leaders in the category is Hertfordshire’s Scratch Rum, which got its licence in 2015. Co-founder and distiller Doug Miller has seen the category grow from just a fellow few to 40 or so in the decade since. His approach embraces inconsistency and prioritises flavour, having experimented with over 100 yeast strains, running eight fermentation tanks and using 75 different casks, from peated whisky to Sauternes.

Ian Warborn-Jones and Rick Dacey set up Outlier on Ballakelly Farm on the Isle of Man in 2020. They use water from the farm’s well for all their processes, including dilution, and the water has a high level of manganese, which is a good friend of yeast. Warborn-Jones’s background in wine is something he leans on when making his washes, and he uses barrels for blending the unaged rums too – he’s even experimenting with dunder. They launched their first aged rum, Millions of Peaches, in 2024.

Warborn-Jones is keen to make a rum which speaks its own language rather than mimicking another. After all, the Isle of Man’s climate is a tad different to that of, say, Jamaica. “As with all new categories, it's best to approach with an open mind…The Caribbean has been producing rum for hundreds of years – we’ve been going five… it would be disingenuous to try to replicate something here.”

Even bar owners are getting in on the action – Ryan Chetiyawardana, aka Mr Lyan, is working with the Eden Project to help bring its mammoth geothermal rum distillery project to fruition.

Behind the bar

British rum’s potential behind the bar is one that a few are starting to explore. “There’s plenty of potential, but it takes a special bartender or manager to go out and look for the good stuff,” says Holland.

Ruma in Edinburgh uses Scottish brands Ninefolds and Mutugga in an El Presidente and Daiquiri respectively, Niju in London lists Two Drifters and East London Liquor Company, while Black Parrot lists the likes of Scratch, Circumstantial and Bimber. Kiki Lounge in the Isle of Man supports its local brand Outlier through numerous serves, including the Hurricane Overproof in its Zombie, Mai Tai and Pickleback, and the Hoolie Manx white rum in its The Greeba Libre and Caipirinha, and a combination of the two in its Daiquiri. The team uses it alongside Caribbean rums in a number of these serves. Its Mai Tai also comprises Chairman’s Reserve Legacy and Clément Ambré, their difference adding depth to the final result.

“We play host to a lot of traditional and tropical-style cocktails and these drinks benefit when freed from the notion of ‘one drink, one rum’,” explains co-founder Drew Flemming. Indeed, the notion that British rum could ever replace those from more traditional producing countries in the Caribbean is one that bartenders would do well to ignore and, instead, treat British rum as its own style and sub-category.

“Too much of the narrative is Caribbean rum versus British rum, but they are two complementary products,” says Miller. “They are never going to replace Foursquare and Hampden, and you’d never want them to either.”

Sunny future

British rum still has a way to go to make it mainstream though. Tipping the cost scales and a much more expensive option than the big brands like Bacardi means bars need to dig a bit deeper if they want to list it and brands need significant investment if they want those precious pouring contracts, says Outlier’s Warborn-Jones. And raw material costs and duty are also “killers” he explains.

Quality is an issue too, with some brands on the market making questionable liquid or being untruthful in their marketing and intentions. “There are a lot of terrible things out there, taking advantage of the hype of British rums, that call themselves rum and are nothing like it,” warns Marsland. Miller agrees: “There are guys that are taking the piss.” A GI for British rum would perhaps squeeze these brands out, but the realistic possibility of that happening anytime soon is low.

There are also restrictions when it comes to the age of what’s on the market right now, with a lot of makers still waiting for their aged rums to come good.

Holland, while notably wary, is hopeful for a bright future though. “If they can survive the next 20 years, the market is going to be vibrant.”