Why rum cocktails are perfect in the hot weather
There’s nothing like cool, crushable rum cocktails to take the edge off the suffocating sultriness of summer, but with another heat-health alert in place, who has the energy to mix anything?
British rum-makers Dead Man’s Fingers have you covered though, with three new thirstquenching cocktails in a can. These ready to drink beverages (RTDs) come in three flavours: Spiced Rum and Cola; Spiced Rum and Ginger Beer; and Passion Fruit Rum and Lemonade.
The first two are classic rum highball combinations, while the other will appeal to fans of the ubiquitous Pornstar Martini. They are balanced, and not overly sweet, but the 5% alcohol by volume is dangerously well concealed, and could sneak up on you.
Dead Man’s Fingers Rum was founded in Cornwall in 2015, growing out of The Rum & Crab Shack, a specialist rum bar and seafood restaurant on the St. Ives waterfront. Despite the skull logo and the vaguely Treasure Island-sounding name, the brand eschews rum’s common piratical associations, and is actually named after an inedible part of the restaurant’s signature dish.
Crabs’ gills look like feathery phalanges, and were once believed to be poisonous, earning them the sinister sobriquet “dead man’s fingers”.
The brand has been unconventional in its approach to rum-making. While recent years have seen increased interest in artisanal rums – using traditional techniques, producing exclusive products akin to single malt whiskies – Dead Man’s Fingers has focused on inventive new flavour combinations, blending rum with other ingredients, to popular and critical acclaim.
The original Dead Man’s Fingers Spiced Rum – used in its new cola and ginger beer RTDs – experimented with local flavours like Cornish saffron cake, fruit scones, and Pedro Ximénez and ice cream (hat-tip to Rick Stein). But the brand became increasingly experimental, and having relocated production to a larger facility in Bristol, they now offer more than a dozen different rums, including Mango, Pineapple, Coffee, Banana, Cherry and CBD.
Dead Man’s Fingers RTD cans are available from The Bottle Club