…..It’s already June and in a couple of weeks Summer will officially be here. That means break out the rums, tequilas, sun tan lotions, and volleyballs because it’s time to let loose. Of course if you’re in Florida such as myself, or anywhere near you’ve probably already been experiencing the Summer-like weather for a while now and have already got your head start to Summer shenanigans. My favorite go-to spirit in the Summer is of course Rum. Doesn’t matter if it’s white, dark, black… it all goes down great. So I decided to open up the liquor cabinet and sample a new rum I received, made locally here in central Florida (Winter Park, FL to be exact). Dog Island rum comes to us from Winter Park Distillery, a small batch artisanal distillery that continues to show it’s about quality not quantity. Every name/label they use has a story and this one is no different. Dog Island is named after the tiny piece of land located in Winter Park in part of a chain of lakes throughout central Florida. In the past we’ve been lucky enough to sample both their Genius Vodka and Bear Gully Classic white whiskey brands, both of which didn’t last long in our liquor cabinets and now it’s time to see if the folks over at WP Distillery can strike gold for a third time.
First Impression: The labeling while not overwhelming graphically, is very much what you would expect from a smaller distillery. It tells a story, it is individually numbered to signify small batch, and it gets the point across without looking tacky or cheap. The bottle is pretty basic, easy enough to hold and easily fits into your liquor cabinet. One cool feature I LOVE is the ability for fans to send in photos of their dog and watch it get featured on future labels centered as the logo. Great idea right? If your interested just send them a picture at wpdistilling.com. But enough about the looks, it’s time to crack open the bottle. It’s got a great aroma, not to sweet, not to pungent and a slight hint of vanilla that’s nice as well.
The Taste: We first poured a healthy shot to see how it handles neat. Granted there aren’t too many of us drinking white rum straight but lets see what we get. The labeling describes Dog Island as a “Distinctive blend of rich molasses with subtle hints of vanilla and almond”. While I can’t necessarily discover the almond, the hints of vanilla are there. It has a good balance of sweetness as well that isn’t to overwhelming when sipped neat and actually becomes more apparent when mixing. Speaking of mixing, that’s where we went next. We mixed this in a mojito, a daiquiri (a real daiquiri), and a few custom drinks we like to make around the 101 headquarters. The richness of the molasses came out beautifully with the mint, lime, and lemon accents. You can’t go wrong mixing in a cola or lemon lime soda as well but that’s pretty much a given so we didn’t even bother to go that route. I liked the finish, smooth and without a leftover taste in your mouth many cheap white rums have. But at 19.99, you’re probably wondering how it stacks up against the competition? Well we brought in some heavyweights: Bacardi (16.99), Cruzan(12.99), and Flor de Cana (14.99) for comparison. Bacardi and Cruzan are two of the biggest selling white rums in the country and while both serve their purpose, Dog Island actually has smoother finish with less bite. Also the lasting after taste some cheaper rums are known to have is noticeable in the Cruzan brand only. The more sugary the drink we made, the more the flaws were hidden, but keeping it simple with one or two ingredients and you see the quality in Flor De Cana and Dog Island stand apart from the weaker yet more commercially accepted Cruzan and Bacardi. Makes you think right? I
Grade: B-
Price: 19.99 (Pricier than some competitors, but still budget friendly)
Overall: We liked this one. We actually went through the entire bottle in one sitting this past Saturday. Would I recommend drinking this one straight? Honestly it wouldn’t be my first choice, but there are very few white rums out there built for that. Is this a great mixer? Absolutely. People often think all rums are created equal when your mixing it but that couldn’t be further from the truth. Dog Island meshed better in some of mixed drinks than several known brands, and that’s impressive in itself. The folks at Winter Park distillery have done it again, and are definitely on their way to a powerful brand. “Drink Local, think Global.”
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