Post #669638 by heylownine on Sun, Mar 3, 2013 9:31 PM

We sampled Deadhead Rum neat and in 2 cocktails at the last Rum Rhum Club at Tonga Hut. It's an attractive bottle housing a pretty good amber rum. It's a light gold color in the glass, and my first impressions when sipping it was that it reminded me of a Dominican rum...crisp and dry, with a smooth finish that seems quick, but lingers a bit with a small amount of heat. There was a bit of vanilla aroma to the rum in the glass. I'm not great at picking out particular flavor aspects but I had in my notes from the session that it had characteristics of a spiced rum without tasting like a true spiced rum. I was surprised to hear Forrest tell us that this was a pot-stilled rum because I so closely associate pot-stilled rums with Jamaican rums and their tendency to have a certain funk that this rum did not have. Deadhead is a rum from Mexico, barrel aged for 6 years.

As for mixing it in cocktails, I think it would provide an interesting challenge. Because it closely resembles a Dominican rum, and I have little experience trying to mix with that style of rum, I think it would be a tough nut to crack at first...taking away some of that dryness without losing what makes the rum what it is. Of the 2 cocktails we tried, I found the second one more to my liking. It was mixed with citrus and a tamarind chile syrup.

I enjoyed sipping this rum neat and will continue to do so once I procure a full bottle. Who knows, once I have a bit more practice mixing with a rum of this type I may even try it in a cocktail of my own.

kevin