5 Minutes of Rum podcast

Aloha,

So I recently started a podcast. I'm not sure that this is entirely the right area to post about a podcast, but since it's about a subject near and dear to many of our hearts, this feels like the most appropriate spot on Tiki Central: The Tiki Drinks and Food section. The podcast is called 5 Minutes of Rum.

I make no claims to being an expert on rum nor on podcasting. I have had plenty of practice mixing cocktails over the last 4 years or so and I feel as though this particular rabbit hole is just going deeper and deeper. And as I've been listening to more and more podcasts over the past year, I've wanted to try making my own and learning more about podcast production in general.

I soft-launched the podcast about 2 months ago and there are 7 episodes currently available. If you're so inclined, the podcast is available on through iTunes, on the 5 Minutes of Rum site directly, and it plays nicely with stand-alone podcast apps like Instacast and Downcast.

5 Minutes of Rum
http://5minutesofrum.com

iTunes link
https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/5-minutes-of-rum/id633838225?mt=2

Episode subscription URL
http://5minutesofrum.com/episodes?format=rss

Episode 1: Barbados rum

Episode 2: Silver Puerto Rican rum

Episode 3: Dark Jamaican rum

Episode 4: House Spirits rum

Episode 5: Rhum Agricole

Episode 6: Gold Jamaican rum

Episode 7: The Mai Tai (Appleton 12 year and Clément VSOP)

Feedback and ideas are most certainly welcome, either here on TC or via the website itself (or Twitter).

There's a lot of people to thank for their help and I'm going to miss someone, but I assure you that's not on purpose if I do.

Capt. R.H. Falernum, who after hearing me drone on about Demerara rum at a Rumpus Room last year said "Have you ever thought about doing a podcast?" I don't know if you were joking or serious or both, but the seed was planted. Side note: how many ideas have sprung from Kirby's Rumpus Room in that manner? Rumpus Room is awesome.

Eric October for designing the fantastic logo, and indirectly compelling me to action so I wouldn't just be sitting on such a great logo.

Tonga Tom and Sherriyaki for their pushes for me to actually do the podcast and their help in the postcard design from the Tiki Caliente 5 room crawl (first postcard in a limited series, collect them all!).

Both Digitiki from the Quiet Village podcast and Sunshine Tiki from the ZenTikiLounge for their technical advice and encouragement. Both are very gracious and generous with their time and sharing knowledge.

I've been directly inspired and influenced by both Kelly "Hiphipahula" Reilly and Marie King. Not only have I learned (and continue to learn) a ton from you both but you both keep giving me opportunities to expand my abilities - thank you!

I've been more indirectly inspired by Martin Cate and Beachbum Berry. Martin's symposiums at Tiki Oasis and the Bum's books started this whole obsession of mine in the first place.

Little fragrant Tiare was nice enough to link to the podcast from her site, A Mountain Of Crushed Ice. If you're not reading her site then you should start!

A big mahalo to the listeners that have already found the podcast and continue to listen in.

And most importantly thanks to TikiVal for really putting up with the proliferation of rum and cocktail gear around the house. :)

Now go have some rum!

kevin

Congrats Kevin!!! The podcast is brilliant!!!

Didn't know about episode 7... have to give it a listen... especially since it's about mai tias!

Subscribed.

Subscribed.

Thanks, Kevin, I've subscribed and like what I'm hearing. Would love to hear a show on home syrup making or possible substitutes for now-defunct or hard-to-find rums or ingredients in classic drink recipes. Have fun!

I listened to the last episode on Mai Tais and found it very informative and well done. But what happened to "5 Minutes" of rum? It was 26 minutes long :lol:

Thanks for the encouragement and the subscriptions folks.

Kill Devil: Indeed I'm trying to work into some homemade syrups in some episodes; starting off with the easy ones. Episode 3 talked about passion fruit syrup then episode 7 orgeat, and I have episodes coming up with demerara syrup and allspice liqueur. I like your suggestion of tring to substitute long-lost rums with today's selections.

MDM: Yeah, about that title. When I came up with it, I wasn't sure how much I'd want to hear myself talk on mic but I had a good number of rums on hand so I set the bar kinda low on a per-episode basis. Now it's just an interesting title with no real basis in fact. :)

kevin

Episode 7 was very good. I used the recommendation of the Appleton 12 and Clement to make some very good Mai Tais on Father's Day. There are not many things better than making rum drinks for non rum drinkers and having them come back for more, several times.

Thanks again for you time, expense and efforts.

Looking forward to the next episodes.

Easily the most entertaining and informative podcast on the interwebs today. Listen and subscribe!

Just listened to all 7 in a row. Good job so far. Please keep up your humor. I found my self laughing out loud at the quick one-liners.

Thanks for listening guys and I appreciate the kind words. More to come, soon!

kevin

Episode 8, an introduction to Demerara rum, is now live. A little something for the weekend...

http://5minutesofrum.com/episodes/2013/6/27/episode-8-an-introduction-to-demrara-rum-with-el-dorado-5-year

kevin

Informative podcast. Very well done! Added to The Atomic Grog's list of essential links.

Okole maluna!

Cool, thanks for listening! I enjoy your site a great deal, especially the effort to recreate the drinks of the Mai Kai.

kevin

Episode 9 with Lemon Hart 151 (old and new label) is now live. It brought back some memories of "The Great LH Hoarding of 2010" before Ed Hamilton brought LH back to the US for distribution in 2011. :)

http://5minutesofrum.com/episodes/2013/7/21/episode-9-overproof-rum-and-lemon-hart-151

Thanks for listening,

kevin

Episode 10 of 5 Minutes of Rum is now posted. I talk about spiced rum in this one and particularly why you should probably just infuse your own.

http://5minutesofrum.com/episodes/2013/8/2/episode-10-spiced-rum

Thanks for listening,

kevin

Speaking of making your own, episode 11 of 5 Minutes of Rum is posted. It's all about Wray & Nephew Overproof rum, using that rum to make your own falernum (Falernum #9 from Beachbum Berry Remixed), and a modified version of The Hawaiian Eye. Enjoy!

http://5minutesofrum.com/episodes/2013/8/23/episode-11-wray-nephew-overproof-rum

kevin

Episode 12 of 5 Minutes of Rum is now live. In addition to some follow-up from E11 (J Wray & Ting), I take a look - and taste - at El Dorado 21 and El Dorado 12.

http://5minutesofrum.com/episodes/2013/8/31/episode-12-el-dorado-21-and-12

Thanks for listening!

kevin

Episode 13 of 5 Minutes of Rum, featuring Ron Matusalem Platino, is now live. Listen in and drink along!

http://5minutesofrum.com/episodes/2013/9/7/episode-13-ron-matusalem-platino

Thanks for listening,

kevin

Curious as to why the ED 15 was left out, as it's way different than the 12, and seemingly quite available, at least in the Midwest. I'd consider the 15 as a sipper, on par with Ron Zacapa 23 on the smoothness scale, and definitely more complex, in my opinion.

Hi Kill Devil,

El Dorado 15 will make an appearance in a future episode, as will El Dorado 8. Honestly I hadn't planned on going back to El Dorado so quickly after talking about ED5 on episode 8, but I was fortunate enough to receive a bottle of El Dorado 21. And when planning out tasting the ED21 for an episode, it felt like I needed something else that was more accessible in that episode than a $100 bottle of rum. I happen to normally have ED on hand so that's what I went with.

Short version: El Dorado 15 is in the cards further on down the line.

Thanks for listening!

kevin

I'd never even heard of ED 21 until I saw it in St. Thomas. Yes, you are fortunate indeed!

Your pod casts are great :) I listen to them while at work. Just wish you cranked them out more often! :wink:

Also thanks for the follow on instagram

Cheers :drink:
Darren

Thanks for listening Darren. Very cool that you can enjoy a rum podcast at work. :)

I try to put them out as often as I can, and there are many more episodes to come!

kevin

Episode 14 of 5 Minutes of Rum, featuring Cuzan Aged Dark rum and homemade grenadine recipes, is now posted.

http://5minutesofrum.com/episodes/2013/9/28/episode-14-gold-virgin-islands-rum-cruzan-aged-dark-rum

Thanks for listening,

kevin

Kevin - thanks for the podcast. I now have the inspiration to make my own grenadine.

Episode 15 is posted. It features possibly my favorite rum, Smith & Cross. Also in this episode: pimento liqueur and Black River Punch.

Thanks for listening,

kevin

Smith & Cross is possibly my fave as well! Not for the meek!

Episode 16 of 5 Minutes of Rum is live. Zaya rum, cinnamon syrup and "La Trinidad", a daiquiri variation using the 2.

http://5minutesofrum.com/episodes/2013/11/22/episode-16-zaya-rum

Thanks for listening,

kevin

How about a nice holiday punch?

I've posted episode 17 of 5 Minutes of Rum, titled "The Cup of Cheer".

http://5minutesofrum.com/episodes/2013/11/24/episode-17-the-cup-of-cheer

Thanks for listening,

kevin

Episode 18 of 5 Minutes of Rum is now posted. Come for the Montanya Platino, but beware of The Man With the Golden Rum.

http://5minutesofrum.com/episodes/2014/1/3/episode-18-montanya-platino

Thanks for listening,

kevin

I've been making the Cup-of-Cheer punch for friends and it has turned out great. Thanks for the recipe.

I've also made an alternate version where I add pear cider and vanilla syrup (rather than simple syrup)and have really enjoyed it.

On 2014-01-04 12:18, Destro100 wrote:
I've been making the Cup-of-Cheer punch for friends and it has turned out great. Thanks for the recipe.

I've also made an alternate version where I add pear cider and vanilla syrup (rather than simple syrup)and have really enjoyed it.

Cool, you're welcome. I kinda rushed that episode out since it was approaching punch season (ok, so any season is punch season if you want it to be) so I'm glad it was well-received.

Was the pear cider an addition, or did you swap out another ingredient?

Thanks for listening,

kevin

I added cider, reduced the amount of lime and simple syrup. I knew I was making the drink for groups that I would not consider regular tiki (or cocktail) fans so I had to reduce the amount of rum as well (I went with a Myers-Mount Gay Gold combo). Everyone really enjoyed it.

On 2014-01-07 12:13, Destro100 wrote:
I added cider, reduced the amount of lime and simple syrup. I knew I was making the drink for groups that I would not consider regular tiki (or cocktail) fans so I had to reduce the amount of rum as well (I went with a Myers-Mount Gay Gold combo). Everyone really enjoyed it.

Awesome - it's good to know your guests and introduce them to new things gradually as needed. Before you know it, they'll want that 151 Swizzle or Cobra's Fang. :)

kevin

Episode 19 of 5 Minutes of Rum has been posted. Go download it and listen to me ramble on about a relatively new rum on the market: Plantation Original Dark rum. It's from Plantation who has a stellar track record so spoiler alert: it's a good rum. And like the Plantation Barbados 5 year, it's very well-priced for the quality. Oh and there's talk about ice crushers and the Queen's Park Swizzle.

http://5minutesofrum.com/episodes/2014/1/10/episode-19-plantation-original-dark-rum

Thanks for listening,

kevin

I couldn't get it to play for some reason.

saw the Plantation Dark here recently-- how is it, what would you compare it to?

it looks a bit light for a "dark" rum, does it have big flavor, or is it really an amber?

I kind of touched on this in the episode - I have a personal bias about what constitutes a "dark rum". Rum producers tend to refer to anything not clear as "dark" and I tend to think of dark rum more in terms of "dark jamaican rum". So I'm working on resetting what I expect when I see "dark rum". Most distillers just don't call it amber rum.

That being said, I think this is a great rum - made to be mixed but can be sipped neat. Like the Plantation Barbados 5 year, it's a very good rum for the price. I've only used it in a handful of cocktails so far, but I'm going to keep buy more and trying it in different recipes. I went through two bottles for this episode and the focus was on sipping, a couple of daiquiris, and a lot of Queen's Park Swizzles. I haven't yet met a Plantation rum I didn't like so if you see a bottle I'd recommend getting it and putting it through it's paces. I think it holds its own for flavor, but it's not a straight substitute
for dark jamaican rum.

I sent you a PM to try and troubleshoot the reason you aren't able to play the episode.

kevin

Aloha!

Episode 20 of 5 Minutes of Rum is posted. This is the first of a 2 part episode (part 2 will probably be E22 or E23) on the Hawaiian rums of Koloa. In this part I look at the production of Koloa rums, taste the White and Gold rums, and use each in a cocktail.

http://5minutesofrum.com/episodes/2014/2/1/episode-20-kloa-white-and-gold-hawaiian-rum

Thanks for listening,

kevin

Aloha!

Episode 21 of 5 Minutes of Rum is posted. I taste Kirk and Sweeney 12 Year Dominican rum and use it in a Beachcomber's Gold (well, 1 of the 3 published versions of that recipe anyway). Have a listen and play along at home if you're so inclined.

http://5minutesofrum.com/episodes/2014/3/1/episode-21-kirk-and-sweeney-12-year

Thanks for listening,

kevin

Episode 22 (essentially part 2 of episode 20) is posted, featuring the 3 other rums currently in production and available from the Koloa Rum Company. Koloa has an interesting take on these particular rum categories, particularly the coconut rum (spoiler: go get a bottle of it).

http://5minutesofrum.com/episodes/2014/3/8/episode-22-koloa-2-dark-spice-and-coconut

Thanks for listening,

kevin

Episode 23 of 5 Minutes of Rum is posted: Zacapa 23, Bittermens Mole bitters, and a Three-Rum Old Fashioned. As I mention in the episode, I wouldn't necessarily call it a "rum old-fashioned" if it were my cocktail (I'd choose a new name since it's not whiskey based) but it's a damn fine cocktail no matter what you call it.

http://5minutesofrum.com/episodes/2014/3/21/episode-23-ron-zacapa-23

Thanks for listening,

kevin

Episode 24 of 5 Minutes of Rum is available. I talk about El Dorado rum (again) - the 8 this time. I also share the recipe for the Sea of Cinn, a cocktail inspired by the flavor profile of a Jet Pilot, but very simplified so those with fewer ingredients on hand can easily mix one up.

http://5minutesofrum.com/episodes/2014/4/26/episode-24-el-dorado-8

Thanks for listening,

kevin

Episode 25 of 5 Minutes of Rum is posted. In episode 24 I went back to the El Dorado well (and deservedly so). Similarly in E25 I go back to Plantation, who really have this rum thing figured out. I'll get into their vintage/country-specific rums in future shows, but this show focuses on the Plantation 3 Stars white caribbean rum. I also briefly touch on the history of the Navy Grog and make my own version called the Admiral's Grog.

This is the drink I'll be serving on the room crawl at Tiki Caliente 6 this weekend (May 15-18). If you're going to be there, come by the crawl to say hi, have a drink, and pick up the recipe postcard. 11 AM on Saturday, May 17.

http://5minutesofrum.com/episodes/2014/5/11/episode-25-plantation-3-stars

Thanks for listening,

kevin

Keep up the great work. I'm really enjoying the podcasts.

On 2014-05-16 16:36, Destro100 wrote:
Keep up the great work. I'm really enjoying the podcasts.

Thanks - I seem to have no shortage of source material to explore. :)

Kevin

Kevin, just made the Admiral's Grog, very tasty. Thanks for a great recipe.

Cool! You're welcome, and thank you for giving it a try. :D

kevin