I’m back everyone, and this time with more British rum. Revival Rum is made in Northamptonshire by the founder of the company, James Singlehurst. He made the decision to start producing rum during the 2020 lockdown as his previous occupation, farming, wasn’t feasible during the COVID period. James took advantage of the government launching the Recovery & Resilient grants and he managed to get his distilling license on the 8th of July 2022.
And so James’ brand was aptly named Revival by his wife, Julie, and it signifies recovery and resilience during a time of economical turmoil. As for the rum production, he took inspiration from the Caribbean – well, Jamaica to be more precise.
James uses high grade molasses mixed with Demerara sugar in order to boost its sugar content. It seems like using Demerara sugar in the ferment is somehow common with some of the small English rum distilleries and it has sparked quite a few conversations – crystalised cane sugar is not one of the raw materials that can be used in rum production according to the EU and UK law. To that end, James calls his product “cane spirit”, but, according to him, in Jamaica and the USA this would still be classified as rum – I can already see the discussions and I’m looking forward to hear and learn more on this matter, but I would like for that to happen in a civil way.
Alongside the molasses and Demerara sugar, James also adds cane vinegar in order to boost the flavour of the final product. The fermentation period is very long at over 40 days and the resulting wash is distilled using a traditional double retort copper pot still.
Revival Rum is molasses and Demerara sugar based, fermented for over a month and pot still distilled. Bottled at 43% ABV with no additives added.
On the nose it feels both fresh and sharp. Lime leaves, grapefruit zest, green olives and mango. Cardamom, apple cider vinegar and toffee. There’s quite an amalgam of flavours coming out of my glass. Single cream, green apples and fountain pen ink. Almonds and coconuts as well.
On the palate it’s still sharp. Sour beer, grapefruit zest, unripe bananas and pistachios. Apple cider vinegar, unripe plums, black olives and toffee. It has an interesting kind of funk going on. Coconut cream, cardamom, vanilla and a touch of green chillies. The finish is short to medium with Raffaello pralines and sharp savoury notes.
There’s plenty of body and interesting notes coming from this rum, it’s sharp, savoury and a little moreish. It lends itself pretty well to cocktails too, especially paired with herbaceous kind of flavours such as absinthe. They also have stock ageing in casks such as ex-Bourbon, PX sherry, ex-Madeira and other fortified wine barrels and I’m really intrigued how the liquid will come out.
You can find Revival Rum for around £40 which is a bit pricey, but it is a small, local company and I think it’s worth giving it a try at least once. They also sell 50ml samples if you don’t want to purchase a full bottle.
Revival Rum score:
Flavour/taste: 47/70
Value for money: 14/15
Transparency/purity: 15/15
Overall: 76/100
Cheers!