Cornish Rum Review

Travel Distilled reviews Dead Man’s Fingers, a spiced rum from Cornwall’s Rum and Crab Shack.

Pirates never used the expression ‘Yo-ho-ho and a bottle of rum’. It was a phrase invented by author Robert Louis Stevenson for his book, Treasure Island. Mind you, they might have used it had they been able to take a swig of Dead Man’s Fingers, which is that rare if not unique spirit – a Cornish rum.

Cornish rum? Yes, Dead Man’s Fingers is produced by the Rum & Crab Shack in St Ives, Cornwall. There’s also a branch in Exeter too. They naturally have a great rum menu, including rums from Barbados, Jamaica, Venezuela, Guatemala, Cuba, Guyana and even Australia and Thailand.

In 2015 they decided to make their own rum and add Cornwall to the menu. The big news now is that the rum is being stocked by the ASDA chain of supermarkets in the UK, a real coup for the Rum & Crab Shack.So what makes a Cornish rum? Well the folks at the shack wanted to make a traditional Caribbean-style rum but to cut back on the sweetness and instead give it a spicier flavour, including some hints of Cornwall. These include a touch of saffron cake and one of their most popular desserts: Pedro Ximinez sherry poured over ice cream. (One of my favourite desserts too. Try it sometime.)

To keep the rum traditional, though, they also wanted the taste of cinnamon, nutmeg, caramel and vanilla, with a dash of orange too. The rum itself is a blend of rums from Trinidad and Barbados.

Cornish Rum Review

The rum comes in a chunky and funky black bottle, with great artwork that plays on the pirate theme by showing a skull (but no crossbones). Unscrew the cap and you get a lovely whiff of all those flavours. Pouring it into a shot glass and taking another sniff, the sherry notes came out really strongly, and the caramel too.

Tasting it neat, the rum was a delicious combination of caramel, toffee, vanilla and, again, the sherry. We preferred it at room temperature, but over ice it’s tasty too. Just don’t let the ice cubes melt too quickly to dilute that fantastic flavour.

Mixing It

We loved Dead Man’s Fingers neat, and could have sipped it all night, though as it was a hot evening that was probably not a good idea. Instead I fetched out the Fever-Tree Madagascan Cola, which I absolutely love as a mixer or as a refreshing drink in its own right.

I love the taste of cola but try to limit the intake of the well-known brands because of the sugar in them. There is sugar in Fever-Tree’s Madagascan Cola but it’s not as pronounced and the inclusion of Madagascan vanilla and kola nut extract gives it a beautifully clean taste.

I poured ice cubes into a highball glass, and made my preferred mix for a simple cocktail, which is one-third spirit and two-thirds mixer. I like tasting the spirit as much as the mixer, thank you very much. The Dead Man’s Fingers and cola made for a fantastic cocktail, the Madagascan Cola adding to the spicy mix of flavours.

Sitting in the garden on a warm summer evening, I was transported to the Caribbean, and memories of sipping rum or rum and coke in Jamaican bars. And it passed the acid test – when it was finished, did I immediately want another? You bet!

Suggested Serves

Dead Man’s Fingers recommends mixing it with Lamb & Watt Ginger Ale over ice cubes and served with some fresh lime wedges. You can also mix it with pineapple juice, lemonade, grapefruit juice, cranberry juice, apple juice or cola. Add lime wedges to any of those, or serve it neat or on the rocks with a dash of lime juice or a lime wedge.