By Press Release
The Isle of Wight Distillery has announced a fifth addition to its line-up of award-winning spirits – and this one brings the flavours of the Caribbean to the Isle of Wight.
The launch of Mermaid Spiced Rum marries rums from Trinidad and the Dominican Republic with local fruits and spices from the Island and it will soon be available in two sizes, 70cl and 5cl.
Mermaid Spiced Rum joins Mermaid Gin, Pink Gin, Zest Gin and Salt Vodka and maintains the distillery’s ethos of minimising waste using ethically sourced and wild-foraged ingredients. The Caribbean rums are infused with the Isle of Wight Distillery’s signature rock samphire, white cherries, apricots, honey from their beehives and black salt from the Island’s coast, yielding a tropical island blend made for sipping on island time.
The drink was inspired by a long history of Caribbean rums landing on Isle of Wight shores. In 1836, a wooden sailing ship, the Clarendon, was driven ashore to the south-west of the Island in a fierce storm. Voyaging from St Kitts with a cargo of rum, sugar, molasses, coconuts and turtles, the ship and near all of those who sailed in her perished, despite local
fishermen’s attempts to save them. So great was the disaster that a lighthouse at St Catherine’s Point was constructed, while ever-industrious Islanders saved, sold and imbibed the rum, and repurposed the ship’s timber for an inn, renamed in the ship’s honour.
Xavier Baker, Co-Founder of Mermaid Gin, says, “We are delighted to offer customers a slice of tropical coastal charm.
“After a good few years of research, we’ve created a rum that encapsulates our Island life.”
The rum is presented in a striking black and clear bottle, with the golden rum shining through. The bottle design is based on the scales of a Mermaid’s tail and mirrors the design of the gin and vodka bottles.
Mal Butler