May 2nd Golden Monkey - Every now and then my local Rum Club comes up with something a little different to the usual rum tasting seminars that is both innovative and an interactive way to present a product to the rum connoisseurs and hobbyists alike.
The standard releases, Eclipse and Extra Old from Mount Gay Rum, 'the rum that invented rum’, have been around in the Australian market for a long time as the only two choices. However, a new blend from Mount Gay called '1703' was recently introduced around the world as the new super premium class rum which continues to receive positive feedback globally.
Not long ago the range expanded again with the addition of a new white rum, the Silver Eclipse, which is also now distributed across Australia and is intended as a mixer for premium cocktails.
Silver Eclipse, which replaces the old Special Reserve rum, is distilled in column and copper pot stills, aged a minimum of two years in bourbon barrels and triple filtered to achieve the crystal clear appearance and purity.
Jimmy Javni from Suntory, the distributor for Mount Gay rums in Australia, had been invited to present and host a tasting of the Silver Eclipse to the Melbourne Rum Club and to demonstrate its versatility in various cocktails.
To kick things off, we were lead through a tasting of Silver Eclipse followed by a cocktail demonstration.
He created the classic Piña Colada cocktail with a twist of Paraiso Lychee liqueur and Mozart White Chocolate liqueur, with a dash of lemon juice to counter the sweetness.
White Lychee Piña Colada
30ml Mount Gay Silver Eclipse
30ml of Mozart White Chocolate Liqueur
5ml Paraiso Lychee Liqueur30ml of coconut milk
60ml of freshly squeezed pineapple juice
Shake with ice
Strain into a cocktail glass filled with ice and garnish with a wedge of pineapple and a cherry.
The real twist of the night was what happened after the presentation though, when two bartenders and two lucky non-bartenders from the audience were invited behind the bar to recreate Jimmy’s Piña Colada. Their creations would be judged by a tasting panel with Matthew Barnett and Jeremy Church from Suntory and Merlin Jerebine, a well known Melbourne bartender.
The contestants jumped right in, some of the putting their own twists into the cocktail like flambéing the drink with a torch!
After the short judging the winners and non-winners received a goodie bag, some of them containing a bottle of Silver Eclipse and some a nice thick cocktail book to take home and practice with.
Go to the Refined Vices Facebook page for more pictures and share your Silver Eclipse recipes in the forums!
Related reviews:
Mount Gay Extra Old
Mount Gay Eclipse
Related articles:
Mount Gay Rum - The Oldest Rum Brand in the World
Mount Gay 1703 - The Superlative of Rum
