Stolen Smoked Rum

The base is column distilled in Trinidad from locally grown sugar cane, then rested for at least two years in used American oak whiskey barrels. After that it is smoked over American hardwood and flavoured with Colombian Arabica coffee, Madagascan vanilla and Moroccan fenugreek seeds. It is bottled at 37.5 per cent in 700 ml.

Coffee leads on the nose. On the palate there is roasted caramel and a creamy sweetness, and the smoke is clearly there without being heavy, fading into a long, smooth finish with a butterscotch edge.

Sip it neat or over a large cube while the smoke is still easy to pick out. It also slots in where you would normally reach for bourbon or rye, so try it in an Old Fashioned with a strip of orange peel, or stir it with a little sweet vermouth for a smoky Manhattan style drink.