Meet some early champions of the local craft spirit movement.
Rum has traditionally been known and loved as a base for simple mixed drinks like rum and coke and for playing a supporting role in more complex cocktails. But rum’s spirit is on the rise. Distillers have been rapidly expanding their offerings into the premium spirits realm, crafting products that are meant to be enjoyed neat or over ice.
One local distiller, Lunenburg’s Ironworks Distillery, is helping lead the category with their very popular Bluenose Rum. Co-owners Lynne MacKay and Pierre Guevremont were early champions of the local craft spirit movement.
According to MacKay: “We built Ironworks around the belief that wonderful spirits could be distilled right here in Nova Scotia using ingredients sourced as locally as possible. Sugar cane, a required ingredient of rum, doesn’t grow here, at least not yet. But we all know and love Crosby’s Molasses. So, we bring molasses in from New Brunswick — ferment, distill and age it in oak for several years before we blend the rum into everyone’s favourite dark variation, Bluenose Rum.”
It won’t be long before premium rum becomes one of the most talked about stories in the spirit market. If you’re wanting to start exploring the category, Bluenose Rum provides a great option right here in your own backyard.
Not content to just make some of the best rum in the region, Lynne and Pierre are also co-founders of the Lunenburg based NS Craft Spirit Festival, Spirited Away, which is now in its fourth year.
Privateers Punch
1.5 oz Ironworks Bluenose Rum
1.5 oz grapefruit juice
.5 oz lime juice
3/4 oz agave syrup*
4 dashes Angostura bitters
Directions: Place ingredients in an ice-filled shaker. Shake hard and strain into an ice-filled glass.
*Available in most grocery stores.