Portsmouth Distillery Forum Garden Rum is a flavoured, or spiced, white rum produced in Hampshire.
The Portsmouth Distillery is based at Fort Cumberland, located at Eastney Point, at the entrance to Langstone Harbour. The distillery was established in 2018 by ex-Navy officers Vince Noyce and Giles Collighan, and Dich Oatley, who had spent many years working in the wine trade. Vince and Giles shared a mutual love of rum, and the distillery was founded to produce a Portsmouth Rum, distilled and matured in the city (rather than importing and blending overseas rums).
The base for the Portsmouth Distillery Forum Garden Rum is the 1968 White Rum. This is an aromatic white rum made from sugar cane syrup rather than the more commonly used molasses. Powdered sugar cane juice is imported from Costa Rica. This is then rehydrated at the distillery. The sugar cane syrup is then fermented.
This is a long, slow fermentation (their very first fermentation took 4 weeks or so) before being distilled through the distillery’s 500 litre pot still (nicknamed Sophie Wu) and 4 plate column still. Sugar cane juice produces a different, more aromatic style of rum than those made from molasses.
To make Forum Garden Rum, 5 botanicals (to represent the 5 corners of Fort Cumberland) are macerated in the white rum for around 24 hours before the rum is then redistilled. The 5 carefully selected, hand-picked botanicals are:
Has Portsmouth Distillery invented a new category with Garden Rum? Forum is designed to be a crossover between gin and rum (the distillery’s raison d’etre). Something to appeal to introduce gin to rum drinks and rum to gin drinkers! One could argue whether this flavoured rum is a type of spiced rum. I quite like the term “botanical rum”. It is certainly a world away from heavy, sweet, dark spiced rums and is something completely different!
Portsmouth Distillery Forum Garden Rum is a clear, colourless spirit. The nose is aromatic and sweet-smelling. The herbaceous character of the base rum is detectable but, on top of this, there are aromas of sweet citrus, floral notes, red berries and hints of honey and woody spice.
On the palate, there is more orange and lime citrus character, some savoury flavours from the coriander and spicy, pepper-y nuances. There is a touch of sweetness on the front of the palate but the finish is dry, spicy and lingering.
Portsmouth Distillery Forum Garden Rum is nice enough to be drunk neat, preferably over ice. However, it will come into its own in long drinks.
Try it mixed with a good cola (Fentimans or Fever Tree), in a long drink with tonic, garnished with orange and lime or try with a ginger ale. It is also good mixed with fruit juice, try with pineapple, orange juice or a tropical fruit blend.
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