We are only one week away from the 9th Annual Miami Rum Renaissance Festival and I am starting to get excited. After attending last week’s Midwest Rum Festival in Chicago I am looking forward to spending another week in Miami as a Guest RumXP judge.
Attending, judging, and meeting new people at the Miami Rum Festival no longer makes me nervousness. Instead it brings excitement. I stand by my description of Miami rum week as “Disney World for rummies”.
This year we get to discover what’s happening in United States rum production. At the United States founding, rum production was enormous but following Prohibition rum production all but disappeared as whiskey production became king. With our current rum renaissance (yes, I said it), American rum production is booming again. I look forward to trying rums from all over the USA including Utah’s Antelope Island, Pennsylvania’s Maggie’s Farm, California’s Lost Spirits, and Florida’s Big 5 and Oak & Cane, etc. There will also be a terrific array of international rums shared in Miami. I look forward to sampling terrific rums from Dzama Rhum, Ron Cartavio, and all of the Rums of Puerto Rico among others.
Not only is the Miami Rum Festival a great opportunity to sample 100s of rums and speak with representatives from each company, the festival also offers a number of insightful seminars where attendees learn about various aspects of the rum industry. This year I am looking forward to seminars from Dave Broom, Bryan Davis and Oriol Elias covering everything from rum history, rum production, and the rum/tiki dynamic.
Now that I have described Miami Rum Festival, why not go buy a ticket and join me in sunny Miami?
From Robert Burr, Founder of the Miami Rum Renaissance Festival:
As the name implies, this two-day Miami Rum Fest and Trade Expo is both a consumer-focused Grand Tasting event, and an opportunity for rum producers, importers, distributors and other professionals in the spirits trade to convene for a look into the future of rum.
Highlights of the 2017 Miami Rum Fest include the new American Rum Portfolio section, featuring the work of many fine rum producers from across the USA; the VIP Tasting Bar, offering samples of rare, limited edition and vintage rums from private collections; a host of celebrity seminars by noted authors and rum experts; and the annual RumXP (International Rum Expert Panel) blind tasting competitions. An additional set of savvy rum collectors make up the Consumer Rum Jury, evaluating and awarding top prizes from the discerning consumer’s point of view.
During the week preceding the big rum tasting event, Miami Rum Fest Cocktail Week offers a number of special events to celebrate rum culture and to present new product launches. On Wednesday evening, it’s a gathering at the world-famous Mai Kai Polynesian bar and restaurant. On Thursday evening, Rum Java launches at the Langford Hotel’s Pawnbroker Bar. On Friday Evening, a gathering at Circa 39’s Wunderbar celebrates rum cocktails. On Saturday evening, a big VIP bash at the DoubleTree Hotel celebrates the launch of Yolo Rum Clear.
The Miami Rum Fest web site features long lists of participating brands and bottles to be sampled, as well as complete information about the events surrounding the rum festival weekend.
In order to limit attendance to the Grand Tasting events on Saturday, April 22 and Sunday, April 23, tickets are available for sale in advance online, starting at $75 per day, or $125 for a two day VIP pass.
For more information, visit the Miami Rum Fest and Trade Expo web site at MiamiRumFest.com