Signature Cocktail – Dark ‘n’ Stormy – 

• 2oz  Gosling’s Black Seal Rum,
• 1oz  Lime Juice,
• 0.5 oz  Sugar Syrup,
• Top with  Fever-Tree Ginger Beer

Shake ingredients except ginger beer with ice and strain over ice into a highball glass. Top with ginger beer and garnish with a lime wedge.

It was 1806 when James Gosling, the son of a wine and spirit merchant from England set out for America with a whole bunch of merchandise on board is ship ready to start a new life. After 91 days his charter ran out and he was forced to dock in the nearest port, which just so happened to be in Bermuda. Deciding to set up shop in Bermuda instead, Gosling’s Rum was born several years later as a result of his experimentations in barrel-aging rum distillate. Gosling’s Black Seal (named after the black was used to seal the bottle) is still produced using a blend of pot and column still rums imported into Bermuda and aged 3 years in ex-bourbon barrels.

Muted caramel with moderate alcohol heat and sweet molasses. A touch of vanilla and hint of spice are just about perceptible but the nose is a bit ‘closed’ altogether.

A slightly metallic entry quickly leads to a sweet and spicy mid-palate that continues on the finish, and which strangely numbs the tongue much more than its 40% abv would have suggested. Again molasses are the prominent flavour but there are hints of some more interesting spice notes such as liquorice and cinnamon hidden away somewhere within, together with stewed fruits and a definite herbal element.