We just got our hands on a (sigh) small bottle of the new quadruple distilled super premium rum, Bambu. I also had the pleasure to speak with David Kanbar, the creator of Bambu. David’s resume includes running day to day operations at Uncle Maurice’s Skyy Vodka prior to it’s sale to Campari.
So why start a rum company, I asked Mr. Kanbar?
He had always been a fan of the rum category, especially unaged white rums as they are more interesting then vodka. He also enjoys sharing rum cocktails with his wife. However, many white rums can also be harsh and medicinal, which come through in a cocktail. Kanbar also felt rum was underrepresented in the premium market. It had missed the same boost in quality that both vodka and tequila have enjoyed over the past 20 years.
To address this issue, Mr. Kanbar set out to create a premium white rum that kept the complexity of flavors but not the harshness. What he created was a rum that is quadruple distilled and triple filtered, has hints vanilla and none of the harsh medicinal tastes found in other white rums. Bambu was found to contain 3 times less impurities than Bacardi or 10Cane, as measured by Vinquiry, as Napa company that measures these sort of things.
The only problem was that the process didn’t replicate in mass production. Making Bambu in mass stripped out the flavor and the end result was basically vodka. To keep flavor and complexity of the hand selected West Indian sugarcane, Bambu is micro-distilled one gallon at a time. It may take a while, but well worth the wait. We drank it straight up and loved it! We put in a Mojito and their signature cocktail below. Thumbs up all around. Bambu is currently available in the Northeast and retails for about $30.
Honeydew Bambu
Ingredients
1 ½ oz Bambu Rum
1 oz melon liqueur
Splash of pineapple juice
Splash of sour mix
Instructions
Shake until thoroughly mixed and chilled. Serve in a rocks glass.
