Bar patrons today are on the run, looking for rum. The need for a fun, lighthearted evening out—as close to a vacation as one can have in the middle of October—has seemingly led patrons to the nearest tiki bars in droves. And if they can’t find one, someone is building it.
A recent rash of tiki-themed venues either opening to demand or experiencing the flush of success has brought about resurgence in the Polynesian pleasures of tropical cocktails, goofy glassware, and the decadent décor of an island getaway between four walls. And in the middle of it all, and what no such venue could do without, is the warm and fuzzy reassurance of rum.
“This whole tiki thing came out of the 1940s, 50s, and 60s—simpler times when people were entertaining at home and making a little more money, and they started to have parties,” says Bill Melnyk, Senior Brand Manager at Bacardi. “There was a tiki thing going on as Americans discovered those islands and started traveling to Hawaii and Fiji and bringing home a sense of that culture. And it fell into place in mid-century modern design—the tiki mug collections, umbrella drinks—all based on the cocktails they had on island retreats. And most of those cocktails were made with rum.
While tiki style may have kicked off in the era of Mad Men on a Boardwalk Empire, the modern bar innovator is taking a cue from those days and ramping it up for today’s upscale clientele. Amongst the dozens of new tiki bars having opened in the last few months nationwide, The Hurricane Club, which launched last month in New York City, is a 13,000-square-foot venue with its own house-blend rum for use in its decadent concoctions. “It’s a blend of six 12-year-old rums, aged in cherry oak casks, made exclusively for us by a family down in Barbados,” says Richard Leach, Director of Cocktail Programs at The Hurricane Club. “We’re not looking to re-copy tiki classics, which a lot of people are focusing on. Instead we’re taking elements from various tiki and tropical regions and blending them into cocktails.”
While it may be on the upscale side for a tiki bar, The Hurricane Club opened because of what Leach sees as a public demand for more casual dining and entertaining during tough economic times. Most rum brands we spoke with couldn’t agree more, and are equally excited to have their product on the forefront of such market demand.
“Cocktail culture is big in general right now, in returning to these higher-proof spirits and the Prohibition-era cocktails, and I think tiki is one expression of that,” says Amy Weisenbach, Brand Director at Cruzan Rum. “We just launched Cruzan 9, which is our entry into the spiced rum market, and we kicked it off in New York City at some of the new tiki bars there. It’s based on bolder rums, so it remains the heart of a mixed drink, and it’s perfect for a tiki cocktail. Spiced rums are growing anyway, but I think this tiki resurgence is only going to accelerate that, and Cruzan 9 is in a great place to be positioned to take part in all the excitement.”
Click here to read about all the other rums on the run in the full article “Born to Rum” in the October 2010 Digital edition of Bar Business Magazine
