NASSAU, BAHAMAS – John Watling’s Distillery, a Bahamian company, located at the 1789 Buena Vista Estate in Historic Downtown Nassau and named for a 17th Century buccaneer, recently announced that on January 2, 2019, it began exporting its namesake rum to the United States of America and are now available for purchase at www.johnwatlings.com.
JOHN WATLING’S rums are named after John Watling, the English buccaneer who in the 1670s landed on San Salvador, Bahamas and named it after himself. In San Salvador, formerly known as Guanahani and later Watling Island, it is rumored that Watling’s treasure remains undisturbed at Fortune Hill. Watling’s men once wrote “…and t’was Gold the bait that tempted a Pack of merry Boys of us…” After close to 350 years, liquid gold now tempts those who enjoy the aged rums of JOHN WATLING’S.
JOHN WATLING’S rums are crafted from two distillates made from hand-cut sugarcane molasses that are aged in The Bahamas for 1 to 7 years in order to produce the Company’s namesake JOHN WATLING’S Pale, Amber, Single Barrel and Buena Vista rum brands. The pot stilled distillate delivers the rich and robust essence of JOHN WATLING’S rums and a continuous stilled distillate, distilled up to five times, delivers the lightness, softness and smoothness.
At John Watling’s Distillery a group of dedicated Bahamians workers pass the light distillate through a filter containing charred coconut husks. This charcoal removes unwanted congeners or flavour components that are not desired in the final product. Meanwhile, the barrels selected for ageing are medium toasted, made from American white oak and previously used to make Bourbon. Close to 5% of the distillate being aged is lost annually due to evaporation and is known as the Angel’s Share. Once the distillate has been aged for 2 to 7 years, our Master Blender employs close to 175 years of Spanish, French and English know-how to craft each JOHN WATLING’S rum. His secret blending techniques include blending the rums after ageing, during the ageing process, marrying, double barreling and in some instances not blending at all. These different techniques allow the Master Blender the different distillates he needs to craft his art.
After blending the rums they are left to rest for 24 hours. During the filling process no pumps are used in order not to bruise the rum. The Company employs over 20 Bahamians instead of machines to fill, cork and hand label each and every bottle. It is our commitment to the environment to use the least amount of mechanization possible. This is the reason why each bottle is hand-numbered and a sisal plait, hand‐woven by a female cooperative in Cat Island and South Andros, is carefully affixed to the neck of each bottle. At John Watling’s Distillery we manufacture our products the right way.
JOHN WATLING’S rums are the only Bahamian spirits listed as ‘’recommended’ by the Beverage Testing Institute in Chicago, Illinois. They have been recognized and awarded by “The Fifty Best” in New York City, New York; BarLife Magazine from the Czech Republic; Rum Bahamas in Nassau, Bahamas; Taste of the Caribbean Competition in Miami, Florida, Beverage Testing Institute in Chicago, Illinois; and the Concurso de Ron in Madrid, Spain.
JOHN WATLING’S rums will be distributed in the United States by Park Street Imports, a technologically-driven provider of alcoholic beverage importing and by Passion Spirits who will make the product available for online sales through www.johnwatlings.com.
About JOHN WATLING’S rums:
- JOHN WATLING’S Pale rum which is exceptionally smooth with light‐bodied pot still character. Aged for up to 2 years in once‐used Bourbon barrels, it is hand‐blended in small batches. The result is rum with a slightly woody character with herbal notes, hints of citrus and a cane aroma. Its taste is smooth and its finish is dry. JOHN WATLING’S Pale rum is enjoyed in the finest cocktails such as the Hemingway, Mojito and Daiquirí.
- JOHN WATLING’S Amber rum is exceptionally smooth with medium‐bodied pot still character. Aged for up to 3 years in once‐used Bourbon barrels, it is hand‐blended in small batches. The result is rum with a slightly toasted woody character, with hints of vanilla and a nutty walnut aroma. Its taste is smooth with a warming peppery finish. JOHN WATLING’S Amber rum is best enjoyed in the finest cocktails such as the Piña Colada, Rum Dum, Cuba Libre or on‐the‐ rocks.
- JOHN WATLING’S Single Barrel rum is exceptionally smooth with a full‐bodied pot still character. Aged for 5 years in once‐used Bourbon barrels, it is bottled directly from the barrel at cask strength of 66.2%. Each barrel is unique and hand‐selected by John Watling’s Master Blender for its taste and aroma, which opens up over time. JOHN WATLING’S Single Barrel is best enjoyed neat, with a splash of water, neat or on‐the‐rocks. JOHN WATLING’S Single Barrel is the quintessential sipping rum.
JOHN WATLING’S Buena Vista rum is exceptionally smooth with a harmonious balance and rich fruit character. Blended with rums up to 7 years old for an average of 5 years and aged in once‐used Bourbon barrels, the result is rum with the aroma of caramelized oak wood, with nutty vanilla notes. Its taste is smooth with a soft warming finish. Hand‐crafted in The Bahamas, enjoy JOHN WATLING’S Buena Vista rum in the finest cocktails, neat or on‐the‐rocks.
