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In just three years, Romdeluxe has gone from being a hobby project for rum nerds to an internationally recognized bottler, where collectors have to fork out thousands of kroner to get their hands on the most coveted bottles. I spoke to the Jutland bottler's Master Taster about the journey and the industry as an independent bottler. Many Danish rum enthusiasts probably think of the now legendary 85.2% strong DOK from Jamaica bottled in a black bottle with a roaring tiger head on the label when the conversation turns to Romdeluxe. The bottle was also the one that kick-started the Romdeluxe that exists today when it was launched at Nordic Rum Fest back in 2019
- the company has actually been around since 2016. But for the first couple of years, it was a hobby project started by Claus Andersen and Lasse Bjørklund, primarily making small bottlings and making sure they could buy a few bottles for their own consumption for cheap. In March 2019, Michael Ginnerup and I bought in, and a little over a year later Lasse Bjørklund left the company. Back in March 2019, Nordic Rum Fest was just a few months away, and we knew we wanted to bottle something crazy enough for people to notice us. We had good contacts with the Danish distributor 1423, where I had tasted an unaged DOK from Jamaica at a private event a couple of years earlier with 1600 esters at approx. 86%. I thought it would be fun to do something with it. So we were allowed to buy it and poured it into small, new 40-liter Madeira-infused casks so that it could take on some flavor as quickly as possible in the three months until we had to be at the fair, says Master Taster Kim Pedersen about what became the starting point for Romdeluxe's Wild Series in the black bottles with animal motifs.
- "
Half of the people at the festival thought we were crazy and that the rum tasted like hell
.
The other half also thought we were crazy, but that it tasted good. So we succeeded in bottling something that people noticed," explains Kim Pedersen.a 25-year-old fully tropically aged rum from Guadeloupe .
The bottle helped position Romdeluxe as an independent bottler that could bottle exclusive quality rum. And that matters when you have to buy casks from either distilleries, other bottlers - or as is often the case - from large so-called 'Rum brokers' such as The Main Rum Company in Liverpool, where Romdeluxe finds some of their casks.
- There is a hierarchy among independent bottlers like us. It's not written down anywhere, but it's there. If you want to get into the best warehouses, you have to have been around for a while. The first casks we bought ourselves, we bought directly from other independent bottlers. We couldn't just walk in off the street and buy some of the best rums the brokers have in stock. But once you become a brand, sometimes they're knocking on your door to do business with you instead. I think we're at the point where we get to look at all the shelves," explains Kim Pedersen.
Three tongues - one rule Today, when Claus, Kim and Michael have to decide whether to buy a cask and bottle it in their own name, they usually contact The Main Rum Company and tell them what they are interested in buying. For example, it could be 25 years gammel rom from Jamaica. Next, The Main Rum Company selects a number of casks that can match the wishes of Romdeluxe, who then selects the ones they would like to taste. The three gentlemen then sit down, taste the samples and decide which of the casks they want to buy. It is also at this point that it is decided which of the series from Romdeluxe the cask will be bottled for. However, according to Kim, this decision has changed once the cask has landed in Horsens, where Romdeluxe is located. If a cask is to be purchased, there is primarily one rule that applies.19-year-old cask from Long Pond in Jamaica . Based on the description, Michael thought we couldn't go wrong. So we bought it without tasting it, and it became Wild Series no. 9. Fortunately, it tasted great and was well received by customers.
Thehunt for the best casks In the market for independent rum bottlers, the best casks are in high demand. According to Kim Pedersen, very few bottlers, like Luca Gargano from Italy's Velier, are allowed to buy rum directly from the distilleries and bottle it under their own name. Partly because the distilleries want a guarantee that the rum is treated, bottled and marketed in a way they can vouch for - and partly because many of the distilleries have a very limited stock of gammel rom, which many bottlers would like to get their hands on, but which the distilleries would also like to bottle themselves.
- But I also disagree with Luca Gargano that rum aged exclusively in the tropics is necessarily best. I think that rum ages more gently on the continent, so you get different notes and there are less heavy wood notes in the rum. I like that it's a mix of tropical and continental aged rums. But it's a matter of taste, says Kim Pedersen and explains that as rum's popularity grows, the stocks of gammel rom at the distilleries are dwindling fast. As a result, some of the oldest rums are now hidden away in the warehouses of brokers such as The Main Rum Company and not at the distilleries themselves.
One of the hardest casks for Romdeluxe to get hold of is the 24-year-old Caroni they bottled in the spring of 2022
- we had to really fight for the right ones to get our hands on it. The little bit Caroni that's left is really in demand," explains Kim Pedersen
, adding that it's
not among the best casks that you get the most rum for your money, according to Kim
- "
When you get over 30 years old, you really pay a lot extra per year in terms of what it means for the quality of the rum. It may have value for collectors, but if you're buying to drink - and I think you should - it's not always worth it. Our Wild Series is usually ripped off the shelves the second we put it on sale. But I think you get a lot of great rum for your money in our Collectors Series, where the best rums end up if they're not either over 60% alcohol or at least 30 years old.
That
series is a bit overlooked, and I think that no. 2 in the series - a 25-year-old gammel rom from Guyana - was an absolutely fantastic glass.
While the quantity of gammel rom is dwindling and demand is increasing, Romdeluxe has reserved an old cask that they don't know if they will ever be
able to bottle.
- It will end up with a bottle price of around DKK 10,000. I don't think we can sell that in a time of crisis and inflation. Nor do the three owners agree on whether it's worth the price. It will be for collectors, but if you're going to drink it, it's not certain that such a high price is worth the experience. So for now, it's staying on the shelf," concludes Kim Pedersen.
Romdeluxe Whether the old, exclusive cask will ever end up in a
bottle
, you'll have to wait and see. Until then, you can explore the Danish bottler's selection here .
At the time of writing, the next bottling in Wild Series Rum will be released on December 3, a 24-year-old Nicaragua rum - exclusively for Whisky.dk, which is also holding a tasting
in
the cozy surroundings of Sjølund. Master Taster Kim H. Pedersen will give the lecture, and participants will of course have the right of first refusal on the new release. There will be tasting:
