Front entrance to La Suite Villa/SBPR

In an island like Martinique, that despite being about the size of Manhattan still boasts 10 different rum distilleries producing God knows how many different types of rhum, you can well imagine that there exist a great many excellent places where one can enjoy the quintessential Caribbean spirit.

On the more casual end of the spectrum, you have sultry  seaside gourmet party spots, like Le Petibonum and Lili’s. For more traditional West Indian elegance, there’s Le Belem at the five-star Cap Est Lagoon Resort & Spa, or Plein Soleil.

Then there’s Le Zandoli at La Suite Villa, which offers a unique experience all its own.

As I mentioned when we first introduced you to La Suite Villa back in September, this place is a lively explosion of art, color and whimsical tres-chic touches that all add up to fun. This past November marked my third visit to the hotel since it opened in early-2010. On each successive visit, I was always surprised to see more art and whimsy blended nicely into the decor. This time was no exception, as you can see in the foyer…

Foyer art at La Suite Villa, Martinique/SBPR

On the tables…

Table art at La Suite Villa, Martinique/SBPR

And even in the lights hanging from the ceiling!

Artful lighting at La Suite Villa, Martinique/SBPR

La Suite Villa always provides a wealth of fantastic photo-ops. The cuisine at Le Zandoli is pretty amazing too. For me, on this particular visit, though, the rhum was the main attraction.

It’s not that the bar at Le Zandoli has the biggest selection: it doesn’t.

Le bar at La Suite Villa, Martinique/SBPR

It’s not that they have this incredible menu of inventive mixed drinks either. (I didn’t order any.)

No, the two things I really liked here were the choice rhums they did have on-hand, and the incredible atmosphere of the place. Old favorites like Rhum Neisson, Saint James and Rhum J.M. were there, but so were a few new to me treasures not virtually impossible to find in the U.S. Brands like J. Bally, Habitation Saint Entienne and the absolutely incredible Cuvée Spéciale de La Flibuste from La Favorite, arguably my new favorite among all rhum agricole blends.

Indeed, the selection was top shelf all the way! Over the course of an extended three+ hours there for dinner and drinks, I tried most of ‘em, loved all that I tried, and went back to my hotel as happy as can be.

Like I alluded to earlier, the good vibes weren’t just about the great rhum. A night at Le Zandoli/La Suite Villa, perched on a hill high above Trois-Ilets, the lights aboard the many boats anchored in the Bay of Fort-de-France twinkling below, is nothing short of magical. The vibrant art that surrounds only adds to the experience.

After a few drinks at the bar, we were seated for dinner out on the verandah astride an alluring infinity pool. Appetizers were served as I polished off the last drops of Rhum J.M. 1997 in my glass. Suddenly the skies opened up. Rain would drive us back inside… closer to the bar.

I smiled and thought: “Just in time.”

Rum Barrels at Fousquare Distillery Barbados

Well here it is: our first Uncommon Caribbean Month of Rum. All this month, we’re covering our favorite spirit from all angles. Expect videos, photos, interviews, reviews and more. But so far, the big news is our VIP RumFest Escape sweepstakes we announced yesterday. The excitement around the two VIP passes to the 2012 Miami Rum Renaissance Festival and $500 in travel cash has been spreading fast and furiously.

Haven’t entered yet? Stop reading this and enter, already!

I can wait…

OK, all good with the entry?

Now you wait.

Unfortunately, the winner (it could be you!) won’t be drawn until March 1st. So sorry, but when it comes to rum, good things come to those who wait — in fact waiting, or in this case, aging is one of the most important aspects of rum production.

Initially upon distillation, rum is a clear beast of an alcohol you’d be hard-pressed to enjoy even a sip of. (Even more so than this strong killdevil.) It takes aging in barrels to produce the dark, smooth, magic elixir we love to love.

Sure it sounds simple, but things quickly get complicated when you consider that there’s no overarching rule when it comes to aging rum. Large barrel? Small barrel? Huge vats? American Oak? French Oak? Aging at sea level? How about high in the mountains? In the hot, humid Caribbean? In the cool, damn Scottish highlands? And don’t even get me started on solera aging… Anything goes!

That said, there is some standardization in the rum world: most rum is aged in used bourbon barrels. This is thanks to an unexpected side-effect of The Federal Standards of Identity for Distilled Spirits (yes, this exists) cooked up back in the early 1960’s. You see, some patriotic fat-cats in Washington created a law stating that bourbon is a “distinctive product of the United States” and “must be aged in new, charred oak aging barrels.” And just like that, the American bourbon industry was outlawed from reusing their barrels. Suddenly lots of cheep, lightly used oak barrels were up for grabs and rum producers were (and still are) more than happy to snatch them up!

Anyway, regardless of how you wait, when it comes to rum, waiting is undoubtably a good thing. So, this week we pay homage to that patience with a shot of rum barrels at the Foursquare Distillery in Barbados. They’ll probably be aging on those shelves a lot longer than we’ll be waiting to name a winner of our giveaway, their contents growing more smooth, picking up hints of vanilla and caramel everyday.

Download it now and wait… Perhaps you’ll even have a sweet victory at the end of the month!

Get the wallpaper now

VIP RumFest Escape

That’s right, we’re kicking our Month of Rum celebration into high-gear with the launch of a new VIP RumFest Escape sweepstakes, offering you the chance to hang with us at the 2012 Miami Rum Renaissance Festival!

The World’s Sexiest Rum Party, as designated by yours truly, the Miami Rum Renaissance Festival is also a serious celebration of the world’s finest rums, and everything that makes them so. Everybody who’s anybody in the world of rum is there – legendary master blenders lead seminars, celebrity mixologists create inventive new libations for the cocktail competition, top rum manufacturers host VIP parties, and rum experts judge more than 100 different rums as part of the prestigious RumXP Competition.

It’s like a week-long World Series of Rum, culminating in the Grand Tasting events on Saturday and Sunday (April 21 and 22). This is the sexy party; a veritable heaven on earth for all rum-lovers with hundreds of rums on-hand for your sampling, each served by angelic (okay, devilish) beauties as shown below.

World's Sexiest Rum Party/SBPR

(Incidentally, the handsome guy in the photo is my older brother, Pete, who hung out with me at last year’s Miami RumFest. To get a preview of all the fun you’ll have if you win our VIP RumFest Escape, click here to see pics of his adventure.)

Not only can you enjoy just about everything that this amazing event has to offer on us, you get to experience it VIP-style! That means you get free access to all the exclusive VIP events and parties that normal festival attendees miss out on.

Two VIP passes would normally run you $500, making this a pretty nice prize… but we’re not stopping there!

To help cover your travel costs, we’re also throwing in $500 in cash!

If you win and you already live in South Florida, then I guess you can use the money to expand your rum collection. Either way, the full value of the prize is a cool $1,000… and just about all the rum you can drink!

Our VIP RumFest Escape sweepstakes ends February 29, 2012. One winner will be drawn at random and announced on March 1, 2012. No purchase is necessary, of course, and you can check out the full rundown of official rules here.

Dates for the 2012 Miami Rum Renaissance Festival are April 16-22. The host hotel is the Deauville Beach Resort on Miami Beach. Special discounted room rates are available for festival-goers.

For more info on the 2012 Miami Rum Renaissance Festival, click here.

For more info on special rates at the Deauville Beach Resort, click here.

To enter our VIP RumFest Escape sweepstakes, click here.

Good luck!

Eclipse Crackers from Barbados/SBPR

February 2012 being The Month of Rum, as designated by us, you might find it odd that we’d feature these plain-Jane crackers from Barbados as our lead Taste of the Caribbean post for the month. Truly, there’s nothing rummy about these biscuits, aside, perhaps, for their trace levels of sugar content and their shared home-island heritage in The Birthplace of Rum.

On a personal level for me, though, Eclipse Crackers and rum go hand-in-hand… especially when you’re trying to keep your hands (and everything else) steady while sampling many, many rums.

I got my first taste of Eclipse Crackers while serving as a judge at the 2011 Caribbean Rum & Beer Festival in Barbados. As noted here, the gig was as much an honor as it was a trial by fire, with me working hard to keep from getting burned over four concentrated midday hours of sampling 40 different types of rum… sans food!

Okay, they didn’t starve us completely. Judges were free to consume as many Eclipse Crackers as they wanted. Believe you me, I took full advantage of that little perk!

Light, dry and nowhere near as filling as these vital supplies, Eclipse Crackers were the perfect crutch for me to get through the day’s rum marathon. How many did I eat? Seriously, there’s no telling. I just know that right about the time we started in on the overproof rums, packets of crackers started opening all around the judges’ table, crumbs littering score cards. There were only three overproof rums on the docket, and I’m pretty sure I polished off a whole packet of Eclipse in that category alone.

So yeah, I ate a bunch of Eclipse Crackers, and you know what? I was good to go after my tasting duties were done. Oh, I was hurting a bit, but not so much that I had to retire for the afternoon. In fact, immediately after rum #40, I set out to explore the Boardwalk area of Christ Church, finding this gem of a restaurant that should be on any/every trip to Barbados itinerary. I even enjoyed more rum that afternoon at Tapas, back at my hotel and out on The Gap, thanks no doubt to these very special crackers.

With the 2012 Miami Rum Renaissance Festival set to be held April 16-22, and me set to serve as a judge once again, you can bet I was ecstatic to find Eclipse Crackers on the shelf at my local West Indian grocery story a couple weeks ago. I’ll be stocking up in the coming weeks as part of my preparations for the event, secure in the knowledge that with Eclipse in my corner, I shall survive once again!

So, if you’re looking for me down at the Deauville on Miami Beach during the Miami Festival, I should be pretty easy to find. I’ll be the guy trailing Eclipse crumbs behind me, without so much as a stagger in my step…

Lindz Graham via Flickr

Enjoying Super Bowl Sunday with a little football, Caribbean-style, on the beach at Dickenson Bay, Antigua.

We’ve told you about a half-marathon versus a volcano, an eco-challenge versus another volcano, a kayak race out at sea, an impossible trail race, grueling cycling contests, and a triathlon pitting athletes against a beast! Indeed, the Caribbean offers a great many opportunities for active travelers to test their mettle competing in some very uncommon sporting events. La Ruta Maya Belize River Challenge is certainly no exception.

Now entering its 15th year, this arduous canoe race is contested over four days, with three-person teams covering 170 miles of waterways, west to east, across Belize. Professionals and amateurs compete in eight different divisions. There’s prize money on the line too, but for most of us the main objective appears to be simply survival.

This uncommon race isn’t just grueling. The official overview published on the event website goes so far as to describe the river route as “perilous!”

PERILOUS?!!

That itty bit of a warning, though, is followed by this rosy text later in the same paragraph:

This is a race for everyone (not just professionals).

Hmm… So, it’s a race for everyone along a perilous route… Sounds about right for us, no?

If it sounds about right for you too, then you’ll want to check in with the folks at La Ruta Maya Outfitters who put together the video above. They offer 10-day all-inclusive packages that enable you to “enjoy” the best of the race, while also soaking in the best of a Belizean beach break once you’re done.

Not only do these guys hook you up with a canoe and all the gear you’ll need for the adventure, but during the race they also set up your camp each night, cook and serve your meals and mix up cocktails to soothe your soul after each hard day of rowing. They take care of breaking everything down in the morning as well, trekking ahead to the next campsite to greet and pamper you all over again.

If you fall prey to any of that “perilous” river route, La Ruta Maya Outfitters has you covered there as well, with a certified EMT always on-hand as part of their group.

The 2012 Ruta Maya Belize River Challenge is coming up March 9-12. For mote info on La Ruta Maya Outfitters packages, click here to visit them online.

Ron Zacapa 23 de Guatemala/SBPR

In the no rules world of rum, imitation is not only the sincerest form of flattery, it’s also quite often a recipe for something very, very special. Ron Zacapa Centenario 23 is a prime example.

Like Dos Maderas P.X. from Spain, which we told you about last summer, Zacapa borrows heavily from the winemaker’s art to achieve its uniquely sweet, refined flavor. Sherry is once again the wine in question, though its role in crafting this premium rum is expanded beyond what we’ve enjoyed with Dos Maderas.

Initially crafted in 1976 to mark the centennial founding of the town of Zacapa, located in eastern Guatemala, Ron Zacapa is a premium blend comprised of rums aged between six and 23 years with a few unique characteristics that separate it from the the rest.

Number 1: This Spanish ron has a bit of a French accent.
Like French Caribbean rhums from Guadeloupe, Haiti and Martinique, Zacapa is made from the virgin first pressing of sugar cane juice, not the molasses by-product of sugar production used in producing the vast majority of the world’s rums.

Number 2: It’s aged in the clouds.
Ron Zacapa’s aging facilities are located a good 7,500+ feet above sea level in the mountains of Guatemala. Temps up there average in the 60′s, limiting the Angel’s Share (ironic considering the lofty heights) and, according to Zacapa, adding a special quality.

Number 3: Solera Blending (here’s where the sherry comes in).
Zacapa’s six- to 23-year-old rums are blended using a solera method common to sherry production in Spain. Solera, as described by our friends at Wikipedia, is…

fractional blending in such a way that the finished product is a mixture of ages, with the average age gradually increasing as the process continues over many years. A solera is literally the set of barrels or other containers used in the process.

Alright, I don’t really like that definition either. There’s a much better one on Scottie’s Rum Pages right here.

The result of all this special blending, high altitude and cane purity is a sweet, dark and rich rum that goes down beautifully neat, or with one or two ice cubes. Zacapa doesn’t go quite as far down the dessert rum path as Dos Maderas, but it’s plenty dulce, almost a little chocolatey with hints of other nice tropical spices as well.

In short, Ron Zacapa Centenario 23 es fantastico, and certainly has me anxious to try additional solera rums in the near future.

¡Salud!

Sea Side Bar, Barbados

Perched on a hill across the street from the famed Bathsheba Rock, Sea Side Bar is the perfect place to stop to refuel on rum punches, Bajan staples and “old talk” while exploring Barbados’ unique east coast.

Like many rum shacks, Sea Side Bar is counterintuitively painted in Banks Beer’s bright red, white and black. So, it’s pretty hard to miss and manages to entice more than a few tourists away from snapping photos of the rock with a promise of laid-back good times soaked in local libations. But don’t be fooled, this isn’t a watered down rum shack experience. The little bar’s one room is dominated by the loud, raucous carrying-on of local regulars seated on white plastic chairs or installed on the bar itself — as it should be in an authentic rum shack.

On the wall to the left of the entrance there’s a small photographic gallery of the bar’s history worthy of anyone looking to learn a little more about Barbados’ rich past. Photos of surfers are tacked up next to area grannies who rub shoulders with politicians and construction workers. It’s a mixed up mosaic, but it works. And should any visitors take an interest in the gallery, the room erupts with regulars taking the uninitiated down memory lane via a steady stream of unsolicited “old talk.”

Chicken, Macaroni Pie and Salad at Sea Side Bar, Barbados

The menu, scrawled only somewhat legibly on a small green chalkboard leaned against a wall in the back, changes based on availability, but you can bet that whatever’s on offer will be authentically Bajan. Fried flying fish, macaroni pie, grilled chicken and the like usually form the centerpiece of their plates with side salads added for a little color.

On recent visits, we’ve run into MMA fighters, colorful locals polishing off entire bottles of Old Brigand and even a British TV mogul seeking an escape from the highlife. You never really know who you’ll meet. So, you’re best bet is to just grab a drink, prop up the bar, turn to your neighbor and strike up a conversation. You never know where it’ll lead… Except to more drinks!

Your monthly moment of zen.

Entering the Caroni Swamp, Trinidad/SBPR

This, was a mistake.

That rueful refrain kept racing through my head at the onset of my excursion into the Caroni Swamp in Trinidad a few weeks ago. It wasn’t fear of the Spectacled Caiman, or the “relatively aggressive” Cook’s Tree Boa snakes, both notable Caroni residents, that had me so unnerved either.

No, the real source of my trepidation was the young 20-somethingish kid sitting next to me on our tour boat. The problem: he was wearing nothing short of his Sunday best.

Call me crazy, but when I sign up for an eco-adventure (emphasis on the word adventure) into the heart of a sprawling, 490-acre swamp (the largest mangrove wetland in Trinidad) that’s teeming with rare birds and other unique forms of wildlife, I don’t expect to see some clean-cut kid dressed in ultra-pressed finery tagging along. Just the sight of him – his hair parted just-so, his shoes bearing a mirror-perfect shine – burst my bubble for any real adventure that day.

Persistent smoke-outs, courtesy of our boat’s sputtering outboard engine, further dulled the eco-shine on this excursion. When my fellow “explorers” weren’t gagging and coughing, they were chatting and laughing loud enough to keep most of the wildlife away.

Oh well, I thought, at least the natural beauty was truly incredible, especially as the sun began to set, the river widened and we entered into a broad, open area dotted with small mangrove islands.

Deep into the Caroni Swamp/SBPR

It wasn’t what I had originally wanted, but I was happy enough with the peaceful, serene boat ride, and all the great photo opportunities it presented.  We had a seen a few boas and iguanas along the way, plus a couple four-eyed fish (really!), so that was good too. By the time we arrived at what seemed like a random spot up against one of the mangrove islands, I was content, thinking the experience was over and looking forward to dinner back in Port-of-Spain.

Boy was I in for a surprise!

Suddenly, our guide called for us to look off to the west. There, we saw what appeared to be whitecaps riding along the surface of the otherwise perfectly still Caroni waters.

Here they come!/SBPR

This, of course, was not some rogue wave barreling in to upset the swamp. Well, not a wave of water, anyway.

It was, in fact, the first “wave” of thousands upon thousands of birds that return to the Caroni Swamp each evening after spending the day feeding over in Venezuela, some 11 miles to the west. Every day they make the commute, arriving home at a select few mangrove islands in the Swamp just before the sun goes down.

No exaggeration: this was a natural spectacle the likes of which I have never seen.

Wave after wave after wave of birds racing inches above the water toward home, then exploding into the trees in a torrent of feathers, squawks and, undoubtedly, joy.

Home at Last/SBPR

The sight of the white egrets returning home was incredible, but an even more awe-inspiring performance was put on by the marvelous scarlet ibis, Trinidad’s national bird which flourishes in the Caroni Swamp. Indeed, there can hardly be a better place to witness these brilliant winged creatures en-mass, as they too make their way home along with their egret cousins.

Scarlet Ibis returning home/SBPR

Interestingly enough, the white egrets settle in the inner sections of the tree out of sight, while the scarlet ibis’ stick to the outer limbs, creating somewhat of a Christmas tree or poinsettia effect once they’re all home.

We probably sat there a good 30 minutes or so, admiring the unique avian show. The sun was setting, though, and it was soon time to head home.

The endless procession of birds continued as we left, the vagaries that marked the start of the trip long forgotten.

A chill wind cut into us as darkness fell. The dock where the adventure began drew near. I looked over at Mr. Junior GQ. From somewhere he had produced a sweater. “Of course,” I chuckled. Of course.

The Caroni Swamp is located a quick 30 minutes south of Trinidad’s capital city, Port-of-Spain. You’ll want to bank on spending a minimum of two hours out on your tour boat. Dress appropriately (I guess) and be sure to bring some insect repellent as this is a real, live swamp with real live mosquitoes, nats, and other biting insects. The 4pm tour is the one you’ll want to book to see the spectacle of the egrets and scarlet ibis’ dashing for home. Click here for more info and details on how to make reservations for your tour.