The Rum Bar, Phoenix

 A big thanks to rum expert Dwayne Allen and his wife, chef extraordinaire, Danielle Leoni, who own the award winning Breadfruit and Rum Bar in downtown Phoenix. We enjoyed another great evening at their establishment this last weekend. We had reservations for 6:30p.m. at The Breadfruit, a fine eatery with a Jamaican influence, and got to The Rum Bar – which encompasses the other half of the space early to enjoy a few beverages and hopefully a little rum talk with Dwayne. Nothing about the evening disappointed.

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Upon our arrival, we chatted with the knowledgeable bartender, Brian about what we should try.

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We settled on a tasting flight and although there were four different flights to choose from, we chose the Masters Blend, which consisted of tastings of Brugal 1888, Angostura 1824 Limited Reserve 12 Year and Mt. Gay 1703 Cask Select.

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Rum flights are an excellent way to sample a few different rums to learn about different regions, brands or types. All the rums in our flight were excellent, although there was a distinct winner on our palate. See the different flights and rums available here: Rums, flights and cigars. There are over 150 rums available at The Rum Bar, so there is certainly something to please everyone and the bartenders are very astute at assisting in finding the right cocktail or sipping rum to suit your taste.

Next we decided to sample a couple of the craft cocktails, all designed by Dwayne himself using the freshest of ingredients, hand squeezed juices and homemade spices.

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We sampled a Punchbowl Special – a daily rotation of inspired rum punches. This day it included mango…delicious!

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We then ordered a Rum Old Fashioned. This one was created with Appleton Extra 12 Year Rum, orange bitters and orange zest. It was an especially pleasing combination of flavors.

We got to chat with Dwayne for a bit about our upcoming trip to Antigua to get his take on Antiguan rums. Hailing from Jamaica, Dwayne knows and loves his rum and genuinely appears to love talking about it and educating folks on this spirit with deep roots in the Caribbean.

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By then, it was time to be seated for dinner. After ordering Pan Seared Chilean Sea Bass and Red Strip Curried Prawns we were nearly tortured by the aromas emanating from the kitchen and could hardly wait until our selections arrived. After polishing off every last bite, John said it was the best Sea Bass he’d ever tasted and I felt the prawns were equally as delectable. I would have picked up my plate and licked it clean if I could have.

After dinner we each enjoyed one more Rum Old Fashioned before catching a taxi home. Great night and we can’t wait to return and sample some more.

An evening at the Rum Bar/Breadfruit is highly recommended.
It’s like having a little Jamaican vacation right in the heart of Phoenix, Arizona.

Check out The Breadfruit/Rum Bar website for more information.

Festival RumBahamas 2015

Festival RumBahamas took over the historic and beautiful Ft. Charlotte in Nassau, Bahamas this year for three fun-filled days from February 27 – March 1.

When we realized we’d be in the Bahamas at about the same time as the rum festival, we made plans to be in Nassau to experience this “rum”tastic event. Boy, were we glad we did!

The organizers of RumBahamas (Events by Alexandra) did a fantastic job of combining festival elements to appeal to the serious rum fanatic as well as to those that enjoy rum because of its ability to conjure up images of beautiful beaches and a tropical escape. RumBahamas 2015 was a feast of delicious rums made even more authentic with the sights, sounds and smells of the tropics.

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These were just few of the highlights of this years events for us:

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1. Rum tastings. Although we’re not rum experts, we certainly enjoy rum and it was a treat to sample rums that we’ve not experienced before.

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2. Having rum connoisseurs at the ready to chat with and answer questions about all aspects of rum.

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3. Experiencing and learning about beautiful Fort Charlotte and sipping great rum in a dungeon!

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4. The unique combination of a historical fort combined with brightly colored larger than life decorations.

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5. The festival atmosphere, replete with some very talented Moko Jumbies, marching bands, live music, and delicious food.

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6. Booths and booths of beautiful locally crafted items.

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7. Dirty Mules. This tasty ginger and rum drink is new to us and we enjoyed one…or two. Even more appealing as the recipe for this delight is hush, hush.

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8. Rum cocktails galore. Want a Piña Colada, Daiquiri or a Bahamian favorite, the Goombay Smash? Not only could you find them there, you could try one with different brands of rums.

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9. Capt. Jack Sparrow. Who doesn’t like Capt. Jack? This guy really played the part well.

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10. A pirate atmosphere and lots of fun costumes.

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11. Rum bottles used as decorations. Ingenious.

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12. All of this in a magical setting in the beautiful Bahamas. Bravo.

 To see more posts on the Bahamas and other islands, check out our Island Blog Directory


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Pictures and other content may not be re-used without written consent from Rum Therapy, LLC. All information is correct to our knowledge at the time of writing, but be sure to verify current information before your visit.

Rum Bar at the Breadfruit

You lucky Phoenicians. Or for that matter, anyone who spends time in Phoenix. There’s a place in downtown Phoenix that’ll transport you by taste to the islands. It’s called the Rum Bar at the Breadfruit.

We recently learned about and “liked” the Rum Bar on Facebook and commented on one particularly yummy looking Rum Drink that they posted called the Irish Rum Float.

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The good folks at the Rum Bar got back to us with their original recipe and we were hooked.

Irish Rum Float
1 oz Zaya
1 oz El Dorado Rum Cream
1/4 oz Coconut milk
1/4 oz Gozio amaretto
1 oz Guinness Foreign Extra Stout

Shake vigorously and double strain into martini glass
Dust with ground cinnamon

We were thrilled to then be invited to and to attend an Appleton Rum Tasting Event at the Rum Bar in December. After the event, we had to try the Irish Rum Float for ourselves and also ordered the scrumptious looking Appleton Rum Sea Scallops.

Phoenix. Really. Head on down to the Rum Bar at the Breadfruit and get an authentic taste of the tropics – Modern Jamaican Seafood, Premium Aged Rum and Cigars. 

To find out more about the Rum Bar and The Breadfruit, go to their website:
http://thebreadfruit.com/
and Facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/TheBreadfruit