Mixing Is Not a Crime #1

Mixing is not a crime, it’s not soda’s fault and cola’s innocent. There we said it.

 

So called purists frown on mixing your rum. Take a bloody day off mate. Do what you want. Our rum is specifically designed to be mixed. Authentic, bold, punchy flavours that will burst through and compliment the flavours of your favourite mixer. Sure, our rum is amazing on its own and given the stark ultimatum of choosing one drink for the rest our lives we’d struggle to look past a smoked rum old fashioned with a twist of grapefruit peel. But sometimes you want a drink that’s quenches, a drink that has that magic equilibrium between lip-smacking juice and booze.

 

We don’t know whether infamous welsh rugby hardman Chris Jones liked a rum and coke. But we can be pretty sure from his t-shirt that he was convinced of his own innocence. Just like us at Burning Barn are convinced that mixing is not a crime. Unfortunately for Jonesy only one of us is right. Jones is the only man to be banned for life by the Welsh Rugby Union twice. His on field antics were only topped by his behaviour off the pitch where he was known to carry an axe around in his kit bag.

 

So whilst this erstwhile celtic freedom fighter may have been misguided in his fight to clear his name, our mission to remove the shame from freethinkers who want to add some mixer to their rum remains righteous. No longer will you have to furtively whisper “actually I like mine with a bit of cola”. Not on our watch. Rise up, grasp the banner and rally to the rebel cry: “mixing is not a crime!”

 

There must be some reason people have such animosity to the practice of combining a soft drink with rum. Our theory is that the spiced rum on the market has historically been sickly sweet and synthetically flavoured. Consequently, when you mix the stuff with an equally sweet mixer it’s no surprise that you get a cloyingly horrible result. Follow the following tips to ensure you get the best out of your rum and soda.

 

1. Use a good Soda. Some of the classics hold up well but there are some incredible independent craft sodas on the market now that pair brilliantly with good rum.

 

2. Good ice and a garnish. We favour really cold big bits of clear ice and generous fruity garnishes. Overly diluted drinks with a miserable stale garnish are one of the most common pitfalls of the rum and mixer category.

 

3. Most importantly. Use a rum you can actually taste through the mixer. After all, if only ¼ of your drink is the bit you’re paying for you want to be able to taste it!

 

Stay tuned for the next blog post in the #mixingisnotacrime series where we will go through the perfect mixed serves for all three of our amazing rums.

 

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