How do you follow the most important and critically acclaimed inaugural release from any rum company ever? You simply continue that journey of enlightenment…
Equiano Light is the highly anticipated and dazzlingly brilliant second release from Equiano Rum Co. who gave us the world’s first African and Caribbean rum. Following in the footsteps of Equiano Original Equiano Light is also a tale of two continents. The first component in the blend is a molasses rum distilled at the legendary Foursquare Distillery (the five-time consecutive winner of the International Spirits Challenge’s “Rum Producer of the Year”) in Barbados. Matured in ex-Bourbon barrels for three years in the tropical climate of the Caribbean this portion imparts complexity and an immense depth of flavour something seldom experienced in white rums. The second component comes from Africa and is an unaged rum made from fresh sugarcane juice at Gray’s Distillery in Mauritius which adds refreshing grassy notes and vibrancy into the mix. These two components are expertly married together by the extremely talented Richard Seale resulting in a genre-redefining and prejudice-challenging white rum.
When we say “prejudice-challenging” it has a double meaning. Firstly the Black-owned female-led Equiano brand launched a few months before the murder of George Floyd sparked Black Lives Matter protests around the world and they spoke frankly about the history of rum’s entanglement with the slave trade (something glossed over by many in the industry) while also donating to a charity that fights to end modern slavery. The second meaning is that Equiano Light challenges the widely held misconception that white rum is somehow of inferior quality. If only we could stop judging based on colour huh? Equiano Light is very serious stuff. In our opinion it elevates the entire category not only taking rum cocktails to a whole new level of deliciousness but also being an absolute joy to sip neat on sunny days.
Bursting with character and energy (much like its namesake of which more below) Equiano Light buzzes with grass melon passionfruit banana milkshake fresh sugarcane herb butter zesty lemon sweetly spiced breadfruit punch the tickle of white pepper and that vanilla and coconut combo of American oak. This golden-hued rum has already been awarded gold medals by the International Spirits Challenge the San Francisco World Spirits Competition and The Rum Masters held by The Spirits Business and we honestly can’t think of a better rum to make our next Daiquiri or Piña Colada with.
Equiano takes its name from Olaudah Equiano who was born in 1745 in what today is Nigeria. He was kidnapped enslaved and shipped across the Atlantic Ocean to the Caribbean. From there he was sent to Virginia where he was bought by a lieutenant in the Royal Navy who would eventually bring him to England. The tenacious and determined Equiano traded fruit glass tumblers and rum on the side until he had saved the £40 required to buy his freedom back. He settled in London becoming an educated and respected Georgian as well as a writer public speaker entrepreneur and a pioneering anti-slavery activist who fought to free enslaved people across the globe.
One of the Equiano Rum Co.’s co-founders is none other than the fedora-wearing Ian Burrell – the world’s only Global Rum Ambassador the founder of UK Rumfest the former owner of Cotton’s Caribbean restaurant in London and according to Difford’s Guide for Discerning Drinkers “the most entertaining guy you’ll ever meet”. Taking a lead from Olaudah Equiano Burrell and his fellow co-founders donate 5% of their profits and £2 for every bottle purchased to support ground-level freedom and equality projects (the choice for 2021 was Anti-Slavery International – the oldest international human rights organisation in the world). The Spectator Magazine put it perfectly writing that this is brand “hailed for its purist approach to rum making and its philanthropic aspirations.”
SKU No.: 3402188
Style No.: 866502
Alcohol by volume (ABV): 43%
Volume: 700ml
How do you follow the most important and critically acclaimed inaugural release from any rum company ever? You simply continue that journey of enlightenment…
Equiano Light is the highly anticipated and dazzlingly brilliant second release from Equiano Rum Co. who gave us the world’s first African and Caribbean rum. Following in the footsteps of Equiano Original Equiano Light is also a tale of two continents. The first component in the blend is a molasses rum distilled at the legendary Foursquare Distillery (the five-time consecutive winner of the International Spirits Challenge’s “Rum Producer of the Year”) in Barbados. Matured in ex-Bourbon barrels for three years in the tropical climate of the Caribbean this portion imparts complexity and an immense depth of flavour something seldom experienced in white rums. The second component comes from Africa and is an unaged rum made from fresh sugarcane juice at Gray’s Distillery in Mauritius which adds refreshing grassy notes and vibrancy into the mix. These two components are expertly married together by the extremely talented Richard Seale resulting in a genre-redefining and prejudice-challenging white rum.
When we say “prejudice-challenging” it has a double meaning. Firstly the Black-owned female-led Equiano brand launched a few months before the murder of George Floyd sparked Black Lives Matter protests around the world and they spoke frankly about the history of rum’s entanglement with the slave trade (something glossed over by many in the industry) while also donating to a charity that fights to end modern slavery. The second meaning is that Equiano Light challenges the widely held misconception that white rum is somehow of inferior quality. If only we could stop judging based on colour huh? Equiano Light is very serious stuff. In our opinion it elevates the entire category not only taking rum cocktails to a whole new level of deliciousness but also being an absolute joy to sip neat on sunny days.
Bursting with character and energy (much like its namesake of which more below) Equiano Light buzzes with grass melon passionfruit banana milkshake fresh sugarcane herb butter zesty lemon sweetly spiced breadfruit punch the tickle of white pepper and that vanilla and coconut combo of American oak. This golden-hued rum has already been awarded gold medals by the International Spirits Challenge the San Francisco World Spirits Competition and The Rum Masters held by The Spirits Business and we honestly can’t think of a better rum to make our next Daiquiri or Piña Colada with.
Equiano takes its name from Olaudah Equiano who was born in 1745 in what today is Nigeria. He was kidnapped enslaved and shipped across the Atlantic Ocean to the Caribbean. From there he was sent to Virginia where he was bought by a lieutenant in the Royal Navy who would eventually bring him to England. The tenacious and determined Equiano traded fruit glass tumblers and rum on the side until he had saved the £40 required to buy his freedom back. He settled in London becoming an educated and respected Georgian as well as a writer public speaker entrepreneur and a pioneering anti-slavery activist who fought to free enslaved people across the globe.
One of the Equiano Rum Co.’s co-founders is none other than the fedora-wearing Ian Burrell – the world’s only Global Rum Ambassador the founder of UK Rumfest the former owner of Cotton’s Caribbean restaurant in London and according to Difford’s Guide for Discerning Drinkers “the most entertaining guy you’ll ever meet”. Taking a lead from Olaudah Equiano Burrell and his fellow co-founders donate 5% of their profits and £2 for every bottle purchased to support ground-level freedom and equality projects (the choice for 2021 was Anti-Slavery International – the oldest international human rights organisation in the world). The Spectator Magazine put it perfectly writing that this is brand “hailed for its purist approach to rum making and its philanthropic aspirations.”
SKU No.: 3402188
Style No.: 866502