Idle Assembly Rum is inspired by time spent in Dunmore Town on Harbour Island in the Bahamas, where one of the founders, David Flint Wood, has lived for almost thirty years.
There used to be a sign at Harbour Island’s Government Dock, a list of rules and regulations, including that there should be:
NO LOAFING OR IDLE ASSEMBLY.
Customs House and Government Dock, Harbour island Photo by Slim Aarons, 1970
This appeared harsh to us, as a glass of rum and a group of people not doing very much seemed to sum up not only a particular appeal of the island, but also a frame of mind that could export itself.
TAKE IT OR LEAVE IT
We set out to make a rum that wasn’t sweet, but that wouldn’t burn – something smooth and intriguing, much like a good first date. Although crafted to be drunk on its own or with ice, if we have learned anything, it is that excellent rum makes mixed drinks and even the most flamboyant cocktail taste better.
A premium blend of rums aged in ex-bourbon, white oak barrels for between 5 and 20 years, Idle Assembly is a luxury product crafted by a third generation family of rum blenders in Colombia, with rums from Trinidad, the Dominican Republic, Venezuela, and Panama, Idle Assembly is a tour of the Caribbean in a bottle.
In celebration of the hey-day of the ’50s and ’60s, when some of the most glamorous island travel was opened up by seaplanes - our two colour label reflects an almost 'un-designed' hand-made illustration of coming in to land between the reef and a palm lined beach.
And for our bottle, we mimicked a time when rum of the islands was decanted into the most commonly available vessel - the standard whisky bottle.
Talking of bottles, this first batch of Idle Assembly is limited to only 6,500 bottles, so don’t miss the boat.