A Perthshire rum producer launched in December plans to be part of a Scottish ‘rumnaissance’.
Freddy Drucquer, Dougie Jeffries and Chris Dowdall dreamed to create a distinctly Scottish spiced rum distilled, bottled and distributed in their homeland.
After partnering with Strathearn Distillery in Methven, they tested and developed the recipe until it was perfect.
Brass Neck rum includes exotic ingredients like tonka beans and cacao nibs, as well as Scottish botanicals including nettles and milk thistles.
Now the founders say they are in the best possible shape for a predicted global boom in rum sales, which they have dubbed the “rumnaissance”.
Brass Neck sells 1,000th bottle of rum
The trio hope to play a defining role in establishing Scotland as a new centre of global rum production.
Freddy said: “Scotland has an incredible distilling heritage thanks to whisky.
“In the past 10 years, Scotland has also come to make its mark on the gin scene.
“In less than a decade, gin distilling has become a hugely successful, standalone, multi-million-pound industry for Scotland.
“All the signs point to a ‘rumnaissance’ that could be even bigger than what we have seen with the resurgence of gin.”
The project started in late 2019 and while the pandemic proved a setback, it did not derail the self-funded start-up.
Brass Neck has now sold its 1,000th bottle, passing “a major milestone” and establishing its place in the market.
Freddy said: “We are now firmly on the radar of investors, distributors and potential stockists.
“We are the right product, in the right place at the right time and we are understandably excited about the way things are going.
“It is a really nice place to be as a start-up.”
Scottish rum to go international
While sales have been predominantly via the Brass Neck website, premium spirit distributor Huffmans of Perth also stocks the rum.
Meanwhile, Freddy and his colleagues are in “advanced discussions” with an international distributor which would see their rum given a toehold in both the US and Europe.
Brass Neck has also made early on-trade breakthroughs, seeing it stocked in a number of bars and restaurants.
They also have a mobile rum bar which caters to weddings and other events.
A major target for the next year is to breakthrough in more on-trade outlets.
The Wine and Spirits Trade Association (WTSA) reported in 2018 that 35 million bottles of rum were sold in the UK, a £1 billion market.
While white rum sales are falling, growth is driven by demand for dark and spiced rums.
