Manchester’s first and only dedicated and official rum festival is coming up on Saturday 8th July, 12-7pm (which also happens to be World Rum Day.) It’s a chance to try over 60 different rums from across the world and meet the distillers face-to-face, as well as enjoying some cocktails, Caribbean street food and a live DJ setting the tone.
The event was set up by local bar tender Dave Marsland in 2017 and has since become an annual fixture for drinkers looking for something a little different as well as rum aficionados.
Dave started bar tending at the age of 18, developing a love of cocktails and an understanding of different spirits, but he seemed to gravitate towards rum in particular.
“It could be down to my sweet tooth,” laughs Dave. “I do tend to gravitate towards anything that’s made from sugar, but I think it’s also the exotic nature of what the Caribbean offers.
“Rum is a rough and ready spirit. It hasn’t got the glamour that whisky or gin does, but ultimately it involves a lot more heart. It’s been there a long time now in terms of culture and there are so many different styles. It’s a very misunderstood kind of drink. If you think you know it, you probably don’t.
“There’s always something new coming out, a little gem that’s hidden away and I think that’s what intrigues me because I want to try it all. So that exoticness and that willingness to try something different is just perfect for rum.”
Once rum had started to get under Dave’s skin he got himself out there, meeting new people at tastings and masterclasses, which gave him the opportunity to start working with brands to see how they approach marketing to attract customers, and it was that which kickstarted his idea to start a Manchester Rum Festival.
“It was the opportunity to bring together everything I’ve come across; the people and the brands into one place,” Dave tells us. “At that time, Manchester didn’t have anything like that and luckily we’re still here today, so 20 years of my passion has culminated into Manchester Rum Festival.”
How did the whole thing start? “I remember thinking that this was an idea that would actually work,” says Dave. “It’s a big undertaking, setting something up from scratch, but we’ve got gin and whisky festivals and lots of beer festivals, so we’re not afraid of having a gathering of people and a couple of stands promoting something a little bit different in Manchester.
“But ultimately I wanted an opportunity to show how much fun rum is to try. I remember asking Lyndon Higginson (the man behind The Liars Club, Crazy Pedro’s, Junkyard Golf, Bunny Jacksons and more) because he has been rum in Manchester for the last ten fifteen years and I thought of all people, he’d be the one to put on a rum festival. He said it was mainly due to a lack of time, so essentially I was asking for his blessing. He said it was absolutely fine…as long as we had the after party at Liar’s Club, obviously…”
Dave started to ask some rum brands if they would be willing to come to Manchester and use the new rum festival as an opportunity to engage with a variety of new people and get live feedback. They did and Dave put together about 20 new stands in the basement space at Revolution de Cuba.
The first festival sold out and it’s grown from there. Dave and his team get some new rums coming in every year to keep it fresh. He’s got to the point where brands now come to him. “They’ve seen that Manchester is worth investing their time and effort in. It was a tip toe scenario in that first year but to see it becoming one of the key dates in Manchester has been fantastic,” he says.
Is the Manchester Rum Festival mainly for rum devotees or is it a place for rum novices looking to discover something new? “It’s a bit of both,” says Dave. “We get a lot of new people who discovered rum in lockdown and come to the festival to seek out a new rum from a different territory. But we also get connoisseurs and rum bloggers who like to try new things.”
“I’d never want the rum festival to come across as sort of high-end premium, where those who don’t know much about rum might feel out of place. But also, I don’t want people who do know their rum to think ‘I’ve tried all these, so why would I invest my money and time coming to Manchester?’ So, I always try to get that balance.
People are starting to come to the Manchester Rum Festival from far and wide. “This year there’s a handful of people coming over from Sweden who want to try things that they can’t get over there,” he says. “That’s the cool thing about it because there’s such a good mix of brands available this year there will be something for all levels of experience with rum.”
If you’ve never been to the rum festival before, what can you expect?
“It’s a showcase of styles from different territories, whether you want a spiced rum, a flavoured rum, or an aged rum,” says Dave. “You will ultimately find something that’s going to attract you and your senses. It offers a variety of brands that you would recognise and a lot of brands that you might come across for the first time.”
“I don’t want to give too much away but there will be some very innovative engagement ideas, some fun and games but ultimately there’ll be the opportunity for people to feel like they can learn where that brand has come from whether it’s Mauritius, Martinique or Brazil.”
As well as all the rum brands offering samples and stories there’ll be a DJ providing a great Caribbean vibe, a couple of authentic Caribbean street food vendors, and a cocktail bar sponsored by Monin who make flavoured syrups. “This Rum Festival is going to offer a bit of escapism and the feeling that you’re in a completely different place, even if it’s just for seven hours,” says Dave.
Guests can expect a variety of opportunities, styles and countries and hopefully even take advantage of a few festival offers on bottles to take home.
Dave went through what’s new for this year. “We’ve signed up our first Welsh Rum. We’ve also got a couple of Cuban rums showcasing rums from different parts of Cuba. We’ve got two distilleries coming from the Isle of Man. We’ve got beautiful Mexican brands, which prove that Mexico is not all about tequila…..”
Dave goes on, listing hard to find brands from the Seychelles, Brazil and even Madeira. His enthusiasm is infectious, so gave him one minute to explain why he reckons rum is the best spirit. Go!
“Rum offers such versatility. The flavour profiles, you’ve got the terroir and the sugar cane itself. You’ve got to understand what fermentation and distillation can do then you start to embrace the agricole styles – that cachaça feel you get from Brazil. Then of course you’ve got the maturation that offers such complexity, different ageing profiles in American oak, your finishes of Port, Sauternes, Sherry, Armagnac. And that’s not even including the added wave of spiced rums which give you so much opportunity. Then you have all the famous rum cocktails, the Mojitos, the Daquiris, Pina Colada, Hemmingways, getting people to try the rums in so many different ways. And then of course you’ve got every single country that could offer such a scenario…
We should have given him at least ten minutes….
Visit Manchester Rum Festival for more details and to buy tickets.
The event takes place on Saturday 8th July, 12-7pm at Mercure in Piccadilly Gardens. Tickets are just £25 per person (not inc. booking fee) and can be purchased here.
Follow @manchesterrumfestival
WIN – Fancy a couple of free tickets to Manchester Rum Festival? Of course you do!
Follow @AboutMcr on Instagram, like our Manchester Rum Festival post and tag the rum-loving friend you’d take. We’ll pick a winner from all those who have left comments on the closing date of 12th June and slide into their DMs to let them know. The organisers will email the tickets directly to the winner.
