Papa’s Pilar Rum, the worldly-sourced and Florida-finished rum brand inspired by legendary novelist Ernest Hemingway, announces the rarest offering in the brand’s ten year history – Ernest. Launching on Friday, July 21, which is also the birthday of ‘Papa’ Hemingway, the limited edition rum exemplifies the brand’s decade-long commitment to creating premium, high-quality rums with innovation at the forefront. Only 400 bottles of Ernest were created.
Ernest is a harmonious blend of hand-selected rums sourced from countries in South and Central America by 7th Generation Master Distiller, Ron Call. The blended rums were then put into new, heavy toasted American Oak barrels made of new 36-month old air-dried staves, and then double finished in both Cognac and Armagnac casks. The end result is a 100-proof rum with a refined and nuanced aroma of roses, violets, hazelnuts and burnt citrus peel. The initial subtlety is then overcome by a bold and complex flavor profile including notes of burnt citrus peel, turned earth, toasted hazelnut, green tea, cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, vanilla bean, and dark chocolate on the palate. The finish is particularly noteworthy with its extraordinary length and complexity that creates notes of green tea, vanilla bean and burnt citrus for a notable finish.
“With each new release, we prioritize showcasing our high-quality rums and for Ernest, we really wanted to push the envelope on what the category has been seen before,” said Papa’s Pilar Master Distiller, Ron Call. “This is what led to our decision to double finish the rum in new heavy-toasted American White Oak barrels made of 36-month air-dried staves, a process that enhances the deep natural vanilla and slight cocoa notes that carry over into our rum and create an extraordinary sensory experience.”
The bottle for Ernest is inspired by the beautiful, circular decanter seen in a photo of Hemingway taken circa 1940 at Finca Vigia, the novelist’s home located in Cuba just southeast of Havana, most well known as the location where he wrote portions of his famed novels “For Whom the Bell Tolls” and “The Old Man and the Sea.” The crystal decanter bottle was designed to double as a collector’s piece, coming encased in a teal display box embossed with golden foil, wood siding, cream stitching, and gold riveted piping. When opened it reveals a removable leather valet to display the elegant collectable bottle filled with golden rum and marked with Hemingway’s signature, with the image of Hemingway at Finca Vigia as its backdrop. The box also includes a crystal decanter top made to replace the wood and gold ‘travel cork.’ Papa’s Pilar consulted with Hemingway historian, author and friend, Philip Greene to ensure the decanter-style bottle was historically accurate and identical to Hemingway’s.
Over the past year, the premium rum category has seen significant growth within the spirits industry as a whole. This shift can be largely credited to the innovation seen in present day rum making, such as the exploration of new cask finishes, as well as consumers’ desire for education on the vast offerings and origins of the spirit. Papa’s Pilar is a leader in the category as its line up of rums utilize a variety of sourcing and finishing techniques that create a complex liquid meant to be savored.
“Since we founded Papa’s Pilar ten years ago, we have aimed to be at the cutting edge of innovation in both the rum category and the ultra-premium spirits industry as a whole,” said Papa’s Pilar’s founder and CEO, Steve Groth. “Ernest shows how we are letting our expert craftsman do what they do best and lead the way with limited run, curated, collectable releases. We have found that driving our business through the lens of craftsmanship has been key to truly exceptional results.”
Ernest (SRP: $599) will be available to purchase through Papa’s Pilar’s website starting on July 21. Members of Papa’s Pilar’s Hemingway Social Club will receive early access to the release.
