Kraken Black Spiced Rum

[Orthodox Caveman]

I've been reading lots of good things about it:
http://www.columbusalive.com/live/content/features/stories/2010/06/24/spirits-the-kraken-rum.html?sid=108

Anyone here who ever drank this?

[Mr Tattie Heid]

Boy, talk about déjà vu...I could swear this has come up before, but I can't find it. Looks pretty dreadful to me. I bet if I drank some, it would come up again.

[Troutleg]

Its imported into the UK by Marblehead based near Glasgow. Its fairly new and selling by the truck load over in the states.
Heavily marketed and looks like they have spent some time on the packaging.
I have not tried it but if spiced rum is your thing then go for it.

[Mr Tattie Heid]

Spiced rum with Loch Dhu-worthy lashings of caramel color.

[ColSanders]

Have tried... and it honestly... good spice... but it has moments where it just TASTES like coloring... It's much like blue poweraide when it tastes "blue" there's no other real descriptor for it...

[Livvy]

I know market is selling this by the bucket load at the shop...maybe the packaging is the grabber...can't comment as I have not tasted it..yet. But I do like their sideline in branded 'stuff'...very nice

http://www.notcot.com/archives/2010/12/ ... e.php#more

I do like the lamp

[Tim F]

Have a friend who is very into spiced rum and he loves it. It's one of our bestselling products at the moment.

[mongo]

RELEASE THE KRAKEN!

[Drammed]

.. but it has moments where it just TASTES like coloring...

I had some of this stuff last night and I can totally agree with this statement. It is excessively sweet and and tastes like a bottle of spiced caramel. I have to give props for the very good marketing videos and bottle design.

edit - on the flavour - Imagine sticky toffee pudding, sweet rum and black food coloring put into a blender and poured into a bottle.

[Mr Tattie Heid]

But E150 (if that's what they're using) is not sweet.

[Pete Smoke]

Maybe they should have used black squid ink, they could have put that on the bottle, for more credibility, and relevance.

[The Craw]

It's very popular in the trendy pubs (and chains like Wetherspoons) around here just now - I think because the quirky bottle design gives it 'shelf-presence' and is very appealing to the target audience.

FWIW my missus thinks it's great (she's a Morgan Spiced fan ) and has bought a couple of bottles in the past few weeks (after we found that it had been discounted in Sainsburys to around £18). My kids think the bottle is 'well cool!'.

I strongly suspect it has much E150 added. However, like T says, caramel in this form does have a bitter aftertaste. Think saccharin, which gives an instant sweetness but a bitter aftertaste, well E150 is much the same for dark spirits (that's why many of us can't stand the stuff in whisky, plus it can masks other flavours).

Anyway, for Kraken I doubt if it matters whether it has E150 added or not as 95%+ of it will be served in a tumbler with cola or similar mixer.

EDIT - Pete, maybe that's why the kids think it's black!

[Drammed]

I don't know if this product uses E150 or not but on the label they state they add carmel to the bottle. I still stand by the taste part though, it is very sweet.

[Mr Tattie Heid]

I well believe you, Drammed, just saying the sweetness doesn't come from caramel coloring (E150). It wouldn't surprise me if it had added sweeteners...does it say anything about that on the label? "Artificial flavor", maybe?

[Drammed]

I well believe you, Drammed, just saying the sweetness doesn't come from caramel coloring (E150). It wouldn't surprise me if it had added sweeteners...does it say anything about that on the label? "Artificial flavor", maybe?

yep the label states they add caramel and other spices to the mix. other spices could be sugar/molassas/etc.