A Rum Business

It’s synonymous with the Caribbean, but some extraordinary versions of this tropical tipple are being made in East Anglia, finds Emma Hughes

- Emma Hughes

IF Ian Fleming’s Q had decided to go into the spirits business, he might have approached it a bit like Dr John Walters. ‘I was listening to Radio 4 and they were going on about the joys of eaux de vie, spirits made from distilling wild-fruit wine,’ the former Oxford biochemist explains. ‘At the end, the presenter said “Of course, you can’t do this in the UK—it’s illegal.” I thought, that sounds like rubbish.’

It was 2009 and Dr Walters, who had just sold his business, was looking for a new outlet for his scientific know-how. Having confirmed that it was perfectly legal to own a still of up to four litres (just under a gallon) in size for personal use, he built himself one in a shed. Then, using the grapes growing up his house in Dullingham, Cambridgeshire, he made cognac. The results were so impressive that, eventually, he decided to go full-time.

Having filled out all the relevant paperwork and expanded his operation, Dr Walters found his new venture, English Spirit, ‘knocking out about 120 bottles a week, which was actually quite hard work’. His small team started making vodka and gin from East Anglian sugarbeet, but, at that stage, there weren’t that many vodka and gin drinkers. ‘We needed to broaden the portfolio and I suddenly thought why is nobody doing rum?’