A year in development, 100 litres of distilled Cornish rum, 300 litres of cold brewed coffee...numerous tastings (hic!)...
And we now have Kalkar, scratch distilled Cornish rum, blended with single origin cold coffee brew by The Cornish Distilling Co - an artisan distilling company in North Cornwall, based here at Norton Barton Artisan Food Village, and working alongside Cornish Charcuterie and POPTI Cornish Bakehouse.
Kalkar is the brain child of Head Distiller, Tom Read. Having completed a PhD in Bio Chemistry in 2013, Tom went on to a gain experience in a number of areas, all of which culminated in the idea to create Kalkar. Tom's passion for baking and coffee led to work in a bakery, as well as training to become a barista - learning about flavour complexity and the science of yeast and cold brew coffee. Tom also went back to lifeguarding for the RNLI in Cornwall - the inspiration behind the Weever fish seen on Kalkar's bottle.
Having taken the decision to submit Kalkar to The Guild of Fine Food for the Great Taste Awards 2017, Tom and the team were ecstatic to receive three stars, and some glowing feedback from the judges:
"A real grown up indulgence, step aside Espresso Martini...."
"Genuine, aromatic, complex, cold brew coffee flavour, masterfully made into a liqueur. It has no bitterness, lots of character and raises the bar on coffee liqueurs."
For Tom, this was a real validation of all of the time and work that had been put into Kalkar, and a testament to the individuality of Kalkar, sitting a cut above traditional coffee spirits and liqueurs "The single origin coffee provides a real hit of fresh espresso with notes of chocolate and red berries. The rum, distilled on-site, complements this with vanilla, a hint of spice and a good bite to finish. Just a touch of raw sugar is added to balance the drink."
So...how to drink it?
This is smooth coffee spirit that is perfect on its own with a cube of ice, or mixed with coconut water as a tall drink.
Kalkar also makes the an incredible edition to an espresso martini, or poured over ice cream for an extra special Italian affogato.
Kalkar is made in small batches, and is a truly artisan Cornish spirit. It is now available to buy online here with fast UK delivery.