In keeping with their devotion to quality spirits with local twists, Newfoundland Distillery Company has launched a new product just in time for the Holiday drinking season. And it’s a pretty unique one. Chaga is a mushroom that grows in our forests. They balance the flavour with local honey.

Their Chaga Rum is made with 5 year old Demerara rum from Guyana, which is infused at Newfoundland Distillery Co. with chaga harvested from central Newfoundland, as well as honey from Grand Falls Windsor.

Demerara rum is produced on the banks of the Demerara River, just outside of Guyana’s capital of Georgetown, and is considered by many to be the finest rum in the world.

Demerara Distillers Limited is best known for producing El Dorado Rum (a global favourite). Because Guyana’s plantation owners entered the sugar industry late, they were able to import the latest, best equipment for milling sugarcane, and the industry exploded for all things sugar cane based. Including rum.

Rum from Demerara Distillers Limited is marked by the use of a Guyanese wood called Greenheart in the distilling process. It produces a mild rum of medium body, which is shipped off to vendors worldwide to do as they wish with it. Vendors like Newfoundland Distillery Co., who are putting a Newfoundland spin on a Guyanese rum. They wanted a deep, rich, aged demerera rum to go with the Chaga, and Demerara was the best fit they could get their hands on.

“The flavours capture the deep earthy notes of the chaga which bring out rich hints of truffle, chocolate, and coffee, balanced by the classic rich notes of the rum, held together by a touch of honey,” they explain.

“We like to think of it as a contemporary version of a dark rum, with complex and subtle flavours that are more savoury and less sweet than traditional rums.”

They say it’s superb on the rocks on its own, or with a little water, but that’s it’s versatility lends it well as a base for many classic rum cocktails as well.