“The Rookie” and “Days of Our Lives” star Eric Winter is jumping from television to tipples with a pair of blended rums that combine flavors from across the Caribbean and Latin America. On Monday, Winter teamed up with entrepreneurs Andy Miller and Andrew Pruett to unveil Palm Republic Rum. The first of the two bottlings is an 80-proof Silver expression that combines rums from Jamaica and the U.S. Virgin Islands, said to imbue flavors of banana, vanilla and nutmeg. The other expression adds a splash of Panama rum to the mix before aging eight years in sherry casks. Bottled at 92 proof, the Aged Rum balances notes of dark chocolate, muscovado sugar and gingerbread. The actor says he was inspired to launch Palm Republic by his wife, Puerto Rican singer-songwriter and actress Roselyn Sánchez.
“To me, this is not just another celebrity spirit, this is a passion of mine for the past 20 years. I fell in love with rum when I went on my first trip to Puerto Rico with my now-wife Roselyn Sánchez. It was then that I started to appreciate all of the different nuances premium rum had to offer,” Winter said in a news release. “I mean this when I say it, the real star here is our unique blend of rum that is Palm Republic! As it should be.”
(Photo: Palm Republic)[/caption] Though celebrity-backed spirits may be a dime a dozen these days, celebrity rum has never taken off with quite the same vigor as tequila, wine or vodka. Nonetheless, Winter will go up against tough competition on liquor store shelves. Some of the bigger names on the market include Kenny Chesney’s Blue Chair Bay, Sammy Hagar’s Beach Bar and Bruno Mars’ Selva Rey. Unlike those imprints, Palm Republic will launch without a flavored rum, hopefully highlighting the strength and quality of its Carribean-sourced base spirit. Palm Republic Silver Rum and Aged Rum are now available online
at $45 and $50 respectively. [botmc-promo]