English Harbour & Cavalier Rum

English Harbour and Cavalier are the two rums of Antigua Distillery, the island's main rum producer, and they cover both ends of the local drinking scale. English Harbour is the premium, aged label, a smooth sipping rum that takes its name from the historic harbour on the south coast. Cavalier is the everyday brand, lighter and more affordable, the rum many Antiguans actually mix at home and in rum shops.

The English Harbour name links the bottle directly to English Harbour and the Georgian naval heritage of Nelson's Dockyard, one of Antigua's most storied corners. The aged expressions are made to be drunk neat or over ice, while Cavalier is the natural base for a Caribbean rum punch with lime, fruit juice, and a dash of bitters and nutmeg.

Both are easy to find in island shops and bars, and a bottle of aged English Harbour is one of the more genuine souvenirs you can carry home. Sip the older rum slowly and save Cavalier for the punch you nurse while the sun goes down.

Antigua Distillery has been producing rum on the island for generations, distilling from molasses and ageing in oak in the tropical heat, which speeds maturation compared to cooler climates. That is part of why the aged English Harbour expressions taste rounder than their years might suggest. For travellers, the duty-free shop at V.C. Bird International Airport is a convenient last stop to pick up a bottle, though the same rums are usually cheaper at supermarkets in town. Buy the aged label to sip and a bottle of Cavalier if you plan to mix punch back home.