YO HO HO, and a Bottle of Rum

YO HO HO, and a Bottle of Rum!

About a year ago, my brother asked me to find him a bottle of Tortuga Vanilla Rum during one of our Caribbean cruises.  I’m not sure how he learned about this particular rum, but he was hell-bent on trying some.  For whatever reason, Tortuga Rum is not available for purchase in the United States – so the search was on.

On our first cruise, after Skip made his request, we checked the ship’s store and the Duty-Free shop at each of the ports we visited:  no go.  They didn’t sell Tortuga.  We stopped in Grand Turk and St. Thomas and checked around town – still a dud.  For the next couple of cruises, we kept checking and couldn’t find it.

Now you must understand something:  Dan and I almost ALWAYS buy rum on each of our cruises.  It’s our spirit of choice and the deals we get, both on the ship and on each island, are amazing!  But more on that later!

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​After several cruises, we finally tried a tiny liquor store in Grand Cayman and guess what? They had it!  Turns out, Grand Cayman is the ONLY place you can purchase Tortuga Rum!  It’s made in Jamaica, but you can only buy it in Grand Cayman.  You can purchase Tortuga Rum cakes throughout the islands, and even in Florida – but not the rum itself. 
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So, we bought four bottles (two for Skip and two for us – we’d never heard of it before, but we figured my brother might be on to something!).  We were ecstatic and Skip was stoked when we presented him with our catch when he visited this past fall.  

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Once we tried the rum, we were hooked – it’s delicious!  I could drink it as a sipping beverage, it’s that good.  I used almost half of a bottle making my cranberry sauce and Pina Colada cake for Thanksgiving!  We will definitely buy more on our next stop in the Cayman Islands!

The point here is that, if you are inclined to purchase alcohol from time to time, you really should check out the deals when you’re in the Caribbean.  Dan and I have supplied the alcohol for two weddings now – everything from Crown Royal to Grey Goose Vodka – as our gift to the bride & groom, without breaking the bank!
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It’s also fun to check out the little stores on the island – we’ve found rums in so many interesting flavors and they’ve all turned out to be delicious.  We’ve also happened upon some unique bottles that make great gifts – whether it be with rum, whiskey, or whatever.  We found a blue coconut rum in Jamaica that was in a cute shell shaped bottle.  

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What’s funny is that Dan and I don’t drink much at home – so we have quite a collection of liquors that we’ve picked up during our travels.  If you come for a visit and want a drink, we have you covered!  I am also the resident bartender whenever our Crazy Travel Ladies get together for our quarterly Girls’ Get-Away!

So be sure to check out the deals at the ship’s liquor store, the Duty-Free shops at each pier and take a walk on the wild side and visit some of the little liquor stores in town.  I think you’ll be surprised at what you find!
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Send you all wishes for a happy and prosperous New Year – full of good health and joy!

Terie

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