The Itinerary: Jamaica and Grand Cayman
In this month's edition of 'The Itinerary,' I share some brief highlights from my trips to Jamaica and Grand Cayman, and what to expect from this month's newsletters.
For those who are new here, ‘The Itinerary’ is a monthly newsletter published during the first week of every month. In this newsletter, I share a recap of any eventful happenings from the previous month, what I have going on in the weeks to come, or what to expect from The Tipsy Traveler if my life is looking a bit more mundane than usual.
Expect some rambling about cocktails and spirits, food and travel, as well as my favorite cocktail from the previous month, the best place I’ve stayed or played, links to a couple recent stories of mine that’ve been published, and my favorite photo that I’ve taken in the last month. If you are simply interested in some of those highlights, then scroll to the bottom of the newsletter. But if you are curious to know what content to expect on The Tipsy Traveler in the next month and what I have going on, then fasten your figurative seatbelts and let’s dive in.
The Ultimate Rum Tour of Jamaica
My trip to Jamaica with The Whiskey Exchange was a spiritual experience (pun intended). Seven of us—three drinks journalists, two friends from The Whiskey Exchange (their head of PR, Liz Lock, and head buyer, Dawn Davies), a rep from the tourism board and our local driver—traversed the island for five days with one mission: visit five out of the six operating distilleries on the island to learn about Jamaican rum in the most immersive and authentic way possible. I can safely report that we accomplished our mission with gusto.
Our tour around the island took us to various parishes (read: regions) of Jamaica, and along the way we tasted, and nibbled on freshly pressed sugarcane juice; we saw and smelled some of the mind-blowing fermentations at the historic distilleries (Hampden Estate was particularly nuts); and we tasted some spectacular rums (of course). It’s a difficult experience to summarize because of how spectacular it truly was, and the above doesn’t cover a fraction of the experience. To completely cover this tour of Jamaica’s famous distilleries, I’d need thousands of words; so instead, I’ll be sending out a newsletter at the end of this week with a bunch of photos from the epic trip with some brief descriptions (one picture says a thousand words, right?).
I’m looking forward to sharing photos from this ultimate tour of Jamaican rum — a core tenet of Jamaican culture. Regardless of whether or not you enjoy rum, I can’t recommend planning your own trip to Jamaica to check out some of the distilleries. Getting to all five—the sixth, New Yarmouth Distillery, isn’t open to the public—in one go isn’t very likely as it’s a ton of driving, but even experiencing one or two will be enough to connect you to the country in a way that few other excursions can. If you followed the journey on my Instagram (see here for my video recap), you’ll know exactly what I mean.
A Return to the Culinary Capital of the Caribbean, Grand Cayman
After having the privilege of visiting Jamaica’s breathtaking rum distilleries, I caught a quick flight from Kingston to Grand Cayman. Even though it’s only been three years since my previous visit to the island, the hospitality scene on the island has changed drastically, and it’s very much for the better.
Ailis (my wife, for all the newbies here) and I did the full tour of all the new hotspots, in addition to soaking up some sunshine, of course. (It is the place where we met, after all.) The main drinking destinations on our list were: Next Door (new independent cocktail bar), Door No. 4 (new independent cocktail bar), Palm Heights (a new boutique hotel with world class food and beverage offerings, including a new cocktail lounge that’s set to debut in the next couple of months — friends of mine are the consultants on the beverage programs), Silver Palm and Saint June at the Ritz Carlton Grand Cayman (new cocktail bars at this luxury hotel which was completely renovated during the pandemic), and Library at the Sea at the Kimpton Seafire Resort + Spa (new high-concept cocktail bar where some of bartenders and staff from World’s 50 Best Bars have been recruited to work). All-in-all, we were both impressed by the quality of the cocktails served and how the scene had progressed in such a relatively short period of time, and I have some exciting things to share about the island. Some of which I’ll be sharing this month in my newsletters—keep an eye out for a ‘Recipe Book’ newsletter with a recipe for a Champagne Piña Colada to die for!—while the rest will be covered in the stories that I’m writing for Food & Wine.
Cocktail of the month:
Kudo Cooler at Door No. 4, Grand Cayman
Ingredients: Tanqueray gin, cucumber saké, mango leaf cordial, lime, soda, mango skin essence
I had many very good cocktails in October, including this delicious coffee cocktail with banana cream at Katana Kitten’s 50 Best after party. But the focus and balance of this highball paired with the freshness of the local mango put this drink into a different class for me. Considering it’s only been open for six months, this bar is definitely one to watch.
Best place I’ve stayed or played:
Kimpton Seafire Resort + Spa, Grand Cayman
This five-star resort on Grand Cayman’s famous Seven Mile Beach is a must-book when traveling to the island. It has the best beach access on all of Seven Mile (Ritz Carlton is a close second), and the food and beverage offerings are second to none. With the high-concept cocktail bar Library at the Sea opening imminently, it’s the perfect place to stay if you fancy a fine nightcap.
Published stories to read:
Food & Wine - Pull Up a Seat to the Oldest Pub in Scotland
Remember when I was in Edinburgh and visited the city’s oldest pub? Well, here’s what it’s all about.
Favorite photo I’ve taken this month:
