If rum conjures up images of overly sweet slushy drinks at
an all-inclusive or a particularly messy night in university, Miss Things and Flor
de Caรฑa aims to change that perception. During National Rum Day, the two
combined to host a dinner and rum pairing ($65 per person), showcasing the
popular spirit in a more refined light. Prices
are provided on dishes offered on Miss Thing’s normal menu.
After a day working, the rum punch was a warm welcome and
the first hints that Miss Things’ cocktails are something else. Sure the punch
incorporated the traditional rum and juice, but the splash of ginger beer added
such a great kick of flavour and the mint, when infused into the drink,
mellowed it out.
As the crab toast motoyaki
($8) appeared, its rich creamy seafood aroma preceded the dish. Sitting on
a well toasted sourdough crostini was plenty of warm crab meat mixed into a
buttery lobster hollandaise. A delicious way to begin the meal and a starter to
try if you enjoy lobster rolls.
Chef Jasper Wu’s Pan Asian creations incorporates fresh
fruits with a host of other ingredients, to give dishes an interesting twist.
Two fruit salads served that evening had varying love-or-hate elements, but
were nonetheless different from the generic green salads.
The watermelon salad ($12) takes the fruit and compresses it
with a bit of lime. Then comes plethora of flavours with a briny spicy XO
sauce, mint, shallots, cotija cheese
and deep fried burdock root chips for crunch. Having had something similar
before, the fishiness from the XO sauce was a bit too much. Also, I prefer the watermelon in its natural state,
as I found pressing it with the lime juice gave the fruit the soggy texture and
slightly off flavour of watermelon that’s been sitting around in a fruit salad
for too long.
Meanwhile, the pineapple jicama salad ($12) was a hit, also
having a sweet and savoury twist but in a balanced manner. The thin slices of
sweet pineapple and crunchy jicama slivers were so refreshing, and you could
customize how much of the spicy peanut satay sauce to mix into the fruit.
Normally, I’m not a fan of savoury dishes incorporating roasted peanuts, but in
this case, it worked with the salad and the crispy rice noodles crowning it.
The intricately put together mosaic of thinly sliced octopus
in the carpaccio was beautiful.
Having been lightly grilled, it wasn’t raw and retained a light sweetness.
Under the seafood were piles of soft beluga lentils and crisp pineapple salsa,
both worked nicely with the tender octopus. Around the plate, a shrimp paste
vinaigrette and squid ink salt, to add even more of a seafood essence – I scooped
up every bit of the condiments.
Our main, an espresso rubbed elk loin, was a swift change
from the otherwise tropical dishes previously served. For such a lean cut of
meat, I was pleasantly surprised by how tender and juicy it remained. The rich
foie gras sauce and chanterelle jus were fantastic, both strong but
complimenting flavours. With the crisp asparagus, roasted Jerusalem artichokes
and meaty chanterelles, the dish had a French flair and was a satisfying ending.
Throughout the meal, progressively aged shots of Flor de Caรฑa
rum were presented. As we moved from the light and fruity 5-year old to the
slightly richer 7-year old, the rum’s harshness mellowed out a bit and had a
sweeter finish. Then we sampled a “sipping” rum, the 12-year old is meant to be
enjoyed plain, although still strong it had a pronounced molasses taste without
the sweetness.
Karen Moodie, ambassador for Flor de Caรฑa, explains what
sets this Nicaragua rum apart: aside from the long periods of aging in barrels,
they won’t add anything after the barreling period (where natural evaporation
occurs) so you’re able to sample the true aged product. Moreover, they are a
vertically integrated company owning everything from the sugar cane fields to
the bottling facility – they essentially control the quality at every step of
production. Due to these factors, their rums have been awarded numerous accolades
amongst the World Spirits community.
Still a newbie to the sipping spirits category, the evening
was a great palette developing experience. I’ll be honest, even with the
sipping rum, the drink still had a kick to it… the finish not unlike what you’d
find in scotch and whiskey. But as you taste them side-by-side, the small
nuances start to peek through – slightly smoother and the flavours turning
richer.
Sadly, due to an early morning meeting, I wasn’t
able to stay for the grand finale: a chocolate banana mousse paired with 18 and
25-year old rums! One can only imagine how nicely the spirits would pair with a
sweet dish incorporating the same banana flavours infused into the rums since
their leaves line the barrels. Oh well, until next National Rum Day. Thank you
Miss Things and Flor de Caรฑa for a delicious development experience!
