Meet Blackpool's 'best in world' liquor makers who say 'rum is having a renaissance'

LancsLive

Meet Blackpool's 'best in world' liquor makers who say 'rum is having a renaissance'

LancsLive 13.06.2023 07:53:54 Denise Evans

Creating the world's best chocolate liquor does not happen overnight. In fact, perfecting Lucela's signature chocolate and rum blend took seven years.

What began as taste-testing their homemade drink between two friends and their families, turned into an award-winning premium liquor business partnership for Blackpool-based Phillip Fairclough and Andrew Green. When nationwide lockdowns hit in 2020, with Phillip's mobile pizza business need and the duo patiently perfected their drink

"I just started playing around with rum and chocolate flavours six or seven years ago, out of boredom and the result was kind of accidental and it has never been any other flavours, " Phil told LancsLive. "Our friends and family tried it and it was really popular so we looked into producing it commercially."

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"We didn't rush into anything, we took our time and it took a long time to get right. The flavours came from a trip to a Christmas market - it has been chocolate rum from the start.

"It is very personal to us and we want to make sure we are doing the best that we can - making it affordable luxury."

The premium liquor won four accolades at the World Drinks Awards 2023 which is the pinnacle in the competitive industry, but they have "only scratched the surface" so far says Phil and have aspirations to become "world-beaters".

The Phil and Andrew, who is a property developer, have been busy attending trade shows and events to showcase their vegan and allergy-friendly drink. Making the drink suitable for everyone was important to the pair, who overcame challenges of creating a usually dairy-heavy product, gluten-free.

The drink, which comes in two bottle sizes (500ml, £23.50 and 700ml, £30 and can be bought online) and is 20 strength, is designed to be drunk straight, but Phil and Andrew have also developed a number of brilliantly-named cocktails, with the method and recipe included on their website.

The drink is not yet available in wholesale or venues such as bars and restaurant, but that is part of future plans for the young but thriving business. In fact, the ultimate aim is to stock in in their own 'Lucela's Bar'.

Phil added: "We wanted the flavour and ingredients to appeal to everyone, from 18 to 80. We're proud as the drink as a standalone drink but people also asked what they could drink it with. So we put our twist on classics such as the Espresso Martini with the help of a mixologist. The six cocktails have taken on a life of their own and the taste of them is outrageous!"

Asked what sets Lucela's apart from the rest, the pair say the overwhelming feedback from customers is that it is "so easy to drink", without creating the 'claggy, throat burn' some liquors cause. more varieties of liquor flavours could be introduced in future, but rum and chocolate is the sole focus for now.

"It is very drinkable" Phil explained. We had an elderly couple come to a show and bought a bottle on day, then came back the next for another as they had drunk it all already.

"We don't want something that is just sitting in a cupboard gathering dust. We want it to look good on a shelf, lit properly.

"People will tell us they don't like rum as it can be seen as a more 'male' drink, especially ladies who may drink gin and vodka but they taste it and just say 'I need that'. They just need to get over that rum boundary."

While Andrew added: "People tell us it is like cream liquor but without the cream, because it is so smooth and that is something that came across from the awards judges, on how the flavour comes through."