A recent article in Esquire magazine decalred
that the best rum drink
on the planet is that served at the house bar at Stede Bonnet,
the fabled island
retreat owned by architect Norris Dapprington-Rusé.
Though a teetotaler
himself, Dapprington-Rusé takes pride in
maintaining a world-class bar at his island estate, even going so far
as to hire Campion
Lugg, a former bartender from the Cadogan Hotel
in London, to live at the manse year-round, ready to shake up a martini
or craft a Manhattan at any hour of the day or night. Lugg's signature
rum drink, The Mine Shaft, is said by
enthusiasts to give those who imbibe
it a brief, tipsy glimmer of paradise. Lugg himself, however, is more
circumspect.
"It's a rum drink with a bit of pinapple juice, a bit of orange juice,
some cream of coconut, a dash of nutmeg,
and a cherry on top," Lugg says.
"Drink enough of them and you'll see stars. But not necessarily heaven."
