What we’re drinking: Ten to One Five Origin Select
Where it’s from: A blend, Ten to One highlights the best in Caribbean rums (as in, not bound by just one country or island). The brand was started by Marc Farrell, a Trinidadian who took the brand’s name from a phrase by Dr. Eric Williams, Trinidad and Tobago’s first Prime Minister. When rallying to preserve the first Caribbean federation of 10 countries, he said, “One from ten leaves zero” (basically, that they were stronger together than apart).
Why we’re drinking this: Farrell launched Ten to One in 2019 to “bring a more elevated, contemporary, inspired reflection of rum and the culture that surrounds it to market,” he tells us. “I wanted rum to get away from the narrative and caricature of pirates and plantations and sea monsters and be more authentically Caribbean,” To that end, he’s created a few pan-Caribbean blends that marry together different distillation methods, provinces and terroirs.
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Ten To One Rum’s “Kindred Spirits” is a sequel to the groundbreaking 1917 cocktail book and a celebration of Black mixologistsFive Origin Select is a new permanent edition to Ten to One’s small portfolio. It’s sourced from five Caribbean countries and features rums from Trinidad, Barbados, the Dominican Republic, Jamaica and an 11- to 15-year-old Guyanese rum distilled on the Port Mourant Double Wooden Pot Still that was built in 1732, the only one of its kind still in operation.
Farrell’s idea about Five Origin Select is to create a sophisticated sipping rum. “I’d love to see more rum flights in bars and restaurants,” he says. “I’d love to see more dinner or post-dinner pairings.” As a fan of both the brand’s white and dark rums, which are perfect for Daiquiris, I was curious to see if Five Select could offer an elevated taste profile on its own.
How it tastes: Bottled at 92 proof, Five Origin Select offers notes of crème brûlée, vanilla, cocoa, baking spices and orange zest with a somewhat dry finish. It’s certainly a good sipper, and new notes open up on each sip (I got more apple as I went along), but I wouldn’t discount it in cocktails.
Fun fact: Farrell, the son of an economist and a psychologist, has led a fascinating life. He attended MIT at the age of 16, studied chemical engineering as an undergrad, went to business school and later became the youngest VP of Starbucks.
Where to buy: Ten to One Five Origin Select retails for $65 and is available here.
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