Malibu Rum

Malibu is one of those drinks that I love but for some reason always forget about or never think to have. I nearly always drink Vodka and diet coke whether its having a drink at home or in the pub, but it occurred to me this Christmas that it had been a few years since I had drank Malibu so I was determined to buy a bottle. A little concerned that the Malibu would not be as good as I remembered it being, I picked up a bottle when I was shopping in my local Tesco. However I need not have worried, trying it on Christmas day first neat and then with Diet Coke it was just as good as I remembered, I really don't know why I don't have this more often!!!!

The Bottle
Malibu stands out a bit compared to a lot of the other bottles of spirits on the supermarket shelves, whilst it does come in a clear glass bottle, this is totally covered in a white plastic label giving the appearance of white colour glass, the only area of clear glass can be seen if you turn the bottle up side down. Malibu is a Caribbean Rum so the bottle has a picture of 2 palm trees with the sun setting behind them in the middle of the label. Above this in large capitol letters in a curved shape is the word Malibu, this is in black writing which really stands out against the white label. Towards the bottom of the bottle are the words "Caribbean Rum with Coconut Original", this is obviously the flavour of the drink, this too is written in black capitol letters allowing them to stand out against the white bottle. The only other information on the front of the bottle is a very faint piece of writing which says "Twelve Islands Shipping" with the word Island written inside an oval shape, this writing is in a very light silver and really does not stand out. At the bottom of the bottle is what is designed to be a stamp of some kind which is a circle with the word Caribbean across the middle of it, and above and below this word it says " In the Spirit of ", this is in s grey coloured writing and does stand out a little more against the white background. The back of the bottle has the same 2 palm trees and sunset logo and the curved word Malibu on it which is towards the top. Underneath this is a small piece of writing about Malibu stating how it is the original Caribbean rum with coconut and is brought to the international shores by the Twelve Islands shipping company. The back if the bottle also has a serving suggestion of how to make Malibu a little bit different. The rest of the information on the back of the bottle is standard on alcohol packaging and consists of the usual warnings as well as the volume and percentage of alcohol the product contains, all of this information is written in black writing to fit in with the theme of the bottle, it also makes it very easy to read. The neck of the bottle has a thin piece of foil/metal wrapped around it which is black and has the palm tree and sunset logo printed all around it in red, above this is a small black metal screw lid which allows you to re-seal the product securely when needed, this too is black in colour with the palm tree and sunset logo on it in red as well as the word Malibu, which is also in red capitol letters. The bottle design really is quite simple and minimalist, however this does make it noticeable and stand out against other brands of spirits, personally I quite like the design of the bottle as it is a little bit different.

A Bit About Malibu
Malibu is a rum which is made in Barbados with the natural extracts of coconut. Originally the drink was made with fruit spirits and then flavoured with coconut and rum, and was designed to simplify the making of Pina Coladas. After changing hands a couple of times, the Malibu product is now owned by Parnod Ricard. Whilst the most popular version of Malibu is the original coconut flavour, there are other variations of the market, these include some of the following -
Malibu Mango Rum
Malibu Passion Fruit Rum
Malibu Pineapple Rum
Malibu Tropical Banana Rum
Malibu Island Melon Rum
Personally I have never seen any of these flavours in the shops, however I think I would be happy to try all of these flavours particularly the mango version.

Malibu really does have a distinctive flavour and smell to it, as soon as you remove the lid you can smell the sweet coconut, personally I do not think that Malibu particularly smells like an alcoholic drink as the coconut fragrance is the most dominant. I have drunk Malibu both neat and with a mixer, Malibu is totally clear in colour and as with spirits non carbonated, as soon as you take a sip of the drink you can instantly taste the strong rum flavour, however this is toned down a little by the coconut mixed with it which complements the rum giving it a fresh taste, the combination of the two flavours is just right allowing you to taste both the rum and the coconut without one flavour dominating the other (this is despite the coconut having the strong smell) The percentage of Malibu is 21% meaning as with most spirits it is quite strong, therefore if you prefer your drinks a little weaker it is probably best drunk with a mixer, personally I think it is enjoyable either way, but over Christmas I did tend to drink it with either coke or lemonade, and have to say it went very nicely with both, however you do not only have to drink Malibu with the regular mixer type drinks it can be added to various other spirits and fruit juices to make refreshing and tropical cocktails, Malibu is a very versatile drink and does go with pretty much anything, you can find literally hundreds of recipes online which contain Mailbu, I am yet to try any of these, however considering I still have half a bottle left, I might give some a go.

Price
Malibu can be bought in most supermarkets, off licences and even corner shops. I bought my bottle from our local Tesco, I purchased the 70cl sized bottle and this cost me £11.00, however it was on offer at the time and at full price is £13.89. You can also but a 1 litre bottle which is a little more expensive at £18.69. I was pleased that the Malibu was on offer when I bought it, however I would have been prepared to pay full price as it is pretty much average for spirits. As for it being long lasting, well that all depends on how quick you drink and how strong you like your drinks!!!

Warnings
The warnings on the back of the bottle are just standard for most alcoholic drinks you can buy consisting of drinking responsibly and not to drink if you are pregnant, this are demonstrated by symbols printed on the label rather than actual writing. In the section with the warnings it also shows you how many units of alcohol the bottle contains, in this case a 70cl bottle of Malibu contains 14.7 units of alcohol.

Overall I would definitely recommend Malibu as a drink, it has a lovely refreshing taste and would be suitable for any occasions whether its a party or a summer BBQ, I also like the fact that it goes with most things (well in my opinion) meaning you do not have to buy a mixer in especially to put with it. I am glad I decided to try Malibu again as I had forgotten how nice it actually was, it really is something a bit different to the regular vodka drinks I stick to, this will definitely be one to have in the future.