I drop an ice cube into my glass of Mount Gay Black Barrel-so named for the charred barrel bottoms that age it. As we chat, he suggests some other foods to pair with rum (duck confit spring rolls, charcuterie rife with aged cheeses like gouda accompanied by salty tostones), and I begin to salivate. He also crafted an all-season dish inspired by the prodigious burnt caramel flavors of Mount Gay's Black Barrel: a slow-cooked lamb rib braised with ginger, chili, and soy sauce. The culinary bold-faced name, cookbook author, and out-of-the-box innovator has created a cocktail-a signature Manhattan, with Mount Gay rum in place of Rye.
"To me, it's the aged Bourbon casks that make a difference," he says, telling me that his view of rum has changed since he began collaborating with the heritage brand. I decide right then that I'll never drink a single malt whiskey again, as long as I can tipple top-shelf rum from Mount Gay, made in Barbados since 1703 at the world's oldest continually-operating rum distillery. New suede," he says, using chef words to describe the rum. But, our phone call is still an elegant experience.
The top chef and co-star of a new cooking competition show is in his backyard in Southern California with views of the sea, and I'm on the Texas Coast, sitting on a pier with a pelican. We're not sitting across from each other in a speakeasy -we're on the phone. It's Thursday and Chef Richard Blais and I are sipping Mount Gay Black Barrel Rum neat.