Decem 10% Light Spirit Spiced Blend

On their website Decem point out that by law in the UK, a spirit, to be called by its category name, has to be 37.5% or more, and to be called low alcohol, a drink must contain less than 1.2 ABV, which leaves a huge grey area in the middle. Decem’s drinks, as their name hints, contain 10% ABV, or just seven units a bottle, around half a unit for a 50ml measure. This allows people to enjoy what they creatively called ‘school night drinking’ but contains just enough alcohol to give a warmth and hint of fire to their drinks.

These were developed by Billy Wright, a Masterchef finalist who aimed to ‘find the most interesting combinations of fruits, herbs and botanicals to blend genuinely different liquids that hold complex flavours yet are easy to drink with the simplest mixers.’ I think he’s done a fantastic job.

Mmmm, this has everything that a proper golden spiced rum should have. There’s a molasses sweetness rounding out the alcohol and the deep liquorice notes of allspice, nutmeg and ginger. A touch of citrus adds a brightness and sharpness, and pineapple and burnt sugar create a toffee smoothness that just rounds everything off. With a good sharp ginger ale and a lime wedge and lots of ice, this is one to enjoy sitting on a beach as a sundowner.