Bingley pair behind Two Lasses Rum speak of 'huge learning curve'

Founders Lindsey Harrison and Rebecca Allinson, partners in business and in life, are behind Two Lasses Rum.

The pair first found their mutual love of all things rum on holiday and wanted to capture the essence of the Caribbean – with a Northern twist.

Lindsey said: “Holidays to the Caribbean initially sparked our interest.

The Two Lasses Rum selection

“We’d always thought of rum as a spirit to be mixed in cocktails or to have with coke, but we now know it’s so much more than that. We felt that some of the spiced rums were too heavy on the spice for our taste. We also found some of the flavoured rums were a little artificial tasting. So we set about creating what we think is a softer more natural product.

“We are an ambitious pair and over the years have casually chatted about creating something for ourselves.  We are big foodies and into most things food and drink.  We’ve talked about starting our own vineyard, opening a small charcuterie, creating our own gin but the idea that reappeared in most conversations was the creation of our own rum.”

• Find out about the firm's first appearance in the Great Taste Awards

Rebecca added: “Our rum is made from Molasses which are imported but the fermentation starts in England.  It is not a Caribbean rum that is reblended and distilled here. 

The pair behind Two Lasses Rum

"It is triple distilled which makes it smooth and warming rather than sharp and burning.

“We wanted to be different. New rums are coming to market regularly, but these tend to be Caribbean rums that are modified in the UK. Creating a rum from scratch means we have complete control over the entire process and can ensure that we produce a quality authentic liquid.  We can also control the provenance of the ingredients.”

Their Yorkshire Spiced Rum, described as a “big hug in a glass”, is built around the flavours of Yorkshire Parkin, a nod to their roots. They also sell a Chocolate and Orange Rum.

The Yorkshire Spiced Rum

The couple has also created a limited-edition bottle to celebrate Pride season.

Five per cent of all profits from the bottle will be donated to Stonewall, a charity that supports the LGBTQ+ community.

Lindsey said: "We are in our mid to late ’40s, we have never run a business, never mind created a product and a brand. It’s been all about learning from the recipe creation, fermentation and distillation process, brand design, promotion, sales, social media and marketing.

"It’s been a huge learning curve.”