ELIZABETHTOWN — Alex Munroe, owner of Cape Fear Distillery here, has been cruising the seas recently on Carnival Cruise Line.
Well, not Munroe, actually, but one of his pride and joys in the form of Cape Fear Rum.
“It’s a product we’ve worked hard here to produce,” he said.
That hard work has reaped rewards for Munroe and his crew — twice over.
Cape Fear Rum was entered in the 2021 Proof Awards in Las Vegas — the largest spirits competition in the country — and earned a number of awards. Little did Munroe know at the time, but the biggest award of all was yet to come.
“I received an email one morning from a guy named Eddie requesting a sample case of Cape Fear Rum to be shipped to Miami for a boat,: he explained. “There was no company name in the email or address, only specific shipping instructions, so I assumed it was for some bigwig who wanted it on his yacht.”
A couple weeks later, Munroe received an email from Eddie, and that;s when he found out that Eddie was the vice president of beverage operations for Carnival Cruise Line.
“I was so excited I printed the email and ran into the distillery and read it aloud to the crew working on the bottling line,” Munroe said. “We’d all been working so hard, and the Carnival interest provided confirmation that our efforts had been recognized.
“You’d have thought we’d just won the lottery!” he added.
According to a statement from Zachary Sulkes, Carnival Cruise Line’s director of beverage operations, “Carnival chose only three new rum brands to onboard this year and we chose Cape Fear Rum because of its smooth, tropical taste and nautical branding, which is perfect for our ships’ bars.”
Cape Fear Distillery was already providing product for Anheuser-Busch, which has sent the Cape Fear Distillery brand throughout the southeast, but the Carnival selection is taking Munroe and his crew’s efforts to another level.’
With Carnival putting Cape Fear Rum on 22 of its ships, Munroe said it’s increased production by about 30% — and there is hope for even more.
“We’re hoping it could open the door for other products of ours,” Monroe said. “We’re very proud of the spirits we produce.
““Everyone at Carnival has been very supportive to work with and, as we come out of the pandemic, people are eager to travel and try new things,” he added. “As an award-winning craft spirit, I believe Cape Fear Rum is going to be a hit onboard.”
Munroe said Friday he was sent a photo showing Cape Fear Rum behind the bar on a Carnival cruise ship.
According to published reports, Cape Fear Rum is distilled from molasses with flavors of butter rum and coconut. Along with the rum, Cape Fear Distillery produces Maritime Gin, Gamefish Vodka, Solera Whiskey and the 2-year-old Frying Pan Shoals Bourbon. Munroe said 3-year-old and 4-year-old versions of the bourbon are expected out later this year.
Cape Fear Distillery is located within Cape Fear Vineyard & Winery and the campus is situated east of Elizabethtown next to the Elizabethtown Industrial Park.
Opened in 2014, Cape Fear Vineyard & Winery includes 20 lakefront cottages, a restaurant called The Cork Room and a live music venue. Soon, the campus will also unveil a spa.
W. Curt Vincent can be reached at 910-862-4163 or [email protected].
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