Get yourself some of the finest rum known to man (one of these perhaps?) add some ice, something fruity, a bit of citrus and some bitters and you’re halfway to Jamaica in a glass. Add half a fucking rainforest for decoration and there’s no turning back.
Here’s our pick of the best the city has to offer…
Sandinista
They are so proud of their punch here that they even offer these brilliant masterclasses where you can learn how to make it using a bit of booze, some egg cups and a few jars. As simple and as tasty as you could ever want, their Plantation Punch uses the brilliant 5-year Plantation Rum from Barbados and teams it up with even more Caribbean flavours – a bit of mango, a sprinkle of guava, lime and some lovely mint. Perfect.
Sandinista, 2 Old Bank St, City Centre, Manchester M2 7PF
sandinistagroup.co.uk/
The Liars Club
A tiki bar that has probably the city’s biggest and most eclectic selection of rums, of course Liars are on this list – their punches are legendary. Perfect for letting your hair down at the start of the weekend, I highly recommend their Bronson rum punch which is a mix of Plantation OFTD (Old Fashioned Traditional Dark) Overproof rum (69 bleeding %!), Bacardi Carta Oro a bit of citrus, a bit of spice and some bitters. It’ll knock your bloody socks off!
The Liars Club, 19A Back Bridge St, Manchester M3 2PB
theliarsclub.co.uk
Revolución de Cuba
Another place that’s guaranteed to do some seriously good rum cocktails is of course Revolución de Cuba – and they have around 8 punches to choose from should you be so inclined. I’ve tried approximately 34% of them on the menu and by far my favourite was the Reggae Rum Punch – mostly because it contains my most favourite rum of all time – Wray & Nephew Overproof. To that they add some Jamaican Blackwell rum, Chambord, orange, pineapple and lime for a rum of legendary prowess.
Revolución de Cuba, 11 Peter St, Manchester M2 5QR
https://www.revoluciondecuba.com/bar/manchester/
Cane & Grain
With a new cocktail menu has come a couple of rather delicious rum punches to Cane & Grain’s arsenal and they are just perfect as a little bit of side action while scoffing some ribs. Although I usually don’t care much for passion fruit – it’s a bit too middle class for me – their Fallout Boy rum punch has a nice bit of Midori in it so it’s not as tart as one would expect. Alongside them is a lovely bit of Havana Rum, guava, orange juice and lime.
Cane & Grain, 49 -51 Thomas Street, Manchester M4 1NA
https://caneandgrain.co.uk/
Mojo
When you label yourself as a ‘Rum Bar’ then you better bloody well come up with the goods when it comes to your punch. Well, Mojo’s imaginatively named ‘Rum Punch’ is a thing of beauty and is the perfect tipple to be holding while you’re dancing on one of the tables at 3am on a Tuesday night. They use Appleton Signature Blend rum from Jamaica and pair it with fresh lime juice and, very interestingly – hibiscus and ginger. Those final two put this punch into a whole new level of goodness.
MOJO, 59 Bridge St, Manchester M3 3BQ
https://mojobar.co.uk/manchester
Henry C
You can always rely on one of the Finest office’s most favourite cocktail bars to bang out a cracking rum punch and so once again – thank you Henry C. If you’re ever in Chorlton and you don’t pop in – you’re an idiot. You’ll be missing out on their Pain Killer punch which comes with coconut, pineapple, orange and nutmeg – sort of like a nice punch-y twist on the Pina Colada. The rum they use? The fantastic Pusser’s Rum which is a proper British Navy rum – the kind that Uncle Albert would have been drinking on the Russian convoys during the war.
Henry C, 107 Manchester Rd, Manchester M21 9GA
www.wearehenryc.com/
Black Dog Ballroom
That old nemesis of mine, passion fruit, makes another appearance here but the Passion Punch Sharer at Black Dog is still one to check out. It’s 30 quid but it’s absolutely massive and it’s got 2 types of rum in it, including Bacardi’s cinnamon-y flavoured offering Carta Fuego, as well as apple juice, pineapple, a bit of lime juice and finally a flourish of ginger beer. Okay so the ginger beer makes it less of a ‘proper’ rum punch but screw it – I’m in charge here and in my eyes – it’s a punch.
Black Dog Ballroom NQ, 52 Church St, Manchester M4 1PW
Black Dog Ballroom NWS, 11-13 New Wakefield St, Manchester M1 5NP
https://blackdogballroom.co.uk/
Bunny Jacksons
The staff and owners of Bunny Jackson’s purposely go out of their way to get you leathered with their rum punch offering – it’s like bloody rocket fuel (while still tasting brilliant!) They get some Appleton VX Rum, Cognac and Peach liqueur and make it even stronger by adding the wonderful Wray & Nephew in there for good measure. Topped off with a bit of citrus, a sprinkling of sugar and some jasmine tea – you’re on for a seriously strong bit of stuff and a hazy night ahead of you.
Bunny Jacksons, 1 Jack Rosenthal Street, Manchester M15 4RA
https://www.bunnyjacksons.co.uk/
Marigot Bay
If you’ve never heard of this place it’s likely because it’s only just opened up in Altrincham and if you’re even more perplexed as to why it’s called Marigot Bay it’s because the owners absolutely love a bit of Caribbean action. This in turn creates a love for rum and so they stock a ton of it and bang together some cracking rum-based cocktails. They’ve gone right back to basics with their Ti’ Punch though – it’s basically rum, sugar and lime – that’s it, nice and easy. They use a lovely rum all the way from St Barth – a tiny island in the Caribbean Sea which looks like an absolute paradise.
Marigot Bay Bar and Café, 6 King’s Court, Railway St, Altrincham WA14 2RD
https://marigotbaybarandcafe.com/
The Alchemist
What’s one of my lists of booze related goodness without a visit to the Alchemist? Well they’ve come up trumps again with their Battenberg rum punch – a boozy concoction that will blow your head off if you have too many. Okay so there’s passion fruit in there again, but I’ll overlook it because they also include some Appleton Blend, lovely Wray & Nephew, lime and pineapple. The final cherry on top is ‘almond air’ which is err… almond flavoured air of course.
The Alchemist, 1 New York Street, Manchester M1 4HD
thealchemist.uk.com
