With product names such as ‘Meat Juice‘ and ‘Soft Coq‘ I instantly knew that Rum & Que were a brand up for a laugh.
One morning I received an email (out of the blue) from a guy called Matt who had clearly done his research. He had taken the time to read my story, found out what I’m about and also dug a little deeper to uncover the fact I’m a geek and own a small digital marketing agency called ‘No Bull‘.
On top of this he introduced the ‘Rum & Que‘ brand perfectly and explained that he was in the early stages of setting up his own BBQ store and is the sole supplier of the ‘Rum & Que‘ products in the UK and throughout Europe.
With the effort Matt made I just had to get in touch to find out more and to understand how I could help him generate some exposure of the brand here in the UK.
Who are ‘Rum & Que’?
In their own words . . . “Rum and Que started out as backyard cooks, taking our passion of BBQ to the competitive circuit 3 years ago. Matt and Tracey, husband and wife along with their good mate Ryan make up the team.
We have been lucky enough to compete in the US, Australia and New Zealand over the past 3 years picking up some amazing tips and tricks along the way.“
But can they cook?
I decided to scroll back through some of the content this BBQ team had pushed out in the past and was impressed with what I saw . . . it was easy to see why they’ve won so many awards.
. . . also, looking at what they’ve churned out gave me some new ideas on how I could use the rubs and sauces I had received.
What did I receive?
Within a few days of agreeing to help with reviewing the products my first package turned up on the doorstop.
Matt currently sells ‘Rum and Que’ via a small eBay store called ‘The Good Life BBQ Store‘ from his home in London but due to demand he was running a little low on several items (this is a good sign right!).
For now he had sent me all the rubs and a bottle of ‘Meat Juice’ . . . the ‘Slap It On‘ sauces would follow later once the first pallet delivery to the UK had turned up.
The first cook
To ensure my first experience of the ‘Rum and Que’ rubs was clean I decided on a very simple first cook . . . a whole chicken on the ProQ Rotisserie. A few hours before cooking I coated an entire chicken in melted butter and then a generous sprinkle of ‘Soft Coq‘.
Here you will see a few photos of the process / results.
Initial thoughts
With the intense colour of the skin I was prepared for a strong initial hit of flavour . . . but much to my surprise this wasn’t the case. The flavour was more subtle, slightly salty . . . sweet . . . with a hint of garlic and thyme.
Honestly (apart from maybe Angus & Oink Garlic Butter Seasoning) this is probably the nicest flavour I’ve had on a basic rotisserie chicken.
A HUGE tick in the box for me was the fact that it also got a thumbs up from the wife and my 3 young children . . . fantastic!
The second cook
The next day it was time to step up the game a little and cook up some St. Louis Ribs from ‘The Village Butchers‘.
The ribs from ‘The Village Butchers‘ are really meaty so I decided to stick to the tried and trusted 3-2-1 method. In terms of ‘Rum & Que’ products . . . I went for ‘Rib Rocker‘ as the rub and ‘Meat Juice‘ as a sauce / glaze for the final hour.
And here you can see a few photos of the results.
If you’d like to watch a detailed step-by-step video of my 8 year old son preparing this meal . . . click here.
My thoughts
WOW! OK . . . I’m sold! Admittedly I’m not sure if it was down to the rub or sauce . . . but the flavour profile on these ribs was to die for.
According to ‘Rum & Que’ the sweet and savoury blend of herbs and spices in ‘Rib Rocker’ is designed to boost that natural flavour.
‘Meat Juice’ on the other hand was not like a BBQ sauce I’ve had before . . . I’d say more sweet than savoury and a great allrounder . . . but one thing was certain . . . you can taste the maple syrup . . . and it was great!
The Final Opinion
OK, cards on the table time . . .
I’ve tried 2 rubs and 1 sauce so far and really enjoyed them. From my experience so far the flavours are more complimentary of the meat rather than overpowering . . . and that’s a good thing!
A slight negative for me is the price point. Currently in the UK these rubs are only obtainable via the eBay store I mentioned earlier . . . and at £10 for 150g they are slightly more expensive than others readily available. But let’s remember . . . these products have travelled half way around the world and if you are interested in stocking these products yourself then get in touch with sales@thegoodlifebbqstore.com who can share wholesale discounts.
Would I buy them myself? Truthfully . . . YES! The fact my kids enjoyed them as much as I did is huge.
For now I’m happy . . . make sure you follow my social channels where I’ll be sure to share future cooks using ‘Rum & Que’ . . . it’s got to be beef next!
