Wednesday, September 7, 2016

Grand Cayman Day One Has Happened.

Bay of Pigs Below
     An early morning departure from Key West took us to Miami for breakfast and a 4 hour layover before boarding the plane to Grand Cayman.  It was a great flight that took us back down the keys to about Marathon where we turned south straight across Cuba.  We entered the Cuba at Matanzas, just east of Havana, then we traveled accross Cuba just to the west of the Bay of Pigs.  Fairly clear skies flying over Cuba made for some really nice visuals as we traversed the island.


60 Foot Vodka Tower
   After arriving in Cayman, clearing customs and securing the rental car, it was off to the Cayman Spirits Company Distillery.  No trip to Grand Cayman can be complete without a stop at the distillery.  New stuff and new spirits, Walker and Nelson have always got something up their sleeves to make the visit interesting.  Unlike many of the other distilleries around the Caribbean, they offer tours that will bring you up close and personal with the wide varieties of stills they use in the production of their spirits.   They also have one of the coolest souvenir stores at any distillery.  The tasting their really good rums including the Seven Fathoms premium rum always puts a smile on your face.

New Pot Still
     Today was really full of surprises when we arrived
Cayman Special Edition
at the distillery.  Nelson took us on a tour to see the new 60 foot tall vodka tower and his new pot still.  They have introduced a new Vodka that they are producing from sugar cane that is clean as a whistle. This is not vodka being called rum, it is a real vodka.

    They are also ready to release a new Spanish dark sherry barrel aged rum expression that is really nice.  I am bringing back a bottle of the new expression that they are currently calling Cayman Special Edition.

Marta Driving From the Right Side
     We then headed off to the east end of the island and the Wyndham Reef Resort, our home for the next four
days.  This is one of the nicer resorts on the island.  It is located on the quiet end of Grand Cayman right on the beach offering stunning photo ops at every turn.  Marta enjoyed driving a right hand drive rental car this trip which is proper for a place that you drive on the left instead of the right.  Now it is time to sit down on the veranda with my rum and relax.  Supper, cocktails and a good night sleep, this is what the doctor has ordered for me and I think that I am going to listen to the doc for once.

Cocktail Tome on the Veranda