King Charles knows how to keep a formal evening relaxed. During his state visit to Guyana, a glass of local rum gave him the perfect opening to bring some humorous reaction into the exchange. The moment came at the end of a long day of engagements, and involved sampling a bottle of “Royal Welcome” rum made specially in his honor.
King Charles samples Guyana’s specially distilled Royal Welcome rum during recent visit
The King, 77, began his two-day trip with a cultural evening hosted by President Mohamed Irfaan Ali. During a reception at the State House in Georgetown, Charles received a bottle of “Royal Welcome” rum, a limited edition 2026 blend made by food and beverage company Banks DIH.
Before tasting it, he asked onlookers, “Do you drink this? Endless rum punches at the end of the day?” He then smelt the glass and clinked it with the president’s. In a clip shared on X (formerly Twitter), he pulled a surprised face and laughed after his first sip. After some contemplation that involved waggling his eyebrows, he declared, “Very good!”
President Ali offered some advice: “You’ve just got to drink it down!” The King took another sip, saying, “It won’t last long.” He then added, “That’s very kind. Somebody else will have to finish it!”
Gregory Garraway, Banks DIH’s rum plant executive, told The Independent that the rum is more than 20 years old. “We wanted the King’s visit to be something he could actually taste,” he said. He described the rum as “extremely smooth, rich and flavourful, and he loved it”.
The visit to Guyana marks 60 years since the country’s independence from Britain. It also follows renewed calls from Caribbean nations for an apology and reparations over Britain’s role in the slave trade. In the Bahamas, Charles acknowledged the “great suffering of the past” and confirmed that the summit would discuss the legacy of slavery.
