Here’s a heads up on something a little bit different for Christmas. There’ll be only 5 days next week to get yourselves to Kraken Black Spiced Rum’s pop-up bar ‘Kraken Think Ink Pines Shop’ on Hackney Road for some very special Kraken cocktails and black Christmas trees. You heard me right: BLACK CHRISTMAS TREES and KRAKEN BLACK SPICED RUM COCKTAILS!

Here’s what we know so far, a detailed report will follow after we have tasted the cocktails next week:

The brand’s long anticipated follow-up to the Black Flower Florist, Kraken Think Ink Pines Shop will be open to the public from the 9th – 13th December.
Think Ink Pine Shop: 186 Hackney Road, E2 7QL, London.

Opening times:
Wednesday 9th December: 12:30pm – 10pm
Thursday 10th December: 12:30pm – 11pm
Friday 11th December: 12:30pm – midnight
Saturday 12th December: 10am – midnight
Sunday 13th December: 9am – 4pm

Visitors will walk into a world of black firs, nestled amongst which will be the festive Kraken Black Spiced Rum Bar serving five specially created Christmas cocktails including Squid Bite, Black Espresso, The Old Kraken, Perfect Storm and Kraken ‘S’pore’.

Black festive foliage such as mistletoe and holly, wreaths, and poinsettias will also be available along with a range of dangerously dark Kraken Christmas Cards.

Trees are available in:
Small (£15), Medium (£20), Large (£35) and Kraken X-large (£50) sizes. Pick up from the shop or reserve via Twitter #thinkinkpines.

The Kraken Rum is imported rum from the Caribbean blended with secret spices and it is bold, rich, black and smooth. And named after the sea beast of myths and legends. It is said, that a ship carrying one of the largest quantities of black spiced rum from the Caribbean islands ever, for unexplained reasons, never reached its destination. Stories were plentiful, and whilst an attack by the Kraken was suspected, this story was never confirmed.

Barrels carrying this black-spiced rum drifted off the ship into the sea and the rum was renamed after the Kraken as a tribute (some say as a “sacrifice”) to this beast’s unchallengeable power and might.
One seafarer’s diary, that was discovered washed-up on one of the smaller Pacific islands, tells of an encounter with, what scientists have deducted, must have been the Kraken. But there are few first-hand accounts of sightings of the Kraken, as most people do not live to tell the tale.

“To not respect the power of the Kraken is to not respect the sea.”

So drink with respect.