History of Rum

The History of Rum

(Credit: Gentleman's Gazette)

While many of us know the famous cultural history of rum being consumed and used as currency by the Royal Navy and pirates the origins actually date as far back as the antiquities. It is widely believed that the initial distillation of rum as we know it today was developed in either ancient China or India. In fact, the Malay people have been documented to produce a spirit they referred to as Brum and Marco Polo even wrote about a sugar based wine he tried in the fourteenth century. While some believe that the Malay’s “brum” is the source of the word “rum”, others claim it has a different backstory. There are many accounts and theories about where the name came from and none are officially documented. Some believe it comes from the last syllable of the Latin word for sugar being saccharum whereas others believe it comes from the Romani word rum, meaning “strong” or “potent” as all early accounts show that the drink was in fact just that. Still, many believe British etymologist Samuel Morewood’s 1824 theory that it stems from the British slang term for “the best” which is “having a rum time”. Other theories claim it’s in honor of the Dutch word “roemer” for drinking glass. Regardless of its etymology, the term “rum” has existed for centuries and is used the world over, sometimes with other spellings but usually the same pronunciation.

The first documented distillation of rum actually came from the 17th century sugar plantations in the Caribbean where slaves realized that molasses could be fermented into alcohol. Most historians believe that rum was initially discovered on the island of Barbados, but records from the 1620s also show it being produced in Brazil. In fact, the Swedish warship Vasa which famously sunk in 1628 had tin bottles of labelled rum found amongst the wreckage. Regardless of the many theories, it is my belief that rum was born somewhere in the Caribbean. Somewhere between the 1630s and 1660s, rum found its way into Colonial America. In 1664 the British colonies set up the very first distillery on Staten Island with another in Boston, Massachusetts just three years later. Quickly, the distillation of rum became Colonial New England’s most profitable industry. Initially the rum was similar to that of whiskey and for awhile, even traded as currency. In order to support a growing demand now that rum was popular amongst men, women and children, a trade agreement known as the Triangular Trade was established between the colonies, the Caribbean and Africa. In a nutshell, the agreement allowed for the trade of rum, molasses and slaves providing workers, ingredients and the end product for consumption. In fact, the trade agreement was so profitable that when the Sugar Act of 1764 halted the exchange, many believe it was the cause of the American Revolution.

With rum becoming so prolific in government, it ended up being rather important in the game of politics. Candidates began to bribe voters with rum in an effort to influence the election results. In fact, at George Washington’s inauguration, he was insistent on a barrel of Barbados rum as it had helped him not only win, but gain friends in the process. In the way politicians are known today for shaking hands and kissing babies, in the past a major campaign tactic was to pour rum for the voters and socialize with them. It is only due to the popularity of whiskey and restrictions from the British islands, that rum production began to subside.

A Pirates Life for Me

Many, including myself have long been fascinated by the relationship between pirates and rum. In almost any film or story featuring pirates, rum is shown and consumed by everyone from the captain to the cook. Surprisingly, many believe that rum has no actual connection to the golden age of pirates and that it is a myth perpetuated by Hollywood. For those who believe that, I regret to be the one to inform you, but you are wrong. Captain Morgan is not misleading you – pirates and rum go hand in hand. In the year 1655 the Royal Navy captured Jamaica and the rum industry became property of the British fleet. Due to the availability of the spirit, the Brits began to include it in the daily rations of all seamen eventually changing over from brandy to rum completely. This is actually how the drink Grog became known. Since rum was so strong, an admiral by the name of Edward Vernon ordered that it be watered down into a cocktail to prevent his sailors from being too intoxicated to work. The name of the drink is named after Admiral Vernon’s grogram cloak he famously wore during inclement weather.

Since a primary job of the Royal Navy was capturing pirates, whenever a fleet lost or was commandeered by a pirate vessel, rum was seized. As did the Royal Navy provide rum as rations, so did the pirates and for most ships, whatever rum was seized was split evenly amongst the crew. However, unlike Admiral Vernon, most captains didn’t require their crew to water the rum down and so many of the pirates quickly became addicted to rum and the spirit rapidly became used as currency and was valued as one of the highest commodities. In addition, the pirates used the rum as currency in port, selling it in exchange for slaves and goods. While many believe pirates simply took what they wanted – and while that is true – they still needed currency to barter with when running low on supplies or crew. Since pirating was such a prosperous trade, many captains used rum as a way to purchase or fix their first ship. While the Royal Navy and other military organizations certainly consumed their fair share of rum, the pirates made it famous and some say, kept the industry afloat.

How Rum is Made

Unlike Scotch or Bourbon, there are no global requirements as it relates to the production of rum. Most regions have their own customs and traditions, which is one of the reasons that the Caribbean and Latin America still produce the most popular barrels. Most rum today is still made from molasses, although some is derived directly from the natural juices of sugarcane, but that’s primarily in the French speaking islands of the Caribbean. Especially, the island of Martinique is know for their cane juice rums, which are referred to as Rhum Agricole, in fact it has a Appellation d’Origine Contrôlée (AOC) protected designation of origin. In order to get this designation, certain criterias must be fulfilled.

1. Must be made from fresh sugar cane juice
2. Minimum sugar content (Brix > 14 ° Bx) and a minimum pH (pH > 4.7) to prevent development of undesirable flavor compounds.
3. Juicing is reglemented and Hot Juicing is not allowed
4. The fermentation has to be discontinuous and conducted in open tanks with a maximum of 13,208 US gallons or 500 Hectoliters. For more details click here.

For molasses based rum, most of the molasses stems from Brazil and its this sugar that’s found in most North American and European liquor stores. The fermentation process is rather simple and is really a combination of yeast and water. There are a wide variety of wild and hybrid yeasts used but the standard rule is that lighter rums tend to use a faster working yeast whereas the darker rums use a slow acting yeast as it causes more esters to form making it a more full bodied and stronger spirit.

For the distillation it’s similar in the fact that there are no hard and fast rules. Some distilleries will use column stills where others choose to use pot stills. The only difference being that the pot still tends to produce stronger, darker rums. The final step to producing rum is to age it. This is where some regions actually maintain loose regulations. Many countries require a minimum resting period of at least one year and the vast majority of rum makers use American oak bourbon casks for their aging process. Don’t be fooled by thinking that one year can’t age a spirit properly. Remember that most rum is made in tropical climates and because of this the rum actually matures far faster than Scotch or even brandy would. To clarify this point further, the average “angels share” of Scotch or Cognac is around 2% per year, whereas the average evaporation rate for rum is closer to 10%. By aging the rum in bourbon casks, this is what causes the beautiful rich color to develop. It should be noted though that for clear rums, typically they’re aged not in wood casks but in stainless steel tubs. Finally, the rum is blended to maintain consistency and dark rums aged in wood casks will often have caramel coloring added to it as well.

Since rum is produced in various ways throughout the Caribbean, many regions have actually adopted styles that set them apart from their competition. Rums from Jamaica, Barbados, Grenada, Belize and other English speaking islands are typical dark and full bodied. Rums from Haiti, Guadeloupe and Martinique are primarily made from actual sugarcane juice rather than molasses making them more expensive and often more refined. In Brazil, Cachaça is made from sugar cane but it is basically not barrel aged and they start off as white rums, and as such they don’t intensify and develop secondary flavors the way darker rums do. It is primarily used for the famous cocktail Capirinha, although sometimes also Vodka is used, changing the name to Caipiroshka.

Types of Rum

Globally, there are seven basic types of rum that can be found for sale in most liquor stores. Each has a very unique tasting profile and many are intended for some pretty specific uses.

Light Rum

Light rum which in sometimes labeled as “white” or “silver” generally are quite sweet with little to no flavor profile. Often they are filtered after being blended to remove any color and they’re typically used for mixing in a variety of cocktails due to their mild flavor and aroma.

Dark Rum

Another rum that can easily be identified by its color, the dark rums are generally made from a caramelized molasses and matured in charred casks for a fairly significant period of time. They are usually full bodied in comparison to lighter rums and can sometimes contain a bit of smoke and spice. Typically this type of rum has historically been used for cooking and baking, but recently it’s also been utilized by mixologists to provide color in cocktails.

Gold Rum

Sometimes referred to as an “amber” rum, these are lighter than the dark rums but stronger than the light rums making them fairly medium bodied. Typically, these rums are aged in white oak casks and are very popular for use in mixed drinks.

Spiced Rum

Most spiced rum is actually a gold rum with added spice. A good note to keep in mind is that the less expensive bottles are usually just light rums with added color whereas the more expensive ones can often be dark rum based. In the majority of the spiced rums available on the open market, a blend of anise, pepper, cinnamon and rosemary is infused into the rum to give it the extra kick.

Sipping Rum

Many simply refer to these as premium rum, although in my experience the word “premium” is a very relative term. A sipping rum is basically the Scotch of the rum world and is carefully matured and created by master blenders to be consumed by discerning palates either straight up or on the rocks without any additions. Personally, as a whisky drinker these are my favorite rums and I typically savor them neat in a brandy snifter. See below for a list of some of my favorite bottles.

High Proof Rum

These are some of the more ridiculous rums in my opinion. Often consumed by the drinker who’s only interest is getting intoxicated, these are rums that are over proofed higher than the standard 40% ABV with many as high or higher than 75% (or 150 proof). The most well known example of this is Bacardi 151 and these rums are generally consumed in mixed drinks such as a Rum and Coke rather than cocktails.

Flavored Rum

The paragraph I dreaded writing… As most of you know I abhor flavored spirits. However, in an effort to appease all readers, I am compelled to mention flavored rums. Similar to flavored vodka, these are primarily light rums infused with fruit or dessert flavoring. Typically these are used in tropical or desert cocktails, although some do enjoy drinking them neat or on ice.