Every so often I see something in a Facebook rum group and think “Gosh, someone should publish this so it doesn’t fade into oblivion.” Such was the case with a post by Jen Akin, General Manager of Seattle’s Rumba. We featured some of Jen’s recipes in Minimalist Tiki (C.R.E.A.M., Red Wedding) and she graciously agreed... Continue Reading →
Demerara Distillers' three “heritage stills” are a perennial favorite topic for Demerara rum fans. Each still (Port Mourant, Versailles, and Enmore) is famous for being made primarily from Guyanese greenheart wood, rather than metal, as most rum stills are. The Port Mourant and Versailles still are batch stills, utilizing wooden vats constructed from greenheart staves.... Continue Reading →
A story about the Bartesian (apparently one of Oprah’s Favorite Things) passed though my Google news feed today. For the low price of $349 and some recipe-specific capsules, customers can effortlessly make Lemon Drops and Low-Cal Margaritas at home. Naturally, I pondered how this could work for Tiki cocktails - they do have a reputation... Continue Reading →
The West Indies Rum Distillery has announced via their Facebook page the imminent arrival of their first branded rum: Stade’s Rum, tagline: Mellowed by the Sea. (March 2nd, 2021). As many readers of this site know, the West Indies Rum Distillery is owned by Plantation Rum. What is notable here is that is not a... Continue Reading →
Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to talk about this thing called “white rum”. Many abominations and misunderstandings have been committed in its name. To start with, no rum is really white. Clear? Sure.Silver? If you must. But honestly, that’s not the real issue here. It's forgivable and we can move past it. The... Continue Reading →
Rum history students know that it’s impossible to separate rum’s story from the sugar industry; Sugar was king, rum a mere prince. In the 1700s and 1800s, Caribbean sugar estates focused on making sugar, first and foremost; any additional income from rum was treated as an offset to estate expenses. If sugar wasn't profitable, estates... Continue Reading →
Martinique’s appellation d’origine contrôlée (AOC) is perhaps the best-known regulation in the rum world of rum. Less known is that Guadeloupe, its sister French overseas department also has its own regulations, in the form of a Protected Geographical Indication (PGI), which I translated into English and summarized here. If that weren’t obscure enough for French West Indies... Continue Reading →
In a surprising move, the US TTB announced today (Dec. 28th, 2020) they will soon expand the set of “standards of fill” for wine and distilled spirits. While this sounds bureaucratic and sleep inducing, its huge news for distilled spirits enthusiasts (including my rum geek friends), who will benefit from more access to bottlings which... Continue Reading →
My annual end-of-year tradition at Cocktail Wonk is a bit of introspection about my writing directions over the prior twelve months and a round-up of my stories I’m most proud of. To my surprise, I shared 45 stories in 2020 (including this one), more than I expected given my recent rate of posting. During the... Continue Reading →
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