Among those who devote too many hours prying out rum’s history from dusty archives, a set of innocent-sounding questions seemingly defy easy answers. Among them: Why did 151 rum become a thing?
The 151 here refers to the alcoholic strength of a rum; 75.5 percent ABV, or 151-proof in the American system. It’s an odd strength, unlike more common strengths like 40-, 43-, and 57-percent ABV.
If only one or two 151-proof rums were on the market, this question would be of little interest. But after Hudson’s Bay 151 came out circa 1934, 151-proof rums spread rapidly to other brands, most notably Bacardi and Lemon Hart. And while Bacardi stopped making their 151 several years ago, there are still many different 151-proof rums on the market. Just don’t make the mistake of thinking they’re interchangeable.
A few writer/historians with notable credentials have put their shoulder into determining why exactly 151 was chosen, among them, David Wondrich and The Lone Caner in his well-researched article. I’ve also spent many an hour on this quixotic quest. Still, I’ve yet to come across a strongly plausible explanation backed up by written records contemporary to the first 151 rum’s arrival.
While recently procrastinating from doing “real work,” I found myself revisiting Google Books searches I’d previously made. In idly flipping through Charles H. Baker Jr.’s 1951 book, The South American Gentleman’s Companion, this passage brought me to high alert:
This isn’t to say that Baker’s assessment is undeniably true. However, it certainly seems plausible. Equally important, it was written less than two decades after the first 151 rum appeared.
To be fair, Wayne Curtis quoted Stephen Remsberg with this possible explanation in a 2017 PUNCH article on overproof rums:
The legend is that the old Hudson’s Bay Company found that Demerara rum, even at navy strength, would freeze above the Arctic Circle.
However, it is Baker’s 1951 book that gives citable gravitas to what Remsburg referred to as a legend. Also, while Remsburg’s quote references the Arctic Circle, Baker’s text specifically refers to Hudson Bay, Canada. As you’ll recall from above, the first 151 rum was sold by Hudson’s Bay Company. Indeed, the dots really do line up.
Again, Baker’s claim isn’t incontrovertible proof of the real origin of 151-proof rum. There may be other reasons, and more contemporary data points would be helpful. Nonetheless, it does offer a compelling theory that we should consider plausible.
Update: For more definitive proof about the above theory, see my Rum Wonk article: O Canada: Snowshoe Sam and the Prehistory of 151 Rum (rumwonk.com).
