Rum

Rum is an alcoholic drink made from sugar cane. It comes from the Caribbean region, where it ripens faster thanks to the tropical climate. Most rum producers are located in areas where sugarcane processing is developed, such as Australia, India, Reunion Island or the Caribbean region (mainly Jamaica and Cuba). Its homeland is the Antilles (an archipelago that represents the dominant part of the Caribbean), where each island has developed a specific variant of this distillate.

History: Rum also has a very interesting history. The original mentions of rum come from the island of Barbados. According to a document from 1651, a drink made by distilling sugar cane was described as "rumbullion". The drink was also labelled "kill - the devil." This designation proves that the first attempts to produce a quality distillate were most likely unsuccessful. The first mentions describe rum as a "hot, hellish and terrible liquor."

Since the demand for sugar was huge in the 17th and 18th centuries, a considerable amount of cheap and especially durable labour was needed. The infamous tripartite slave trade was born. Europeans brought goods to Africa such as clothing, salt and mainly weapons. Goods were exchanged for slaves. These were brought to Caribbean sugarcane plantations and sold to planters to work in their fields. The ships were loaded with sugar, tobacco and other raw materials so that all the cargo was directed back to the mother country. This tripartite trade was extremely efficient and unrestricted.

In addition, at the end of the 17th century, a second trading triangle with slaves was created. The New England colonies decided to make their own rum instead of importing it. The latter became very popular with African slave owners. Rum was exchanged for African slaves who were brought to plantations in the Caribbean region. Here another exchange followed in the form of concentrated molasses, which was again sold in New England. This created two trade triangles, so that the slave trade reached its peak at the end of the 17th century. For example, the importation of slaves by English ships amounted to twenty thousand slaves a year. It should also be noted that there was considerable mortality on voyages to the Caribbean islands.

Another significance of these events was the emergence of piracy. The rum trade helped spark the American Revolution in 1764, but rum's popularity continued. Thanks to this trade, enormous wealth was created, from which today's countries such as England, Spain and France still benefit. For example, in 1999, Liverpool City Council publicly apologized for these events. (ministryofrum.com). Rum is also associated with a sailor's daily rum ration known as a "tot". Originally, it was a ration of rum with a content of 70% alcohol in undiluted form or with the addition of lemon juice. This was supposed to guarantee a higher resistance of the sailors against diseases as well as a higher performance. According to available information, the daily dose was 0.5 litres of rum. In the event that there was a combat conflict at sea, the ration was increased, plus 0.5 litres of rum. However, the result was a high death rate among sailors, and thus the well-known drink "grog" was born. One part rum was diluted with two parts water. This assignment was not cancelled until 31 July 1970.

Today, the "total" allocation refers to the New Zealand Navy. Rum has a sweet aromatic smell with a woody and molasses undertone and is often used in perfumery as well.