A Little story..
While sitting in the local bar I idly began contemplating what was in my glass. The orange juice was freshly squeezed from local fruit and the ice was ordinary but the rum?
Before ordering I had to think about which one I would have and to remind the bar tender to cut the portion of rum down to a quarter of the normal serving. If you have ever visited here in the Dominican Republic you may have wandered into the corner shop you most likely noticed the wide variety of Brugal Ron (rum) on the shelves. There are a variety of shades from white to dark and a variety of ages and alcohol content. Local gringos tend to go for the Anejo or aged. The other thing that you might notice is that it is cheaper to buy a bottle of rum than it is to buy a bottle of soda. That being the case the portions of alcohol poured into your glass at the bars is overly generous in order to cut back on the quantity of mix. Tourists find themselves feeling very happy and more than relaxed after two drinks which are the equivalent of four to six back home.
Rum is a byproduct of sugar cane which is a member of the grass family and was brought to the Island of Hispaniola, the present day Dominican Republic, from the Canary Islands by Christopher Columbus around 1493 on his second trip to the island. I imagine that rum first developed in the slave quarters then an inventive colonist decided to bottle the spirit derived from the fermentation of molasses. The concoction would be distilled into the drink that quickly became known as the spirit of the Caribbean.
Documents have been found dating back to 1793 authenticating the fact that rum was already being produced on the island of Santo Domingo. These same documents also verify that rum was even being exported from the Dominican Republic to Spain. It was also being traded between the Spanish and the French. Rum had already become a fixture in Dominican social life.
Enter Andres Brugal Montener, a Spanish national who migrated from Cuba with his wife and sixteen children and settled in the booming port city of Puetro Plata. Soon after they arrived there was a large migration of Cubans who were escaping the war in their country. They came to work in the sugar production industry. In Cuba he had gained an expertise in the production of rum so when he arrived in the Dominican Republic he used this knowledge to found the Brugal Company. 118 years later the Brugal tradition is as strong as ever and is the primary supplier of rum in the country and world wide Brugal has become the world’s third largest producer of rum behind the Puerto Rican brands Bacardi and Captain Morgan. Brugal is the largest producer of traditionally made rum, aged in American white oak barrels onsite in Puerto Plata. In 2002 the Brugal Company produced 4.3 million 24-bottle cases of the rum. It produces 75,000 liters of rum every 24 hours and boasts an 80% market share of the rum market in the Dominican Republic.
Sugar cane is cut from plantations across the countryside and its juice is produced into molasses. These sugar cane fields are largely worked by Haitian immigrants who get paid very little for the cane cutting. This helps to keep the costs of producing the rum fairly low. The syrup is then taken to large distilleries in San Pedro de Marcoris where it is stored in large tanks and diluted with water. This used to be done on the north side of the island close to Puetro Plata but the amount of pollution being dumped into the local river caused the government to order the company to move the plant elsewhere and make certain they dealt with the pollutants before they released them into the environment.
Sugar cane is cut from plantations across the countryside and its juice is produced into molasses. These sugar cane fields are largely worked by Haitian immigrants who get paid very little for the cane cutting. This helps to keep the costs of producing the rum fairly low. The syrup is then taken to large distilleries in San Pedro de Marcoris where it is stored in large tanks and diluted with water. This used to be done on the north side of the island close to Puetro Plata but the amount of pollution being dumped into the local river caused the government to order the company to move the plant elsewhere and make certain they dealt with the pollutants before they released them into the environment.
Rum in general is made by going through a fermentation and distillation process. During the fermentation process which lasts between 24 and 48 hours, the sugar from the sugarcane is transformed into alcohol due to yeast activity. The sugarcane molt that is produced from this process is somewhere between 4 and 6% alcohol. It is then immediately sent for distillation. During this process, the molt is heated to a temperature of 70 degrees to vaporize the volatile elements and condense them.
What is produced from all of these processes is vacuum packed and the end product, alcohol, is taken from the plant and stored in the oak barrels for no less than one year as required by law. The duration of the aging will depend on the type of rum being produced.
Tourists visiting Puerto Plata can visit the Brugal factory and learn about this process and examine the rums progress throughout. These tours are offered several times per day. During these tours, visitors to the factory can see for themselves that many of the steps involved in Brugals production continue to be done by hand such as the placing of the characteristic yellow netting around the bottles. Towards the end of the tours, visitors view the bottle production line and are treated to a free sampling of the rum and have the opportunity to purchase it at the best prices. The Brugal tour has become one of the highlights of any trip to Puerto Plata and on any given day, as many as 500 tourists may pass through the factory’s gates.
What is produced from all of these processes is vacuum packed and the end product, alcohol, is taken from the plant and stored in the oak barrels for no less than one year as required by law. The duration of the aging will depend on the type of rum being produced.
Tourists visiting Puerto Plata can visit the Brugal factory and learn about this process and examine the rums progress throughout. These tours are offered several times per day. During these tours, visitors to the factory can see for themselves that many of the steps involved in Brugals production continue to be done by hand such as the placing of the characteristic yellow netting around the bottles. Towards the end of the tours, visitors view the bottle production line and are treated to a free sampling of the rum and have the opportunity to purchase it at the best prices. The Brugal tour has become one of the highlights of any trip to Puerto Plata and on any given day, as many as 500 tourists may pass through the factory’s gates.
This is a quick guide on how to make rum for you home brewers,
Unless you live in a sugar field you probably won't be able to make rum from household objects.
Unless you live in a sugar field you probably won't be able to make rum from household objects.
The base for rum is either molasses or sugar cane juice.
Crushing or mashing sugar cane will get you the juice; boiling that and then filtering out the crystallized sugar will get you molasses.
Take the molasses or juice, add some yeast and water and let it ferment for a while (a week?). Use a still to distill the fermented molasses, and you've got rum!
How not to make rum!
I found this on an open forum and thought I should share.
Making rum from things in your closet
You will need:
A bucket
Duct tape
a wooden rod, such as a mop handle
a t-shirt
a bottle of Captain Morgans
Place the bottle in the t-shirt, and secure it with duct tape. Smash the resultant bundle with the wooden rod until you hear a breaky sound. Hold the bundle over the bucket, which will fill with rum. If the t-shirt is torn, you may find bits of broken glass in the rum, in which case, a second t-shirt can be placed over the mouth as a filter. By the mouth, I mean of the face, and not the bucket, as the latter is usually larger and harder to cover.
"Did I mention, use a clean t-shirt? No? Sorry. By the third gulp you probably won't mind".
Crushing or mashing sugar cane will get you the juice; boiling that and then filtering out the crystallized sugar will get you molasses.
Take the molasses or juice, add some yeast and water and let it ferment for a while (a week?). Use a still to distill the fermented molasses, and you've got rum!
How not to make rum!
I found this on an open forum and thought I should share.
Making rum from things in your closet
You will need:
A bucket
Duct tape
a wooden rod, such as a mop handle
a t-shirt
a bottle of Captain Morgans
Place the bottle in the t-shirt, and secure it with duct tape. Smash the resultant bundle with the wooden rod until you hear a breaky sound. Hold the bundle over the bucket, which will fill with rum. If the t-shirt is torn, you may find bits of broken glass in the rum, in which case, a second t-shirt can be placed over the mouth as a filter. By the mouth, I mean of the face, and not the bucket, as the latter is usually larger and harder to cover.
"Did I mention, use a clean t-shirt? No? Sorry. By the third gulp you probably won't mind".
Origins of the name
It is a common claim that “rum” is a derivative from rumbullion meaning "a great tumult or uproar". Other sources claim is the name comes from the large drinking glasses used by Dutch seamen known as rummers, from the Dutch word roemer, a drinking glass. Yet again options include contractions of the words saccharum, Latin for sugar, or arôme, French for aroma. Regardless of the original source, the name came into common use by 1657 when the General Court of Massachusetts made illegal the sale of strong liquor "whether known by the name of rumme, strong water, wine, brandy, etc., etc."
It is a common claim that “rum” is a derivative from rumbullion meaning "a great tumult or uproar". Other sources claim is the name comes from the large drinking glasses used by Dutch seamen known as rummers, from the Dutch word roemer, a drinking glass. Yet again options include contractions of the words saccharum, Latin for sugar, or arôme, French for aroma. Regardless of the original source, the name came into common use by 1657 when the General Court of Massachusetts made illegal the sale of strong liquor "whether known by the name of rumme, strong water, wine, brandy, etc., etc."
Some of the many other names for rum are Rumbullion, Rumbustion, Barbados water, Rumscullion, Devil's Death (or "Kill-Devil"), Nelson's Blood, and Rumbo. A version of rum from Newfoundland is referred to by the name Screech, while some low-grade West Indies rums are called Tafia.
In current usage, the name used for a rum is often based on the rum's place of origin. For rums from Spanish-speaking locales the word ron is used. A ron añejo indicates a rum that has been significantly aged and is often used for premium products. Rhum is the term used for rums from French-speaking locales, while rhum vieux is an aged French rum that meets several other requirements.
Today, it has been officially established that there is only one real rum - that which is actually produced from the sugar cane. Caribbean rum producers were concerned at the growing quantities of spirits being passed off as rum around the world. The European Union has established an official definition of what constitutes a real rum, and now Dominican rum can be classified under the prestigious label of Denomination of Protected Origin (D.O.P) as are the products of the region of Champagne, France and tequila from Mexico. It was a long time coming considering the fact that people have been drinking rum for centuries.
For well over 300 years, Great Britain's Royal Navy issued a daily "tot" of Purser’s Rum to the crews of their ships - and always a double issue before battle and after victory! First introduced into the Navy in 1655 as a substitute for beer, by 1731, it was in general use. This practice ended in 1970. This definitely was a foolish move on the government’s part. Your daily ration had to be a great reason to join the navy I think.
In current usage, the name used for a rum is often based on the rum's place of origin. For rums from Spanish-speaking locales the word ron is used. A ron añejo indicates a rum that has been significantly aged and is often used for premium products. Rhum is the term used for rums from French-speaking locales, while rhum vieux is an aged French rum that meets several other requirements.
Today, it has been officially established that there is only one real rum - that which is actually produced from the sugar cane. Caribbean rum producers were concerned at the growing quantities of spirits being passed off as rum around the world. The European Union has established an official definition of what constitutes a real rum, and now Dominican rum can be classified under the prestigious label of Denomination of Protected Origin (D.O.P) as are the products of the region of Champagne, France and tequila from Mexico. It was a long time coming considering the fact that people have been drinking rum for centuries.
For well over 300 years, Great Britain's Royal Navy issued a daily "tot" of Purser’s Rum to the crews of their ships - and always a double issue before battle and after victory! First introduced into the Navy in 1655 as a substitute for beer, by 1731, it was in general use. This practice ended in 1970. This definitely was a foolish move on the government’s part. Your daily ration had to be a great reason to join the navy I think.
Did you know that long before oil came on the scene rum was the major world market commodity? Molasses exports to non sugarcane growing countries powered the world. The production of rum from molasses in the United States was so prevalent that a quota was set due to the under production of sugar.
There are many stories attached to the history of rum too many to add to this article and my head is swimming from reading them all. It is time for another glass, “Bartender!”
I will sit back watching the world stroll by my table as I sip my orange and anejo and smoke a good cigar.
