beginners guide to rum

8/11/2019 Beginners Guide to Rum

1/15

/r/Rums FAQ and Recommendations

As spirits go, Rum is surely one of the most fun out there. For one, most Rum is a spectacular

value when you compare it to other spirits like Scotch Whisky or Bourbon. Almost every Rum

can be had for less than $50 a bottle, and there is a massive selection at the $30 level. In fact,

youll be hard pressed to find anything over $100, even for the most aged, highest quality options

out there.

That said, Rum can be a confusing spirit to get to know. It

has so many different varieties and styles. Similar to Gin

or Vodka, Rum can be made anywhere in the world and is

not a geographically specific product like cognac or

scotch. But unlike all those spirits, Rum is made in a wide

variety of styles, colors, and ages, none of which really

have legal definitions you can rely upon. There is no

typical style of Rum per se, though there are some

general categories and labels that will help you get a

sense for whats in the bottle.

1


2/15

Sugarcaneis a type of large grass and accounts for 80% of the worlds sugar. It was also the

worlds largest crop in 2010.

Most Rums use a byproduct of sugarcane, the

molasses. It's a dark

syrup rich in sugar

(about 55%), and is

essentially cooked

sugar cane juice. It

gives Spanish and

British Rums their

sugary/caramelish

flavours.

To make molasses, sugar cane is harvested and stripped of

leaves. Its juice is extracted usually by crushing or mashing, but also by cutting. The juice is

boiled to concentrate it, promoting sugar crystallization.

Rhum agricole (french Rums, usually Martinique And Guadeloupe) use sugar cane directly.

They are harsher and fresher than the aforementioned.

Skip to Recommendations

2
http://www.google.com/url?q=http%3A%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2FMolasses&sa=D&sntz=1&usg=AFQjCNHRAMF5YAPZb6VBBTpcQWcO-OeRpQhttp://www.google.com/url?q=http%3A%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2FSugarcane&sa=D&sntz=1&usg=AFQjCNEie-LGSDNr8LBjjlG0kMbMlqeqtA


3/15

Distillation

As with all other aspects of Rum production, no standard method is used for distillation.Distillationis a method of separating mixtures based on differences in volatility of components in

a boiling liquid mixture. If making Rum from Molasses, the Molasses is mixed with water and

yeast to create fermentation. Fermentation is the process using Yeast (which is a living cellular

organism) to eat the sugar water and produce ethanol. It is then boiled off in a still. There are a

couple different forms of stills to use and each creates a different form or character of flavor.

Pot still: if your Rum is an British style Rum (comes from an island such as Jamaica)it will have been produced using a pot still. Pot stills are short and squat, and produce heavy,

full flavoured Rums. These are also used in Scotch Whisky production as they cannot distillspirits to a very high ethanol percentage. The higher you go, the less flavour the spirit has

(eg: Vodka 96% purity, Whisky 60-65%).

The lower the percentage of purity, the more congeners (just a fancy name for impurities)

the Rum has. Congenersare what gives the Rum a lot of its flavour. Because it has a low

ethanol percentage output, it has probably been distilled several times.

3
http://www.google.com/url?q=http%3A%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2FCongener_(alcohol)&sa=D&sntz=1&usg=AFQjCNEJlYLnKchPS06uGjbZT16RBW0wfAhttp://www.google.com/url?q=http%3A%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2FDistillation&sa=D&sntz=1&usg=AFQjCNHldT0OfWfd5ONT_EmCH1huiUxbFw


4/15

Reflux/Column still: These are used inSpanish style Rums, (Cuba etc) they tend to produce

higher proof spirits but dramatically lessen aromas

and flavor. These stills can distill the Rum to a much

higher ethanol percentage, which produces a muchsmoother style of Rum (higher percentage=less

impurities=smoother tasting Rum/less fiery)

*Note that there are also hybrids.

4


5/15

Aging

Aging is primarily done in American White oak casks and sometimes in stainless steel tanks. Itis very common to use Used-Casks or Ex-Casks that have already been used to age other

spirits in a former life. Spirits such as French Cognac,whiskeys and sherrys. Well use Bourbon as an example.

The American Bourbon industry has a law that they are onlyallowed to use New Charred Oak Barrels for aging once

(keeps the coopers in work, trade unions etc). It also gives

the Bourbon most of its Vanilla flavors.

After aging Bourbon, the Bourbon companies can sell theirused barrels and buy/make more. Quite often they go to Scotch producers first, who will utilise

the barrels a couple of times and then they are sold on again to Rum producers. There is a

reason for this: when a barrel is brand new the spirit aging inside of it will react very quickly with

the fresh wood, especially in the heat.

The older a barrel gets, the less reactive the wood is, and the aging effects slow down. If a Rumcompany was to take the barrels straight from the Bourbon producers, the barrel would be too

5


6/15

reactive for Rum, as the heat in the Caribbean would make the Rum age too quickly and spoil it.

Tequila producers do this and this is why you wont see a tequila aged for more than a year or

so.

Many countries require Rum to be aged for at least one year. The aging process determinesthe color of the Rum. When aged in

oak casks, it becomes dark, whereas

Rum aged in stainless steel tanks

remains virtually colorless. Due to the

tropical climate common to most

Rum-producing areas, Rum matures

at a much higher rate than is typical for

Scotch or Cognac. An indication of this

higher rate is the Angels' Share, or

amount of product lost to evaporation.While products aged in France or

Scotland see about 2% loss each year,

tropical Rum producers may see as

much as 10%. After aging, Rum is

normally blended to ensure a

consistent flavor. Blending is the final

step in the Rum-making process. As part of this blending process, light Rums may be filtered to

remove any color gained during aging. For darker Rums, caramel may be added to adjust the

color of the final product.

Each Rum brand will have a Master Blender or Maestro Ronero. These are the guys who blendall of the different barrels together to create the Rums that go on sale. There is a tremendous

amount of skill required to be able to blend Rums consistently as each barrel will produce a

slightly different tasting Rum every time. The skill is in being able to detect the right flavours in

the right barrels and then blending them together for a consistent product. For example, Bacardi

8 year is made up of a blend of roughly 8-10 year old Rums from different barrels, and the

Maestro Roneros job is to select the barrels that will produce the Bacardi 8 flavour.

To become a Maestro Ronero takes 15 years of training, as it will take this long to train thepalate to the point where it can detect the flavours to a high enough standard. A Maestro can

produce somewhere in the region of 80 tasting notes from one sample of Rum. Also, this is just

by nosing it, no tasting is allowed. When they blend, if they tasted every sample their senses

would be sufficiently dulled after a couple of hours, so they must go through this whole process

6


7/15

just on their sense of smell. It is a very serious business, to the point that there will be a panel of

tasters, and one person leading it, quite often they will not be allowed to all take the same flight

somewhere, as if the plane crashes and they die, the Rum recipe is lost. The Rums will always

be chemically analysed afterwards to make sure that the tasting panel have the mix right, but it is

extremely rare that they get it wrong.

In culturally spanish countries, Rums are blended using the solera system, a fractional systemwhere 1030% newer spirit is pushed in the older casks

to age faster and produce a homogeneous spirit in terms

of age, flavor and quality over extended periods of time.

Ron Zacapa is a prime example of this system. The

bottle says it contains a 23 y.o. Rum. However, only a

very small percentage of the bottle is 23 years old. The

average is about 8 years.

There are laws concerning age or naming of the Rum,but they differ from country to country. Therefore what's

written on the bottle sadly doesn't necessarily give you a

good benchmarking point to compare with other Rums.

The older the Rum gets, the more intense the flavourbecomes because of prolonged time to react with the

wood of the barrel, and also because of the Angels

Share. Since 5-10% of the liquid is lost through evaporation the congeners, which again give

flavour to the Rum, are left behind so over the course of a long period of time, the flavour

intensifies as there is less liquid volume and more congeners in the mix.

7
http://www.google.com/url?q=http%3A%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2FCongener_(alcohol)&sa=D&sntz=1&usg=AFQjCNEJlYLnKchPS06uGjbZT16RBW0wfA


8/15

Dilution

Since the freshly distilled spirit usually is >70% alcohol, it is diluted before or after being placedin casks. This makes a difference because it will alter the color and the behavior of ethanol in the

cask. It also affects flavour to an extent as the water properties in each place will differ.

No mention of overproof rums here ? ...

8


9/15

Types and

Recommendationscurrently under construction

1. Geographic & Cultural Styles? There are British, Spanish, French, Portuguese and

Caribbean Islands Rums. How do we sort them?

Some ways to divide Rums into categories is

to go by Color and Age.

However, there are always going to be

exceptions to these rules. For example,

Diplomatico has produced an aged Rum, but

then filtered it to remove any colour. Does this

fall into Aged Rums or White Rums?

Another way to split up categories is to go by

country of origin. If the Rum is from a British

colony such as Jamaica it will be full flavoured,robust and usually pack quite a punch. This is

down to them being made in Pot Stills (see above). Spanish colonies use Column Stills, which

produce a much lighter, smoother style of Rum, (Cuban or Venezuelan are good examples) and

french produce Rhum Agricoles.

These are the main ones that you will encounter. Split like this there isn't as much of a grey area

when it comes to categorising. These categories will all have different colours of Rum within

them but if you know where its from, you will at least have an idea of what it might taste like.

The great thing about Rum, its not super expensive, so if you see some recommendations

below and you end up not liking them - youre not out much cash.

Light/White Rum

or silver Rum is a clear spirit. Even though its clear, white Rum is usually aged for 12 months to

9


10/15

3 or 4 years. Quite often they will be filtered to remove the colour they pick up in this time in the

barrel. Its true that most cachaca and rhum agricoles are clear as well, but thats usually not

what people mean when they talk about light Rum. It has a smooth and subtle flavor, with

nuanced flavors of butter, vanilla, banana, coconut, and lemon. Most folks dont sip white Rum,

but rather use it for mixing cocktails like the Daiquiri and Mojito. Light Rum is made by almost

every Rum distiller, but traditionally people tend to think of Cuba, Puerto Rico, and the DominicanRepublic as the classic producers.

Appleton White (Jamaica)

Plantation 3 stars Silver

Diplomatico Blanco Reserva

Flor de Cana Extra Dry 4

Koloa Kauai White

Cruzan Aged White

El Dorado 3 White

Prichards White

Gold Rum - Trinidad / Puerto Rico / Barbados

Gold Rums take their color from fermenting molasses, in the British or Spanish style. Its hard to

say where gold Rum ends and om aging or the addition of caramel coloring. Again, rum

agricoles can be amber or gold colored as well, but those are a different animal and not included

here. All these Rums are made from aged Rum begins, but for our purposes here well draw the

line at 8 years. In terms of flavor, gold Rums have a lot more going on than their white relatives.

Youll find nuts, sweet spice, and roasted tropical fruit aromas here, which add a lot of flavor to

tiki drink

10


11/15

Aged Rum

Aged Rum is what pushes most people over the edge from casual interest to real excitement.

This is where the good stuff is, and thankfully, aged Rum is incredibly affordable relative to its

whiskey counterparts. One thing to note, though, is that unlike age statements on whiskey, the

age you see on Rum doesnt always mean the same thing. In some cases, especially solera

style Rums, the age on the bottle refers to the oldest Rum in the blend, and not the minimumage. In other cases, it does refer to the minimum age. This is down to the fact that so many

countries produce Rum and they all have different laws governing what they can put on the

bottle. It is worth checking the country of origin and the rules around age statements if you are

not sure about how much you should be spending on something. Still other aged Rums make no

age statement at all, but simply label their bottles with XO, Gran Reserva, or something else,

which is nothing but marketing-speak and means nothing whatsoever in terms of the specific

age of the spirit.

El Dorado 15

Diplomatico Reserva Exclusiva

Appleton Estate 12 yr Mount Gay XO

Ron Zacapa 23

Pampero Anniversario

Plantation Nicaragua

Plantation Jamaica

Dark/Black Rum

Cruzan

Smith & Cross Ron Del Barrilito

Goslings


12/15

Overproof Rum

Overproof Rum came about because of how Rum used to be produced.When Rum first started

being made, it was not watered down to a standard 80 proof/40% ABV that we get today. It was

bottled at the strength that it came off the still at which is around 6570%. Rum was used by the

navies of the world as a ration for sailors as they could keep it near their gunpowder and if it spilt,

they could still light the gunpowder. This was because anything over 57% ABV will ignite.Overproof became a way of describing a spirit that is particularly strong. The purser of a ship (in

charge of Rum rationing) would sometimes water down Rum with a view to selling the cheating

them and light some gunpowder soaked in Rum. If it litremainder when back on land. He

coulLemon Hart 151d be challenged by the sailors to prove that he was not , it was over proof

and the term has stuck.

Wray & Nephew white overproof Rum

Rhum Agricole- Haiti / Martinique

Rhum agricoles are truly a separate branch of Rums, and differ significantly in how they are

made as well as how they taste. Rhum agricoles are made in every color and style, so youll find

white, lightly aged versions as well as darker, more aged versions. The main difference between

Rum and rhum agricole, is that the latter is produced by fermenting raw sugarcane juice instead

of molasses. This gives rhum a much grassier, earthier character than you find in molasses

based Rums. These spirits are made in French islands, Martinique and Guadeloupe. Agricoles

are more of an acquired taste than molasses based Rum, but there are many Rum buffs that

prefer them.

Clment La Mauny

Reimonenq

Damoiseau

Bielle

Barbancourt

Saint James

Neisson

Flavored Rums

Ok, ok - black Rums well put up with, even spiced Rums well entertain here, but flavored Rums

are an insipid and grotesque concoction. Created by multi-national conglomerates to sell cheap

booze to people trying to get sorority girls hammered, they have no place in this house. Drink

them in shame if you must, just keep it to yourself.

12


13/15

Recommendations for beginners

Although I'll give other recommendations, this one really should be your first bottle:

Diplomatico Reserva Exclusiva

Usually 3540 a bottle, it's praised by both connoisseurs and beginners. It's a little flat

once you're used to it, but has a great finish. At first you'll be overwhelmed by burntcaramel but then will be able to taste multiple spices and nuts.

Plantation Guatemala

Usually 30 a bottle. Caramel, chocolate, fruits, nuts, spices. This one is mind-numbing

in terms of transitions. Its very complex but still great for beginners because its central

character is not too sweet chocolate.

Angostura 1919

Usually 3540 a bottle. Fresh vanilla. Very easy to drink.

I'm used to drinking whiskey and don't want too sugary a drink

Plantation Guyana

El Dorado 12/15 (do note that they are very different from one another)

Pussers Navy Rum

Surprise me

Arcane Extraroma

Don Papa

I want something extra special

Opthimus 25

Opthimus 25 Malt Whisky Finish

Ron Millonario XO

Ron Zacapa XO

Diplomatico Single Vintage 2000

Cubaney Centenario Goslings Old Rum

La Flibuste (agricole)

May I have more suggestions?

13


14/15

Molasses:

Ron Millonario 15

All Plantation Rums! (Nicaragua, Jamaica, Guatemala, Barbados, Panama,

Trinidad, XO)

Dzama Vanilla Opthimus 15

Dictador 12

Pampero Anniversario

Santa Teresa 1796

Mount Gay XO

Flor de Cana 12

Dos Maderas 5+5 PX

Cubaney 18

Agricole:

Damoiseau (5 years and more, although 3 is fine)

La Mauny (VO/VSOP/XO)

Caroni

Reimonenq

14


15/15

Drinking Rum

Preparing Rum

Use a glass for spirits. If you have smallish and long hands, the Glencairn is a good choice. If

you have huge hands, better try a snifter-like glass. I greatly prefer glasses without feet, but to

each his own, a tulip is also acceptable.

Drink it neat: do not add water, coke, ice. Warm it to room temperature in the palm of your hand.

Tasting Rum

People who are not used to drinking strong spirits will oftentimes find them too harsh the first few

times. It's a good idea in this case to let the poured spirit settle for 30 minutes to one hour before

drinking, and also to warm the glass in the palm of the hand prior to drinking. This allows some

of the ethanol to evaporate and should make it easier to taste the flavours and not just alcohol.

If you plan on buying several different bottles, record your impressions in a small book. You'll be

surprised months from now to detect flavours you previously didn't notice.

Smell the spirit after it has been poured, then 10 minutes later to check what flavors

appeared/disappeared. Drink the spirit when it has settled, move it gently in your mouth. Try and

analyze the different transitions you notice. Smell the glass when it's empty, sometimes you'll be

very surprised.

15

beginners guide to rum

Documents