The learning never stops. For several years I’ve endeavored to understand the flavor science and history behind Jamaican rum’s unique hogo. As part of that I’ve visited every Jamaican rum distillery, save one, and documented what I learned. One such…
Tag: Spirit science
Ooh LAA LAA – What’s It Mean?
A member of my High Ester Rum Geeks Facebook group recently asked what LAA means in the context of distilled spirits. For instance, if purchasing rum in bulk, you might be quoted a price per LAA rather than in gallons…
Bourbon vs Rum: Technical Head to Head
To my great delight, interest in rum from bourbon enthusiasts has gathered steam recently. As a writer I’m keenly aware that many topics in the bourbon world are well-tread ground, while rum has far more undeveloped land, so to speak.…
Privateer Rum’s Maggie Campbell on Barrel Aging Science – Tropical or Otherwise
The “Wonk” in Cocktail Wonk refers to digging deep to understand as much as possible about spirits and cocktails. Many of the stories here involve the chemistry of aging, as well as the different elements in a spirit – water,…
Is Rum Made From Sugar, or Not?
A recently published “Rum 101” article caught my attention because it asserted rum can be made from sugar beets, as well as from sugarcane. This is simply not the case. While you can certainly make a distilled spirit using sugar…