The Wild Drink Blog

There doesn’t appear to be a rum timeline anywhere on the net, or at least not a comprehensive one. All of this information has been colated from other websites and a couple of books, i’ve just put it in order with dates.

If you’re really into your timelines then that’s pretty sad, but take a look at the Gin Timeline before you get too down about it.

It would be pretty cool if this resource could grow, so if you have any interesting and relevant dates or facts in rums history drop a comment and i’ll include it.

Origin of the Name

Rumbullion – Meaning “A great tumlit or uproar” (most likely)
Rummers – From the nickname of Dutch sailors who drank from glass known as a roemer.
Saccarum – Latin for sugar
Arôme – French for aroma

Timeline

Ancient India/China – Development of fermented sugarcane drinks.

1493 – Christopher Columbus takes sugarcane cuttings from the Canaries accross the Atlantic Ocean to the island of Hispaniola, now shared by Haiti and Domincan Republic. Sugar cane spreads around the Caribbean fast.

Early 17th C – Plantation slaves discover molasses (from the Spanish word miel – meaning honey) the bi-product of sugarcane refinery can be fermented into alcohol.

1651 – Barbados is considered to be first producer of rum, a report in 1651 stated “The chief fuddling they make in the island is Rumbullion, alias Kill-Divil, and this is made of sugar canes distilled, a hot, hellish, and terrible liquor”.

1655 – Bristish Royal Navy capture Jamaica and switch their daily liquor ‘tot’ from french brandy to rum. Pusers Jamaican rum became the sailors ration for 300 years named afer the ships storeman or purser. Navy rum is traditionally overproof to avoid weakening the explosive force of gunpowder if the rum were to spill.

1657 - the General Court of Massachusetts made illegal the sale of strong liquor “whether knowne by the name of rumme, strong water, wine, brandy, etc.”.

1664 – First rum distillery setup in Colonial America on Staten Island to support demand for the product.

1680-1688 - Captain Henry Morgan - the British buccaneer, is governor of Jamaica. Almost 300 years later in 1944 Captain Morgan rum begins production in a converted pharmacy in Kingston.

Many other producers opened in the following years in New England colonies including Boston and Rhode Island. The New England rums were considered superior to Carribean counterparts and for a short time Rhode Island rum was a currency in Europe alongside gold.

18th C – Rum plays a big part in the triangular trade between West Africa, Carribean and New England, Rhode Island playing a pivitol role. Rum promotes slave trading and is a global comodity comparable to the oil of today.

1740 – Admiral Edward Vernon advises rum rations aboard ships to be watered down to avoid adverse affects of alcohol – Grog was invented named after the ‘grogham’ coat Vernon wore on deck.

1764 – British government impose more strict regulations on the tax and revenue of molasses in the British colonies. Disruptions to trade of rum and sugar may have contributed to the uprising of colonies and the American Civil War.

1770 – Every man woman and child in colonial America are drinking on average 13.5 litres of rum per year.

1775-1783 – American Revolution.

1789 – Rum popularity continues, George Washington asks for a barrel of Barbados rum to be served at his inauguration as the first American president.

Early 19th C – Bourbon and American whisky popularity grows as British Caribbean islands face restrictions on rum. In Europe sugar extraction form sugar beet is developed, Europe requires less sugar, Caribbean makes less molasses, some distilleries and plantations close.

1809 – Horatio Nelson dies winning the Battle of Trafalgar. His body is shipped back to England preserved in a barrel of rum. Upon return, the barrel is found to be drained of rum by sailors who drilled holes in the barrel and consumed the rum and Nelson’s blood in the process. Rum is sometimes referred to as ‘Nelson’s blood’ or ‘Tapping the Admiral’.

1843 - Don Facundo Bacardí Massó, moved from Spain to Santiago de Cuba and experimented with distilation techniques, charcoal filtering and oak aging. Founded Barcadi y Compania in 1862, one of the first examples of lighter less harsh rum.

1900 – Cuba Libre mixed in Havana Cuba. (Exact origins debatable)

1905 – Daiquiri invented by an engineer, Jennings Cox at Venus in Santiago, Cuba. Originally served in a long glass with cracked ice. Daiquiri is the name of a beach local to Santiago and an iron mine.

1920-1933 – Prohibition. Thirsty Americans travel to the rum fueled island of Cuba

1931 – Mojito recipe first published in the famous Cuban ‘Sloppy Joe’s Bar Manual’, though the drink had evolved earlier form the Daiquiri. Could also have evolved from an earlier drink ‘El Draque’ after Sir Francis Drake who was said to leave the recipe behind in Cuba in 16th C, but using unrefined rum, lime, mint and sugar. (Origins debatable)

1938 – Alejandro Hernandez from the island of Margarita and the son of a fisherman creates Pampero in Venezuela. Known to locals as Caballito Frenao (bitten horse), Pampero was the first rum to be classed as ‘anejo’ in Venezuela. Hernandez was later in his life the governor of Nueva Esparta and even ran for presidency.

1942 - Angel Martinez opened La Bodeguita del Medio as a general store and later converted it into a restaurant and bar in 1946, where the mojito is claimed to have gained popularity in Havana.

Late 20th C – Rums resurgence and steady popularity is parltly due to air conditioning, which has allowed people from all over the world to travel to hot climates and enjoy rum.

Sources:

http://gac.culture.gov.uk , www.wikipedia.org , www.britarch.ac.uk , www.rumpundit.com , www.earlyamerica.com , www.planterum.com

Rum by Dave Broom and Jason Lowe
Rum: The Epic Story of the Drink That Conquered the World by Charles A. Coulombe