{ "count": 5, "includesBody": true, "items": [ { "api": "/posts/stocking-a-rum-shelf-from-scratch/index.json", "collection": "posts", "date": "2025-11-06T09:00:00-08:00", "description": "Eight bottles that cover nearly every classic exotic cocktail, chosen by style rather than by brand.", "draft": false, "fields": { "author": "Martin Cate", "date": "2025-11-06T09:00:00-08:00", "description": "Eight bottles that cover nearly every classic exotic cocktail, chosen by style rather than by brand.", "draft": false, "image": "", "lastmod": "2026-01-22T13:05:00-08:00", "publishdate": "2025-11-06T09:00:00-08:00", "tags": [ "rum", "home-bar", "buying" ], "title": "Stocking a Rum Shelf From Scratch" }, "html": "\u003cp\u003eThe question I get most often is which rum to buy. The honest answer is that\nit\u0026rsquo;s the wrong question — you want to buy \u003cem\u003estyles\u003c/em\u003e, and the specific bottle\nmatters much less than covering the range.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eHere\u0026rsquo;s a shelf that will make almost any classic exotic cocktail, in rough\npriority order.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"the-first-four\"\u003eThe first four\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003col\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eBlended lightly aged.\u003c/strong\u003e The workhorse. Daiquiris, most highballs, anything\nthat needs rum without a strong point of view.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eBlended aged.\u003c/strong\u003e Richer, more oak. The base of a Mai Tai and a hundred other\ndrinks.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eJamaican pot still, unaged or lightly aged.\u003c/strong\u003e Your funk source. You\u0026rsquo;ll use\nit half an ounce at a time and it will transform drinks.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eBlack blended.\u003c/strong\u003e Molasses-heavy and dark. Essential for a whole family of\ndrinks, and unmatched as a float.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003c/ol\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFour bottles gets you most of the way. If you stop here you can still make a\ngreat Daiquiri, a proper Mai Tai, and a credible Zombie.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"the-next-four\"\u003eThe next four\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003col start=\"5\"\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eDemerara, aged.\u003c/strong\u003e Guyanese, distinctive, smoky-sweet. Several classics\nspecifically want it.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eColumn still aged.\u003c/strong\u003e Softer and cleaner — for drinks where you want the\nrum present but polite.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eRhum agricole blanc.\u003c/strong\u003e Grassy and vegetal. Opens up Ti\u0026rsquo; Punch and gives you\nan entirely different register to work in.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eOverproof.\u003c/strong\u003e For floats, for flaming, and for drinks that genuinely call\nfor it. A little goes a very long way.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003c/ol\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"what-to-skip-early\"\u003eWhat to skip early\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSpiced rum, unless you have a specific drink in mind — most of it is sweetened\nand flavored to cover for a mediocre base spirit, and you can add your own\nspices with far more control.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eVery long aged, expensive bottlings. They\u0026rsquo;re wonderful and they\u0026rsquo;re for drinking\nneat. Putting a twenty-five-year rum in a drink with lime and orgeat wastes\nboth.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"on-price\"\u003eOn price\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eRum remains the best value in spirits, by some distance. There\u0026rsquo;s no prestige tax\nthe way there is with Scotch or Cognac, and the bottles that do the most work\nbehind the bar are frequently the cheap ones. Spend the money on covering more\nstyles, not on going further up any single one.\u003c/p\u003e\n", "id": "posts/stocking-a-rum-shelf-from-scratch", "lastmod": "2026-01-22T13:05:00-08:00", "markdown": "\nThe question I get most often is which rum to buy. The honest answer is that\nit's the wrong question — you want to buy *styles*, and the specific bottle\nmatters much less than covering the range.\n\nHere's a shelf that will make almost any classic exotic cocktail, in rough\npriority order.\n\n## The first four\n\n1. **Blended lightly aged.** The workhorse. Daiquiris, most highballs, anything\n that needs rum without a strong point of view.\n2. **Blended aged.** Richer, more oak. The base of a Mai Tai and a hundred other\n drinks.\n3. **Jamaican pot still, unaged or lightly aged.** Your funk source. You'll use\n it half an ounce at a time and it will transform drinks.\n4. **Black blended.** Molasses-heavy and dark. Essential for a whole family of\n drinks, and unmatched as a float.\n\nFour bottles gets you most of the way. If you stop here you can still make a\ngreat Daiquiri, a proper Mai Tai, and a credible Zombie.\n\n## The next four\n\n5. **Demerara, aged.** Guyanese, distinctive, smoky-sweet. Several classics\n specifically want it.\n6. **Column still aged.** Softer and cleaner — for drinks where you want the\n rum present but polite.\n7. **Rhum agricole blanc.** Grassy and vegetal. Opens up Ti' Punch and gives you\n an entirely different register to work in.\n8. **Overproof.** For floats, for flaming, and for drinks that genuinely call\n for it. A little goes a very long way.\n\n## What to skip early\n\nSpiced rum, unless you have a specific drink in mind — most of it is sweetened\nand flavored to cover for a mediocre base spirit, and you can add your own\nspices with far more control.\n\nVery long aged, expensive bottlings. They're wonderful and they're for drinking\nneat. Putting a twenty-five-year rum in a drink with lime and orgeat wastes\nboth.\n\n## On price\n\nRum remains the best value in spirits, by some distance. There's no prestige tax\nthe way there is with Scotch or Cognac, and the bottles that do the most work\nbehind the bar are frequently the cheap ones. Spend the money on covering more\nstyles, not on going further up any single one.\n", "readingTime": 2, "slug": "stocking-a-rum-shelf-from-scratch", "summary": "The question I get most often is which rum to buy. The honest answer is that it’s the wrong question — you want to buy styles, and the specific bottle matters much less than covering the range.\nHere’s a shelf that will make almost any classic exotic cocktail, in rough priority order.\nThe first four Blended lightly aged. The workhorse. Daiquiris, most highballs, anything that needs rum without a strong point of view. Blended aged. Richer, more oak. The base of a Mai Tai and a hundred other drinks. Jamaican pot still, unaged or lightly aged. Your funk source. You’ll use it half an ounce at a time and it will transform drinks. Black blended. Molasses-heavy and dark. Essential for a whole family of drinks, and unmatched as a float. Four bottles gets you most of the way. If you stop here you can still make a great Daiquiri, a proper Mai Tai, and a credible Zombie.", "title": "Stocking a Rum Shelf From Scratch", "url": "/posts/stocking-a-rum-shelf-from-scratch/", "weight": 0, "wordCount": 347 }, { "api": "/posts/hogo-and-the-case-for-funk/index.json", "collection": "posts", "date": "2025-01-09T09:00:00-08:00", "description": "Esters, dunder, and why the most divisive rums on the shelf are the most useful ones behind the bar.", "draft": false, "fields": { "author": "Martin Cate", "date": "2025-01-09T09:00:00-08:00", "description": "Esters, dunder, and why the most divisive rums on the shelf are the most useful ones behind the bar.", "draft": false, "image": "", "lastmod": "2025-01-09T09:00:00-08:00", "publishdate": "2025-01-09T09:00:00-08:00", "tags": [ "rum", "jamaica", "education" ], "title": "Hogo and the Case for Funk" }, "html": "\u003cp\u003ePour a high-ester Jamaican rum for someone who\u0026rsquo;s only had column still rum and\nwatch their face. Overripe banana, glue, olive brine, something almost medicinal\nunderneath. The first reaction is rarely pleasure.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThat quality has a name — \u003cem\u003ehogo\u003c/em\u003e, an English corruption of the French \u003cem\u003ehaut\ngoût\u003c/em\u003e, \u0026ldquo;high taste.\u0026rdquo; It\u0026rsquo;s produced by long fermentation, pot distillation, and\nin some Jamaican distilleries the deliberate use of \u003cem\u003edunder\u003c/em\u003e: the acidic residue\nleft in the still from the previous run, added back to the next fermentation to\ndrive ester production.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIt sounds like a description of a mistake. It\u0026rsquo;s a centuries-old technique\npracticed on purpose.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"why-bother\"\u003eWhy bother\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBecause in a cocktail, funk is structure.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAn exotic cocktail typically has a lot going on — two or three rums, citrus, one\nor two syrups, a spice element, bitters. A clean rum in that context gets buried.\nYou\u0026rsquo;ve added alcohol and taken away nothing else. A high-ester rum survives the\ncrowd. It gives the drink a spine and a finish, and it\u0026rsquo;s the reason a great\nJamaica-forward drink tastes like something rather than like sweet cold liquid.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe classic move is proportion. Half an ounce of an aggressive pot still rum\nalongside an ounce and a half of something rounder does more for a drink than\ntwo ounces of either alone.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"learning-to-read-it\"\u003eLearning to read it\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eStart by tasting the loud ones neat, in small amounts, next to something mild.\nYou\u0026rsquo;re not trying to enjoy them yet — you\u0026rsquo;re building a vocabulary. Once you can\nidentify the banana-and-varnish register, you start noticing trace amounts of it\nin blends, and you start understanding what a producer was reaching for.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"not-a-virtue-in-itself\"\u003eNot a virtue in itself\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFunk is a tool, not a scoreboard. There\u0026rsquo;s a strain of rum enthusiasm that treats\nmaximum ester count as maximum quality, which is how you end up with drinks that\nare unbalanced in an unusual direction rather than balanced.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe skill isn\u0026rsquo;t loving hogo. It\u0026rsquo;s knowing how much a given drink can carry.\u003c/p\u003e\n", "id": "posts/hogo-and-the-case-for-funk", "lastmod": "2025-01-09T09:00:00-08:00", "markdown": "\nPour a high-ester Jamaican rum for someone who's only had column still rum and\nwatch their face. Overripe banana, glue, olive brine, something almost medicinal\nunderneath. The first reaction is rarely pleasure.\n\nThat quality has a name — *hogo*, an English corruption of the French *haut\ngoût*, \"high taste.\" It's produced by long fermentation, pot distillation, and\nin some Jamaican distilleries the deliberate use of *dunder*: the acidic residue\nleft in the still from the previous run, added back to the next fermentation to\ndrive ester production.\n\nIt sounds like a description of a mistake. It's a centuries-old technique\npracticed on purpose.\n\n## Why bother\n\nBecause in a cocktail, funk is structure.\n\nAn exotic cocktail typically has a lot going on — two or three rums, citrus, one\nor two syrups, a spice element, bitters. A clean rum in that context gets buried.\nYou've added alcohol and taken away nothing else. A high-ester rum survives the\ncrowd. It gives the drink a spine and a finish, and it's the reason a great\nJamaica-forward drink tastes like something rather than like sweet cold liquid.\n\nThe classic move is proportion. Half an ounce of an aggressive pot still rum\nalongside an ounce and a half of something rounder does more for a drink than\ntwo ounces of either alone.\n\n## Learning to read it\n\nStart by tasting the loud ones neat, in small amounts, next to something mild.\nYou're not trying to enjoy them yet — you're building a vocabulary. Once you can\nidentify the banana-and-varnish register, you start noticing trace amounts of it\nin blends, and you start understanding what a producer was reaching for.\n\n## Not a virtue in itself\n\nFunk is a tool, not a scoreboard. There's a strain of rum enthusiasm that treats\nmaximum ester count as maximum quality, which is how you end up with drinks that\nare unbalanced in an unusual direction rather than balanced.\n\nThe skill isn't loving hogo. It's knowing how much a given drink can carry.\n", "readingTime": 2, "slug": "hogo-and-the-case-for-funk", "summary": "Pour a high-ester Jamaican rum for someone who’s only had column still rum and watch their face. Overripe banana, glue, olive brine, something almost medicinal underneath. The first reaction is rarely pleasure.\nThat quality has a name — hogo, an English corruption of the French haut goût, “high taste.” It’s produced by long fermentation, pot distillation, and in some Jamaican distilleries the deliberate use of dunder: the acidic residue left in the still from the previous run, added back to the next fermentation to drive ester production.", "title": "Hogo and the Case for Funk", "url": "/posts/hogo-and-the-case-for-funk/", "weight": 0, "wordCount": 330 }, { "api": "/posts/rhum-agricole-and-the-aoc/index.json", "collection": "posts", "date": "2024-10-03T09:00:00-07:00", "description": "Fresh cane juice instead of molasses, and the one corner of rum with real rules.", "draft": false, "fields": { "author": "Martin Cate", "date": "2024-10-03T09:00:00-07:00", "description": "Fresh cane juice instead of molasses, and the one corner of rum with real rules.", "draft": false, "image": "", "lastmod": "2024-10-03T09:00:00-07:00", "publishdate": "2024-10-03T09:00:00-07:00", "tags": [ "rum", "agricole", "martinique" ], "title": "Rhum Agricole and the AOC" }, "html": "\u003cp\u003eNearly all rum is made from molasses — the byproduct left after sugar is\ncrystallized out of cane juice. It\u0026rsquo;s cheap, it\u0026rsquo;s stable, it ships well, and it\nhas been the default for centuries.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eRhum agricole is made from fresh sugarcane juice instead, pressed and fermented\nwithin hours of harvest. The difference is not subtle. Where molasses rum tends\ntoward caramel, vanilla, and dried fruit, agricole is grassy, vegetal, olive-\nbrined, and alive in a way that surprises people the first time.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"the-aoc\"\u003eThe AOC\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMartinique is the one place in rum with a genuine appellation. AOC Martinique\nRhum Agricole, granted in 1996, regulates cane varieties, harvest windows,\nfermentation, distillation proof, and aging — the same apparatus that governs\nCognac or Champagne.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThat matters in a category where almost nothing else is regulated. When a\nbottle says AOC Martinique, a large number of production questions are already\nanswered.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe vocabulary is worth knowing:\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eBlanc\u003c/strong\u003e — unaged, or rested briefly in steel. The purest expression of the\ncane.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eÉlevé sous bois\u003c/strong\u003e — rested in wood, at least a year.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eVieux\u003c/strong\u003e — aged at least three years in oak.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eVSOP, XO, Hors d\u0026rsquo;Âge\u003c/strong\u003e — progressively longer aging, borrowed from Cognac.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003c/ul\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"where-else\"\u003eWhere else\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMartinique has the appellation, but not a monopoly on the technique. Guadeloupe\nand Marie-Galante produce excellent cane juice rhum outside the AOC. Haiti\u0026rsquo;s\nclairin is unaged, wildly variable, often fermented with native yeasts, and\nsome of the most exciting spirit being made anywhere. Cachaça is Brazil\u0026rsquo;s\ncane-juice spirit, with its own traditions and its own wood.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"using-it\"\u003eUsing it\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAgricole blanc in a Ti\u0026rsquo; Punch — rhum, cane syrup, a lime coin, no ice or very\nlittle — is the whole argument in three ingredients. It\u0026rsquo;s also superb in\ndaiquiri-shaped drinks where you want the rum to actually be present.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhere it gets difficult is substitution. An agricole will not quietly stand in\nfor a molasses rum. Drop one into a recipe built around aged blended rum and it\nwill take the drink somewhere else entirely. Sometimes that\u0026rsquo;s a happy accident.\nUsually it\u0026rsquo;s just wrong. Treat agricole as its own family and build for it\nrather than swapping it in.\u003c/p\u003e\n", "id": "posts/rhum-agricole-and-the-aoc", "lastmod": "2024-10-03T09:00:00-07:00", "markdown": "\nNearly all rum is made from molasses — the byproduct left after sugar is\ncrystallized out of cane juice. It's cheap, it's stable, it ships well, and it\nhas been the default for centuries.\n\nRhum agricole is made from fresh sugarcane juice instead, pressed and fermented\nwithin hours of harvest. The difference is not subtle. Where molasses rum tends\ntoward caramel, vanilla, and dried fruit, agricole is grassy, vegetal, olive-\nbrined, and alive in a way that surprises people the first time.\n\n## The AOC\n\nMartinique is the one place in rum with a genuine appellation. AOC Martinique\nRhum Agricole, granted in 1996, regulates cane varieties, harvest windows,\nfermentation, distillation proof, and aging — the same apparatus that governs\nCognac or Champagne.\n\nThat matters in a category where almost nothing else is regulated. When a\nbottle says AOC Martinique, a large number of production questions are already\nanswered.\n\nThe vocabulary is worth knowing:\n\n- **Blanc** — unaged, or rested briefly in steel. The purest expression of the\n cane.\n- **Élevé sous bois** — rested in wood, at least a year.\n- **Vieux** — aged at least three years in oak.\n- **VSOP, XO, Hors d'Âge** — progressively longer aging, borrowed from Cognac.\n\n## Where else\n\nMartinique has the appellation, but not a monopoly on the technique. Guadeloupe\nand Marie-Galante produce excellent cane juice rhum outside the AOC. Haiti's\nclairin is unaged, wildly variable, often fermented with native yeasts, and\nsome of the most exciting spirit being made anywhere. Cachaça is Brazil's\ncane-juice spirit, with its own traditions and its own wood.\n\n## Using it\n\nAgricole blanc in a Ti' Punch — rhum, cane syrup, a lime coin, no ice or very\nlittle — is the whole argument in three ingredients. It's also superb in\ndaiquiri-shaped drinks where you want the rum to actually be present.\n\nWhere it gets difficult is substitution. An agricole will not quietly stand in\nfor a molasses rum. Drop one into a recipe built around aged blended rum and it\nwill take the drink somewhere else entirely. Sometimes that's a happy accident.\nUsually it's just wrong. Treat agricole as its own family and build for it\nrather than swapping it in.\n", "readingTime": 2, "slug": "rhum-agricole-and-the-aoc", "summary": "Nearly all rum is made from molasses — the byproduct left after sugar is crystallized out of cane juice. It’s cheap, it’s stable, it ships well, and it has been the default for centuries.\nRhum agricole is made from fresh sugarcane juice instead, pressed and fermented within hours of harvest. The difference is not subtle. Where molasses rum tends toward caramel, vanilla, and dried fruit, agricole is grassy, vegetal, olive- brined, and alive in a way that surprises people the first time.", "title": "Rhum Agricole and the AOC", "url": "/posts/rhum-agricole-and-the-aoc/", "weight": 0, "wordCount": 358 }, { "api": "/posts/pot-still-versus-column-still/index.json", "collection": "posts", "date": "2024-05-30T09:00:00-07:00", "description": "The single biggest lever on how a rum tastes, and why blends of the two dominate the category.", "draft": false, "fields": { "author": "Martin Cate", "date": "2024-05-30T09:00:00-07:00", "description": "The single biggest lever on how a rum tastes, and why blends of the two dominate the category.", "draft": false, "image": "", "lastmod": "2025-01-14T16:45:00-08:00", "publishdate": "2024-05-30T09:00:00-07:00", "tags": [ "rum", "production", "education" ], "title": "Pot Still Versus Column Still" }, "html": "\u003cp\u003eIf you only learn one thing about rum production, learn this one. Still type\ndoes more to determine character than country, age, or price.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"pot-stills\"\u003ePot stills\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eA pot still is a batch process. You fill it, you distill, you empty it, you\nstart again. It\u0026rsquo;s inefficient, slow, and it produces a distillate that carries\nan enormous amount of the fermented wash along with the alcohol — congeners,\nesters, oils, all the heavy compounds that read as flavor.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe result is loud. Jamaican pot still rum is the extreme case: overripe banana,\nvarnish, tropical fruit turned up past the point of subtlety. Rum people call\nthat quality \u003cem\u003ehogo\u003c/em\u003e, from the French \u003cem\u003ehaut goût\u003c/em\u003e. In a cocktail, half an ounce\nof it will announce itself over everything else in the glass.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"column-stills\"\u003eColumn stills\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eA column still runs continuously and separates the distillate into fractions\nwith far more precision. You can pull a very clean, very high-proof spirit off\nit. Cuban-style and most Spanish-heritage rums lean on column distillation, and\nthe results are lighter, softer, and more approachable.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eClean is not the same as boring. A well-made aged column still rum has plenty\ngoing on — it\u0026rsquo;s just that the oak and the base spirit do the talking instead of\nthe fermentation.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"blends\"\u003eBlends\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMost rum you\u0026rsquo;ll drink is neither purely one nor the other. Blending pot and\ncolumn distillate lets a producer dial in exactly as much intensity as they\nwant: the column component provides structure and drinkability, the pot\ncomponent provides the top notes.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis is why \u0026ldquo;blended\u0026rdquo; deserves to sit alongside pot and column as its own\ncategory rather than being treated as a compromise. It\u0026rsquo;s a deliberate choice,\nand for a huge number of cocktails it\u0026rsquo;s the correct one.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"using-this-behind-the-bar\"\u003eUsing this behind the bar\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eA practical rule: if a drink has a lot of competing ingredients — multiple\njuices, several syrups, a spice component — you can afford a loud pot still rum,\nand you probably want one, or the rum will disappear. If a drink is simple and\nrum-forward, a blend or a good column still rum will give you something you can\nactually taste through.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe Daiquiri is the test. Three ingredients, nowhere to hide. Make it three\ntimes with three different rums and the entire category will explain itself\nfaster than any amount of reading.\u003c/p\u003e\n", "id": "posts/pot-still-versus-column-still", "lastmod": "2025-01-14T16:45:00-08:00", "markdown": "\nIf you only learn one thing about rum production, learn this one. Still type\ndoes more to determine character than country, age, or price.\n\n## Pot stills\n\nA pot still is a batch process. You fill it, you distill, you empty it, you\nstart again. It's inefficient, slow, and it produces a distillate that carries\nan enormous amount of the fermented wash along with the alcohol — congeners,\nesters, oils, all the heavy compounds that read as flavor.\n\nThe result is loud. Jamaican pot still rum is the extreme case: overripe banana,\nvarnish, tropical fruit turned up past the point of subtlety. Rum people call\nthat quality *hogo*, from the French *haut goût*. In a cocktail, half an ounce\nof it will announce itself over everything else in the glass.\n\n## Column stills\n\nA column still runs continuously and separates the distillate into fractions\nwith far more precision. You can pull a very clean, very high-proof spirit off\nit. Cuban-style and most Spanish-heritage rums lean on column distillation, and\nthe results are lighter, softer, and more approachable.\n\nClean is not the same as boring. A well-made aged column still rum has plenty\ngoing on — it's just that the oak and the base spirit do the talking instead of\nthe fermentation.\n\n## Blends\n\nMost rum you'll drink is neither purely one nor the other. Blending pot and\ncolumn distillate lets a producer dial in exactly as much intensity as they\nwant: the column component provides structure and drinkability, the pot\ncomponent provides the top notes.\n\nThis is why \"blended\" deserves to sit alongside pot and column as its own\ncategory rather than being treated as a compromise. It's a deliberate choice,\nand for a huge number of cocktails it's the correct one.\n\n## Using this behind the bar\n\nA practical rule: if a drink has a lot of competing ingredients — multiple\njuices, several syrups, a spice component — you can afford a loud pot still rum,\nand you probably want one, or the rum will disappear. If a drink is simple and\nrum-forward, a blend or a good column still rum will give you something you can\nactually taste through.\n\nThe Daiquiri is the test. Three ingredients, nowhere to hide. Make it three\ntimes with three different rums and the entire category will explain itself\nfaster than any amount of reading.\n", "readingTime": 2, "slug": "pot-still-versus-column-still", "summary": "If you only learn one thing about rum production, learn this one. Still type does more to determine character than country, age, or price.\nPot stills A pot still is a batch process. You fill it, you distill, you empty it, you start again. It’s inefficient, slow, and it produces a distillate that carries an enormous amount of the fermented wash along with the alcohol — congeners, esters, oils, all the heavy compounds that read as flavor.", "title": "Pot Still Versus Column Still", "url": "/posts/pot-still-versus-column-still/", "weight": 0, "wordCount": 388 }, { "api": "/posts/why-rum-needs-a-better-classification-system/index.json", "collection": "posts", "date": "2024-01-18T09:00:00-08:00", "description": "Color and country tell you almost nothing about what's in the bottle. Production method tells you everything.", "draft": false, "fields": { "author": "Martin Cate", "date": "2024-01-18T09:00:00-08:00", "description": "Color and country tell you almost nothing about what's in the bottle. Production method tells you everything.", "draft": false, "image": "", "lastmod": "2025-03-02T11:20:00-08:00", "publishdate": "2024-01-18T09:00:00-08:00", "tags": [ "rum", "classification", "education" ], "title": "Why Rum Needs a Better Classification System" }, "html": "\u003cp\u003eWalk into most bars and the rum shelf is sorted by color. White on the left,\ngold in the middle, dark on the right. It\u0026rsquo;s tidy, and it\u0026rsquo;s close to useless.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eColor in rum is a poor proxy for anything. A rum can be dark because it spent\nfifteen years in oak, or because someone added caramel coloring last Tuesday. A\nrum can be crystal clear and have been aged for years, then filtered back to\nwhite. Two bottles sitting next to each other, identical in the glass, can\nbehave completely differently in a drink.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"country-doesnt-fix-it-either\"\u003eCountry doesn\u0026rsquo;t fix it either\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe other common approach is to sort by origin — Jamaican, Barbadian, Guyanese,\nCuban-style. This is better, because regional traditions are real. But it\nbreaks down fast. Jamaica produces both delicate column still rums and some of\nthe most aggressively funky pot still rums on earth. Calling both \u0026ldquo;Jamaican\u0026rdquo; and\nstopping there tells a bartender nothing about which one belongs in a Mai Tai.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAnd it collapses entirely for blends. What country is a rum made from stocks\nacross four islands?\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"what-actually-matters\"\u003eWhat actually matters\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThree things determine how a rum tastes and how it behaves in a cocktail:\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003col\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eBase ingredient\u003c/strong\u003e — molasses, evaporated cane juice, or fresh cane juice\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eStill type\u003c/strong\u003e — pot, column, or a blend of both\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAging\u003c/strong\u003e — unaged, lightly aged, aged, long aged\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003c/ol\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThose three axes, combined, describe a rum in a way you can act on. A pot still\nunaged rum and a column still lightly aged rum are different tools. Once the\nshelf is organized this way, substitution stops being guesswork. If a recipe\ncalls for a blended aged rum and you\u0026rsquo;re out, you reach for another blended aged\nrum — not for whatever else happens to be brown.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"why-it-took-so-long\"\u003eWhy it took so long\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eRum has no equivalent to the appellation systems that govern Cognac or Scotch.\nOutside of a few designations like AOC Martinique, producers can label almost\nanything almost anything. \u0026ldquo;Reserve,\u0026rdquo; \u0026ldquo;XO,\u0026rdquo; and \u0026ldquo;Private Stock\u0026rdquo; mean whatever the\nmarketing department wants them to mean.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThat absence of regulation is part of what makes rum thrilling — the category\ncontains more variety than any other spirit. But it means the burden of\nclassification falls to us. If the industry won\u0026rsquo;t organize the shelf, the people\npouring from it have to.\u003c/p\u003e\n", "id": "posts/why-rum-needs-a-better-classification-system", "lastmod": "2025-03-02T11:20:00-08:00", "markdown": "\nWalk into most bars and the rum shelf is sorted by color. White on the left,\ngold in the middle, dark on the right. It's tidy, and it's close to useless.\n\nColor in rum is a poor proxy for anything. A rum can be dark because it spent\nfifteen years in oak, or because someone added caramel coloring last Tuesday. A\nrum can be crystal clear and have been aged for years, then filtered back to\nwhite. Two bottles sitting next to each other, identical in the glass, can\nbehave completely differently in a drink.\n\n## Country doesn't fix it either\n\nThe other common approach is to sort by origin — Jamaican, Barbadian, Guyanese,\nCuban-style. This is better, because regional traditions are real. But it\nbreaks down fast. Jamaica produces both delicate column still rums and some of\nthe most aggressively funky pot still rums on earth. Calling both \"Jamaican\" and\nstopping there tells a bartender nothing about which one belongs in a Mai Tai.\n\nAnd it collapses entirely for blends. What country is a rum made from stocks\nacross four islands?\n\n## What actually matters\n\nThree things determine how a rum tastes and how it behaves in a cocktail:\n\n1. **Base ingredient** — molasses, evaporated cane juice, or fresh cane juice\n2. **Still type** — pot, column, or a blend of both\n3. **Aging** — unaged, lightly aged, aged, long aged\n\nThose three axes, combined, describe a rum in a way you can act on. A pot still\nunaged rum and a column still lightly aged rum are different tools. Once the\nshelf is organized this way, substitution stops being guesswork. If a recipe\ncalls for a blended aged rum and you're out, you reach for another blended aged\nrum — not for whatever else happens to be brown.\n\n## Why it took so long\n\nRum has no equivalent to the appellation systems that govern Cognac or Scotch.\nOutside of a few designations like AOC Martinique, producers can label almost\nanything almost anything. \"Reserve,\" \"XO,\" and \"Private Stock\" mean whatever the\nmarketing department wants them to mean.\n\nThat absence of regulation is part of what makes rum thrilling — the category\ncontains more variety than any other spirit. But it means the burden of\nclassification falls to us. If the industry won't organize the shelf, the people\npouring from it have to.\n", "readingTime": 2, "slug": "why-rum-needs-a-better-classification-system", "summary": "Walk into most bars and the rum shelf is sorted by color. White on the left, gold in the middle, dark on the right. It’s tidy, and it’s close to useless.\nColor in rum is a poor proxy for anything. A rum can be dark because it spent fifteen years in oak, or because someone added caramel coloring last Tuesday. A rum can be crystal clear and have been aged for years, then filtered back to white. Two bottles sitting next to each other, identical in the glass, can behave completely differently in a drink.", "title": "Why Rum Needs a Better Classification System", "url": "/posts/why-rum-needs-a-better-classification-system/", "weight": 0, "wordCount": 387 } ], "slug": "rum", "taxonomy": "tags", "term": "Rum" }