b'one generally finds that the distillationS P I R I T SWhilst some of the stills are quite creative,A retort is a chamber attached to the pot before the condenser, which is usually process is selective. The art of distillation isfilled with the first distillate. The vapour very much in evidence in the rum world R U Mpasses through this chamber, the heat strips with numerous possibilities from the sameoff and incorporates some of the alcohol distillation. before passing into the neck where it is condensed and collected. This method will What to capture and what to discard isalways produce rums of great distinction and critical to the style of the end product.character, if not something of an acquired Commence collection early and finish earlytaste.and the result will be a light, delicate, elegant spirit, occasionally showing hintsWhite rums are often aged in stainless steel of creamy toffee. Start later and finish laterfor up to six months; however, occasionally and the result will be a richer, fuller stylethey will be oak aged for an extended period with hints of burnt rubber and a certain oilyand then filtered through activated carbon character. to remove the colour.The vast majority of amber rums will have The stills used may vary considerably.been aged in old bourbon barrels and many Column stills can be as high as a four-storeywill pick up the vanilla and sweet spice building with one rectifying column or morenotes found in bourbon.columns all linked together; or in the case of Martiniques Rhum Agricole, can be veryAgeing in this part of the world is a quick small, fitting quite easily into an averagebusiness! In the tropics spirits evaporate room. The taller ones are very versatile asthrough the pores in the wood at great the collection shelves can be set anywherespeed during maturation. The Caribbean, to make anything from a heavy to lightfor example, has evaporation rates of distillate. The pot stills can be big or smallapproximately 8% a year whilst, by contrast, with long necksgiving more delicate rums 2% annually is the norm for whisky in or short necksresulting in richer, heavierScotland; this doesnt herald the same rumsand some may even be modified toflavour development that only time would incorporate single or double retort.allow but does hasten the ageing. Rums of the worldRums From The English Speaking CaribbeanAntigua, Barbados, Bermuda, Cayman Islands, Grenada, St Lucia, St Vincent, Trinidad & Tobago and the Virgin Islands, all produce predominantly light and golden rums, some with great style and finesse. Labels often use proprietary terms for differing qualities and many use age statements, from three year old up through five, seven etc. In some instances terms such as XO are borrowed from the brandy world.Jamaica produces pungent light and heavier high-ester rums, valuable for blending as well as for their own style and forthright flavours. Labels tend to indicate simply white and for the aged, special (gold), often a proprietary brand names and some age statements do actually refer to the minimum age of the blend. Guyana is a powerhouse of molasses production and produces a softer style of medium and heavily-bodied rums. The whites tend to be labelled very simply whilst the golden and dark rums generally utilise age statements which refer to the youngest parts of the blends. Both Jamaica and Guyana use pot and column stills to great effect. Many blended white and dark rums are sourced from theses countries for bottling in the Caribbean or in Europe, and they tend to be labelled with brand names and often carry no age statements or qualitative marks at all.Rums From French IslandsGuadeloupe, Marie Galante and Martinique produce both agricole and molasses based rums. The agricole have strict rules and follow a defined quality ladder: Blanc and Ambr followed by Vieux (minimum of three years), Hors dge and age statements or vintages. The molasses-based rums are labelled with brand names and rarely carry any other quality statements, many of which are bottled in France. Haiti has only one major producer; the rums are produced and aged in a similar way to cognac and carry age statements which refer to the minimum age of the blend.Hispanic Caribbean, Central & South American RumsCuba, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Guatemala, Mexico, Nicaragua, Puerto Rico and Venezuela produce a huge variety of heavy and light rums, predominantly white and gold and labelled with terms such as silver and blanca for the whites, and aejo, reserva, gran reserva and numerous age statements for the golden. Some are aged in solera systems and the stated age or number on the label can be a reference to the average age of the blend, or the youngest or oldest part of the blend or simply a special number that has been applied to a particular blend. Brazil deserves a mention on its own. It produces a great deal of the worlds molasses and some traditional rums but cachaa is its main spirit. Some of these do not qualify as true rums as grain and sugar syrup are also used alongside the molasses.Hispanic Caribbean, Central & South American RumsFrom Australia through the Philippines, India, South Africa and the French-speaking islands in the Indian Ocean, many types of rum are produced with brand names providing the best indication of quality. The French tend to be the greatest respecters of the age statement; the Indian rums tend to have colonial-sounding brands; the Australians may differ mostly on alcoholic strength, whilst the Spanish-speaking producers will tend towards the reserva and aejo systems.INN EXPRESS - DRINKS PORTFOLIO 2019|20 - RUM INN EXPRESS - DRINKS PORTFOLIO 2019|20 - RUM 59'