Rum Rising: Miami Rum Renaissance Ushers in the Age of Cane Spirits

Light, clean and bright. Sweet and smooth with hints of citrus and flowers. Dark, cloying and complex—reminiscent of cognac. 

Move over fruity summertime drinks. Make room for the full nuance, character and versatility of one of the world’s oldest spirits. The age of rum has arrived. 

For most Americans, rum is synonymous with tropical beach vacations and frozen seasonal drinks. But experts say that perception is itself frozen in time, based on the days when rum imports were extremely limited and hardly provided the basis for connoisseurs of the spirit similar to devotees to whiskey or wine.

But no more. With the increasing expansion of high-end, specialty and limited edition US rum imports, local enthusiasm is running high. The talent and technique required to brew and blend these rums can rival the finest whiskey, scotch and bourbon.

Dramatically proving the point was the 15th Annual Miami Rum Renaissance Festival held in mid-November. Hundreds of rum enthusiasts and explorers descended on historic Coral Gables in the Miami metro area for the country’s longest running rum festival. What started as a small, boutique event drawing 150 attendees has grown by leaps and bounds into a major focal point for today’s growing ranks of rum enthusiasts.

This year’s festival combined in-depth seminars on rum production, Tiki cocktails and rum history with an afternoon-long grand rum tasting. Exhibitors ranged from large, well-known brands with more rum varieties than you can count to specialized distilleries with regional offerings and small up-and-coming vendors.

Crowding the festively decorated booths, attendees were free to sample several hundred rums offered by local vendors as well as distillers from as far away as the Philippines and Africa. Along with familiar favorites, the event featured a wide selection of luxury, limited edition and vintage rums to please educated palates and invite exploration. Needless to say, whether a rum aficionado or newcomer, a good time was had by all.

He points out that Miami is the top rum market in per capita sales worldwide, and its liquor shelves and bars are well stocked with an unusually wide selection of cane spirits that cut across the taste and price spectrum. In part, this is due to Miami’s proximity to many rum-producing areas as well as to the drinking preferences of those who migrated to Miami from these areas.

Most people know that rum comes from sugar cane—specifically molasses, which is a byproduct of sugar production. While molasses can be exported and rum is distilled around the globe, most is made in cane-growing areas. Rum’s close and less familiar cousin is rhum agricole, made from fresh-pressed sugar cane juice, is only produced locally within days of harvest. All rums and rhums are fermented with yeast, distilled to condense alcohol content and then aged. 

• Classifying Rum

Rums can be classified in numerous ways—it depends on who you talk to. The country of origin often speaks volumes about rum characteristics, with specific production techniques typically employed in Spanish, English and French influenced areas. Column distillation, involving an upright tubular system, compared to pot distillation, removes more impurities, significantly altering flavor and color. Aficionados have their favorites.

Among the most important factors affecting the final product are the time period and process of aging. By law, rum must be aged for one year. Inexpensive young rums may be aged in stainless steel tanks, while high quality rums are aged eight to 10 years in oak casks. 

The type and age of a cask, in particular, helps impart a wide range of flavors and often a darker color, potentially adding palate-pleasing complexities. Perhaps surprisingly, certain specialty rums may be aged 50 years or more, commanding $800 and up a bottle.

Soil chemistry also may play a role and is the basis of the unique taste of many of Guyana’s award-winning rums.

Together, all of these factors give high quality rums a particular nose, palate and finish, similar to other quality spirits and wines.

• Adding Alchemy

If this isn’t enough to make your head spin without downing a shot or two of rum, be aware that some distilleries add spices, other flavorings, sugar, molasses and even colorings to darken white rums. In fact, rum color is rarely a predictor of flavor or quality. Moreover, many bottled rums contain alcohol aged for a variety of times periods, and age labeling is computed in multiple ways.

As a general rule, the finest rums generally do not rely on many additions to achieve a distinctive flavor or finish.

So how do the uninitiated become rum snobs? Drink! Rum is Fun as the festival’s promotional poster proclaims. Tasting and talking at an event like the Miami Rum Renaissance is the best way to educate yourself about rum parlance and palate. 

The highest quality rums are often enjoyed straight up or on the rocks as were many at the event. Others are made for mixing and go a long way as creative party refreshments. Some exhibitors also sampled these.

Rum lovers never left the event empty-handed. If they didn’t purchase a few bottles of newly discovered favorites, they were well supplied with a library of rum recipes to entice family and friends to indulge in the many pleasures of the up-and-coming spirit.