What Would Rumstylin' be Without Rum???

     The history of rum goes back a thousand years or more and was present during many of the famous events of our country's history.     Paul Revere was said to have downed a mug of Rum before his famous ride, George Washington, a tea totaller had a barrel of Barbados Rum at his Inauguration, and Ben Franklin Invented the Rum Flip, our founding fathers and Rum are both a integral part of our history.     Prohibition, the Rum line, rum runners and of course the speakeasy all part of this country's rum history.     Today the rum is rapidly overtaking vodka as the number one cocktail mixer.    

     The majority of the rum we enjoy today come from around the Caribbean.     Countries like Barbados. Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic, St. Lucia, Trinidad and Tobago, and Central and South Americas are blessed with some of the best rum distilleries.     My trip to Barbados last November for the the Caribbean Rum Festival gave me an unusual opportunity to visit some of the more outstanding distilleries of the Caribbean.     The thing that impressed me is the dedication to making rum better through innovation and more sophisticated blending and aging.     It was my pleasure to sample many of the new and still experimental rums that have not been put out on the market.     The trip has shown me that this industry is continuously evolving and making better and better rums to sip or mix. 

     To be a good rumstyler you must be ever vigilant in you visits to bars and liquor stores for the new rums and upgraded versions of your old favorites.     While in Mexico last month I ran across three new rums that turned out to be very fine flavored rums in a country that  is famous for Tequila.    The point is that I'm trying to make is you can fund great rums anywhere if you keep your eyes open  for them.      By the Way I'm headed for Panama in Mid February to visit the Rum Distilleries of that country and I will have a full report as I travel through them.     Keep your eyes open for them.  ;o)