Rum on Martinique : Art & Culture

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Art & Culture on Martinique : Rum

Rum is more than just a drink, it is a culture in itself. Rum-tasting is a ritual that requires long initiation: to savour its divine flavour, to distinguish between its myriad of varieties and to delight in a particularly fine bottle you need to be taught with expertise. Connoisseurs of this drink are as dainty as specialists of cognac or armagnac, which is sound proof of the fact that there’s more to rum than that reddish alcohol on our banana flambee. It is the islands’ national drink without doubt, heaven itself for users and hell for abusers. Two different types of rum coexist: industrial rum, manufactured all over the world, obtained by distilling the residue of sugar production (molasses) and agricultural rum, manufactured in the French West Indies (Martinique, Guadeloupe, Marie-Galante), obtained by distilling the fermentation of fresh sugarcane juice.

“Taffia” the ancestor of rum

The first name that comes to our mind concerning the history of rum is the famous reverend Father Labat. As soon as he arrived on the island in 1694, he broke down with a terrible fever, and would certainly have passed away had it not been for a decoction composed of a mysterious alcohol unknown at the time: most probably the ancestor of what we call rum today. As he writes in his journal: “The spirit drawn from sugarcane is called guildive, though savages and negroes call it taffia. It is extremely strong, has a disagreeable odour and it is as bitter as our grain spirits. It is prepared in a place similar to a vinegar factory…” Jean-Baptiste Labat, New Voyage to the American Islands (1722). In fact, this drink was obtained by the fermentation of different waste products of the process of sugar manufacturing. This fermented fluid was then distilled, resulting in a transparent liquid called taffia. As distillery apparatus was rather rudimentary at the time, the quality of the drink was quite mediocre. Today’s rum was to evolve out of taffia.

The birth of industrial rum

In the 18th century, Martinique sold molasses (restovers of the sugar industry) to North American colonies, who already manufactured industrial rum. This technology, however, improved to perfection by the English, was not adapted in Martinique and Guadeloupe until the end of the 19th century. Martinique’s factories began to produce rum based on their large stocks of molasses in order to add a little plus to their monthly income. It was at this time that sugarcane was first used for else than sugar production, and the era of industrial rum had begun.

From industrial rum to agricultural rum

The arrival of the steam engine was to revolutionise rum production on the islands. Applied to the cane mill, this revolutionary technique was to overturn the normal concentration of habitations: in order to produce more and more, smaller producers began to form groups which resulted in the creation of “central factories”. The factory, equipped with a steam engine, formed the centre around which smaller exploitations were regrouped. A railway network in shape of a star served to move sugar cane from the fields to the factory, and the exploitations which did not manage to access this network soon found themselves totally excluded from the central factory and the sugar cane market itself. Certain habitations began to directly distil sugarcane juice (vesou), which gave birth to agricultural rum, referred to as “rhum z’habitants” at the time. Central factories were transformed into agricultural distilleries following a number of crises in the sugar industry.

A few rum recipes

Now that you know all there is to know about rum, it’s cocktail time, so here are a couple of recipes you can try at home. Don’t forget to consume them with moderation, though, as rum has the special feature of making you drunk faster than any other alcohol. Recipes below are based on French West Indian rum and local cocktails, so those on other islands may differ significantly in methods of preparation.

Ti-punch.
This cocktail is prepared in a similar way on Martinique and Guadeloupe. White rum, sugarcane syrup (or sugar, honey, etc.), lime. This is definitely the most well-known and beloved of all Antillean cocktails. Ti-punch tasting differs according to the hour: the day’s first ti-punch is called “take-off” or “petepied”. A light and modest one is referred to as a “ti-bete”, a “punch-fillette” (girl punch) or a “ti-feu”. If you are invited for a ti-punch, you will often hear the phrase “you shouldn’t stand on one leg” after the first glass, indicating that if you don’t want to lose your balance, you will need to drink a second one. On Saint Martin, its ingredients and presentation depend on the community or establishment you are in, so don’t forget to tell the barman if you would like a traditional ti-punch.
Planteur.
Rum, fruit juice, sugarcane syrup, spices. The preparation of this cocktail depends on the place where you are drinking it, especially concerning the choice of fruit juice and spices, the dosage of which is the main factor determining its taste.
Blue Lady.
¼ of rum, ¾ of tonic or soda and a hint of Curacao served on ice in a tall champagne glass.
Daïquiri.
For one glass: 3 centilitres of lemon juice, 2 teaspoonfuls of sugarcane syrup, 5 centilitres of rum. Place it in the freezer. Before serving, add 10 centilitres of sparkling water or Perrier and fresh mint leaves (2 to 5 branches crushed by a spoon). Serve chilled on ice.

Manufacturing procedure and various categories of rum

Agricultural rum

Method of preparation: Sugarcane is crushed through a press, as a result of which a compact biomass referred to as “bagasse” is obtained. This is later placed in a grinder composed of three cylinders in order to ensure a tough grinding to extract a maximum of juice (vesou). The remaining bagasse is used for fuel and ensures the necessary energy for the process of fabrication. Sugarcane must be ground maximum 36 hours after it has been cut. Agricultural rum derives from the direct and continuous distillery of this vesou in so called “column stills”, during which process its sugar is transformed into alcohol. Vesou is placed into fermentation tanks for a period of 36 to 48 hours, which results in a kind of wine called “grappe” with 5-6 degrees of alcohol. A ton of sugarcane is enough to produce approximately 100 litres of 55° agricultural rum.

Various qualities of agricultural rum:

White rum,
the basis of ti-punch, reveals all the flavour of freshly cut sugarcane. Its alcohol content is reduced to 50 and 55 degrees on Martinique and 59 degrees on Marie-Galante by the addition of distilled or spring water.
Aged rum
(rhum vieux) is white rum conserved in oak barrels for three years or more, depending on the quality. “Three-year-old” rums are of 45 degrees approximately, “5 to 40-year old” rums are a rival to any premium spirit and are to be consumed accordingly.
Straw rum
(rhum paille) is a type of rum which has remained in an oak cask for a period of between 12 and 18 months and has thus been slightly discoloured. It is generally around 50 degrees.
Amber rum
(rhum ambree) is obtained by mixing aged rum and straw rum, resulting in a taste with the force of the latter and the perfume of the former. This rum is extremely strong and is often used for pastries, cocktails and crepes.

Industrial rum

Method of preparation: Industrial rum is manufactured by distilleries directly attached to cane-sugar factories. Molasses is fermented with the help of yeast, which gives an alcoholic liquid of around 5 to 6 degrees. Distillery is then continued in similar column stills as for agricultural rum, until the alcohol content reaches 65 to 75 degrees, though legislation does not allow the sale of alcohol of more than 65 degrees. This is compensated for by the addition of water.

Various qualities of industrial rum:

Traditional rum
is the most typical of rums of consumption, containing 40 % of alcohol and a rather strong flavour, most typically used for confectionary, pastry and cooking.
Grand aroma rum
has a unique flavour due to its long fermentation period of 8 to 10 days. It is a mixture of molasses and wine blended in wooden casks, used essentially for cocktails, cooking and pastries. This rum is almost solely for export, so it is not well-known by Antilleans, even though it is manufactured in Jamaica and Martinique (Galion factory).

Martinique and the A.O.C. (Appelation d’origine controlee: term of controlled origin)

As we have seen in the description above, industrial rum is of inferior quality than agricultural rum, and is often referred to as traditional rum in commerce. The term “agricultural rum”, however, is a serious marketing blunder, which does little to actually reflect the exceptional quality of the beverage concerned. Martiniquean producers have thus lately turned towards the communication of the controlled origin of their product. The first demand for AOC recognition was formulated in 1970 by Gustave Garnier Laroche, president of the Professional Association for Producers and Bottlers of Agricultural rum in Martinique. The obtention of this appellation took him over thirty years of administrative measures and an extreme amount of perseverance. This exceptionally long waiting period is due to four major factors:

L’INAO, The INAO (Institut national des appellations d’origine) had never before received demands concerning rum or the sugarcane industry in general. It was hence forced to put in place a charter to code and regulate sugarcane production.
The INAO had never before granted AOC to any product originating from elsewhere than the regions of Metropolitan France.
The INAO had never before granted AOC to white alcohol type of liquors.
The INAO had never before worked with crops originating from tropical regions.

Criteria for AOC appellation

As a general rule, AOC appellations are granted to products bearing distinct characteristics of a certain territory, regional tradition and particular quality. Specificity is the key, making sure that the product prides in a unique taste, which differentiates it from other similar produces. Technically speaking, each step of fabrication is to follow a strict code, from the selection of sugarcane to the process of ageing. White rums, for example, must be aged of minimum three months, straw rums must pass a certain amount of time in oak tuns, aged rums must have spent at least three months in the production area in oak barrels of a capacity less than 650 litres, and on and on the list goes.

Advantages of the AOC appellation

The appellation presents an important advantage in terms of marketing: it invests Martiniquean rums with a reliable quality standard, enabling them to conquer new markets such as Japan, Europe or the United States. Similarly to the regions of Champagne or Cognac with their respective produces, Martinique is now associated with a high quality rum, which renders the island the reputation of the only place in the world having the right to use such an appellation. .