Rum Monthly Magazine

[MoMojitoPlease]

I came upon this URl and I have read that Luis Ayala is one of the leading rum people out there and this apparently looks like one of his endeavors. Figured I would share it.

Got Rum??

[Susan in FL]

Thanks!

[John von Pey]

If you like that one, try the following link:

Rumuniversity

Also from Louis, and very usefull.

[Jason Perlow]

I came upon this URl and I have read that Luis Ayala is one of the leading rum people out there and this apparently looks like one of his endeavors. Figured I would share it.

Got Rum??

Luis is quite knowledgeable, although not a fan of French Rhums at all. I read his publication every month, he does a great job -- and the best thing about this magazine is its totally online and its free.

[Susan in FL]

Thank you, as well!

[emeraldsmoke]

Great web sites - Great resources.

[Ed Hamilton]

I have known Luis since shortly after he bought a copy of my first book, Rums of the Eastern Caribbean published in 1995, and I applaud his tenacity and hard work to promote rum in all its forms. I was disappointed, however, when I read Lesson 6 of his Rum University: During one of his expeditions, Father Labat fell ill with the Maltese fever. As his fever worsened, one of his clerks decided to give him a medical recipe made by the local Caribbean Indians. This tonic, derived from the sugar cane alcohol, was named "Kaniche", and had been fermented in masticated green tobacco leaves.

This sounded familiar, even though Luis didn't give the source credit The Kaniche Rhum website.

Caribbean Indians didn't grow sugar cane until it was imported from Brazil in the early 17th century. Tobacco, not indigenous to the islands, was also brought to the Caribbean. The Carib Indians had very little social interaction with the Europeans and rarely met other than to wage war. Before Martinique was colonized by the French, the Caribs were exterminated. Today the last surviving Carib Indians in the islands live on the northeast coast of Dominica, on a reservation. Dominica was the last Caribbean island to be colonized owing in large part to the difficulty of settling a very rugged landscape controlled by fierce warriors who did not depend on cultivating agriculture for survival.

At the risk of sounding ungrateful to my friend I wish he had done more than research one of my favorite spirits on the internet. As for the credibility of his source, there are other significant errors in the story, but I'll leave that for another time.

Kaniche rhums can not be found in the French West Indies for a couple of reasons. First, the name 'Kaniche Guadeloupe', or 'Martinique,' violate French trademarks according to Mr Cailleaux, the General Secretary of CODERUM, the organization that regulates the French rhum industry.

Secondly, Kaniche rhums are blended in France from spirits of undisclosed origin. And in spite of the name Guadeloupe and Martinique, neither of these rhums has an Appelation d' Origine on the label.