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Diablerie, v. 1, issue 1, January 1944

Page 11

11
thoughts while reeling 
E. Hoffman Price

With a whisky shortage which causes more alarm than the bombing of Pearl Harbor, rum, the forgotten drink, should come to its own again; rum, the favorite of the Royal Navy, the buccaneers of the Spanish Main, and of men of action in general, is coming back again. 

In Spanish it is spelled ron; in French rhum; but once it's down the hatch, spelling and pronounciation make little difference, a refill is the thing.

For years, there has been a widespread heresy to the effect that rum, to be potable, simply must be mixed with something; or that it;s a flavoring ingredient, just a dash to lend a tang to a beverage or sauce; that the stuff isn't and can't be drunk straight, except perhaps by men of iron, homicidal maniacs, Indians, and the very lowest of sots.

Just why this is, I can't say. Perhaps the catch phrase, DEMON RUM, has by implication and repetition sold an utterly false idea. Demon, well, all right, but I must add,"Nice little demon."

After all, rum is distilled from fermented cane juice or molasses; certainly as palatable an origin as that of whiskey, a loathesome mess of cereals gone bad.

When I was a junior in high school, back in 1914, I took chemistry. there was an experiment on distillation. A certain amount of molasses was put into a test tube to ferment. When the mixture ceased bubbling, it was cooked off. The manual directed that we check the identity of the distillate by setting it afire and noting the color of the flame.

I thought of a better way. I cooled and drank the 15 cubic centimeters which I'd collected. This was my first shot of rum. It was, I grant, somewhat raw. Worse yet, it was not tax paid, and thus I probably owe the Federal Government something over a dime in taxes.

I never repeated the experiment. There was no need. I saved up United Cigar Coupons for some months, and turned tham in for a leather covered flask of unspecified cubic content. For twenty-five cents, any barrel house in San Jose would fill 'er up with rum, and often did. Those were the days!

Sorry, gentlemen, but I have long since lost track of my chemistry lab manual - however, any standard text will give you a fair idea of the setup; and molasses, thus far, is not rationed. A pot still, rather than a rectifying column, gives the finest product.

You see why I say that rum is the drink of men (and gals) of action? No horsing around with oats or shredded wheat or corn flakes, no malting nor any such fol-de-rol. And if you don't want to wait to make molasses, just try the straight cane juice. (next page)

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11 thoughts while reeling E. Hoffman Price With a whisky shortage which causes more alarm than the bombing of Pearl Harbor, rum, the forgotten drink, should come to its own again; rum, the favorite of the Royal Navy, the buccaneers of the Spanish Main, and of men of action in general, is coming back again. In Spanish it is spelled ron; in French rhum; but once it's down the hatch, spelling and pronounciation make little difference, a refill is the thing. For years, there has been a widespread heresy to the effect that rum, to be potable, simply must be mixed with something; or that it;s a flavoring ingredient, just a dash to lend a tang to a beverage or sauce; that the stuff isn't and can't be drunk straight, except perhaps by men of iron, homicidal maniacs, Indians, and the very lowest of sots. Just why this is, I can't say. Perhaps the catch phrase, DEMON RUM, has by implication and repetition sold an utterly false idea. Demon, well, all right, but I must add,"Nice little demon." After all, rum is distilled from fermented cane juice or molasses; certainly as palatable an origin as that of whiskey, a loathesome mess of cereals gone bad. When I was a junior in high school, back in 1914, I took chemistry. there was an experiment on distillation. A certain amount of molasses was put into a test tube to ferment. When the mixture ceased bubbling, it was cooked off. The manual directed that we check the identity of the distillate by setting it afire and noting the color of the flame. I thought of a better way. I cooled and drank the 15 cubic centimeters which I'd collected. This was my first shot of rum. It was, I grant, somewhat raw. Worse yet, it was not tax paid, and thus I probably owe the Federal Government something over a dime in taxes. I never repeated the experiment. There was no need. I saved up United Cigar Coupons for some months, and turned tham in for a leather covered flask of unspecified cubic content. For twenty-five cents, any barrel house in San Jose would fill 'er up with rum, and often did. Those were the days! Sorry, gentlemen, but I have long since lost track of my chemistry lab manual - however, any standard text will give you a fair idea of the setup; and molasses, thus far, is not rationed. A pot still, rather than a rectifying column, gives the finest product. You see why I say that rum is the drink of men (and gals) of action? No horsing around with oats or shredded wheat or corn flakes, no malting nor any such fol-de-rol. And if you don't want to wait to make molasses, just try the straight cane juice. (next page)