The Barspoon

Spiced Rum

Syrups & Mixers | by Martin Cate | from Wayne Curtis

Start with one of your favorite rums. A decent white rum is fine, but I prefer a moderately aged, slightly dry spirit, as this adds some intrigue to the end product. Don’t splurge on an expensive, mature bottle; it doesn’t taste that much better, and its oakiness will sometimes quarrel with the spices. My most recent batch was made with a golden rum (80-proof) from St. Vincent. But Cruzan and Mount Gay have both worked well for me in the past.

Next, take a 750-mL bottle of your rum and pour it into a wide-mouthed, airtight container, like a Mason jar. (You can use the bottle itself, but extracting the orange peel and swollen cinnamon stick when you’re done can be vexing.) Then add a selection of herbs and spices—exactly which and how much are your call—and let it sit. My personal recipe, which is adapted from the inimitable Martin Cate, owner of Smuggler’s Cove in San Francisco, is ready in about two days.

Making your own spiced rum allows you to tweak the flavor profile—play up the flavors you like by adding more of them, and dial back on those you don’t. Bear in mind that the lower-quality commercial products tend to overplay the vanilla—cut back on that and the other flavors emerge nicely.

Ingredients

Amount	Ingredient
25 oz / 750 ml 37 1⁄2 oz / 1125 ml 50 oz / 1500 ml 75 oz / 2250 ml	Demerara Rum
1 whole 1 1⁄2 whole 2 whole 3 whole	Vanilla Bean
1 (3-inch) slice	Orange Peel
1 whole 1 1⁄2 whole 2 whole 3 whole	Cinnamon Stick
2 whole 3 whole 4 whole 6 whole	Allspice Berries
4 whole 6 whole 8 whole 12 whole	Cloves
6 whole 9 whole 12 whole 18 whole	Black Peppercorns
0.0625 teaspoons 0.09375 teaspoons 1⁄8 teaspoons 1⁄4 teaspoons	Ground Nutmeg
1 slice 1 1⁄2 slice 2 slice 3 slice	Fresh Ginger

Method

1. Add all the ingredients to a wide-mouthed, airtight container and seal.
2. Let stand for two days and taste. If you want a bit more flavor, leave it be for a third day.
3. Strain the spices out and rebottle the liquid.