Rum comes from sugarcane. 
It is the alcoholic distillate 
or a mixture of distillates 
from the fermented juice of sugarcane, 
sugarcane molasses, 
or other sugarcane by-products 
distilled at less than 190 proof 
(whether or not such proof is further 
reduced before bottling 
to not less than 80 proof). 
The distillate must possess the taste, 
aroma and characteristics generally 
attributed to rum.

Rum is produced all over the world, 
wherever sugarcane grows and gets its name 
from the Latin "saccharum" which means sugar.



The production of rum begins with harvesting the cane. 
The freshly cut cane is brought into the sugar mills, 
where it is passed through enormous, 
very heavy crushing rollers that express the juice. 
The juice is boiled to concentrate the sugar 
and evaporate the water. Then it is clarified. 
The result is a heavy, thick syrup. 
The sugar in the syrup is separated and removed. 
What remains is molasses. 
Sometimes this still retains up to 5% sugar. 
This molasses is then fermented and distilled into rum.




There are four main classifications of rum:

Very dry, light bodied rums; 
generally produced in the Spanish-speaking countries, 
of which Puerto Rico, Guatemala and Nicaragua 
are good examples.
Medium-bodied rums; 
Barbados and Demerara being two examples.
Rich, full-bodied, pungent rums; 
which are usually produced in the English-speaking 
islands and countries, such as Jamaica.
Light-bodied but pungently aromatic; 
East Indian, Batavia, Arak rum as from Java.


All of these classifications of rum 
are not restricted to the examples used. 
Any country can produce more than one type, 
but some areas are more famous 
for one particular type more than others.

Rums are mainly produced in the region 
of the Caribbean Sea, including 
the West Indies and the surrounding countries 
of South and Central America.

Like the wines of France, 
rums are labeled as to the areas of origin 
and by law cannot be classified by type. 
Also like wine, the subtle differences in rums 
can come from the growing area 
(weather, soil type, humidity, etc.) 
and the affects it has on the sugarcane plant. 
The molasses carries the characteristics 
of the plants and concentrates them. 
Like most spirits and wines, rums 
are blended to achieve taste 
and quality consistency.

Other factors affecting the final product 
are the distillation process itself 
(Aguardientes, coming from the middle distillate), 
the aging process 
(how long, what type of barrel, charred or not, etc...) 
and as in special rums, the flavoring additives.

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