[Sca-cooks] Sugar Cane

[Stefan li Rous]

Daniel asked:
<<<
Yes, but as far as I can tell rum is post-period. Or does someone

> have contrary documentation?
> Stefan

Are we talking about what we know as rum or are we talking more  
widely about
distilled spirits based on fermented cane syrups.  These may not be  
the same
thing.  Does anyone know what is fermented and then distilled to  
create arak
from Turkey and Lebanon and ouzo from Greece?  They are clear spirits  
that
cloud when water is added.  Are there any early Indian/ subcontinent/ 
Ceylon
distilled spirits based in fermented cane syrups?  >>>

I was speaking or rum specifically, although if there are other  
distilled spirits that are created from sugar syrup, I'd include  
those. I don't remember what arak and ozzo are made from or whether  
they are distilled.

As far as rum is concerned, I think its creation is due to the access  
to cheap sugar or cheap sugar byproduct (molasses) in the Caribbean  
sugar islands coupled with the fact that imported spirits such as  
brandy were expensive. Because of the cost of shipping cane to Europe  
or even the sugar cane byproduct, I suspect that any European rum  
production started much later than in the Caribbean.

As far as this history of distilling and distilled beverages in  
general, see these Florilegium files:
bev-distilled-msg (126K)11/28/06    Medieval distilled beverages.  
Distilling.
Clarea-d-Agua-art (12K)  1/ 7/01    "Period drinks - Spiced Wines and  
Sweet
                                        Waters" by Vicente Coenca.
Vodka-art          (5K) 10/18/06    "Vodka-The Little Water of Life"
                                        by Marija Kotok.

Stefan
--------
THLord Stefan li Rous    Barony of Bryn Gwlad    Kingdom of Ansteorra
    Mark S. Harris           Austin, Texas           
StefanliRous at austin.rr.com
**** See Stefan's Florilegium files at:  http://www.florilegium.org ****