inSpiritation

Distilled World Baedeker is a guidebook to spirits, the most popular type of alcohol in the world. What is vodka? What is flavored vodka? What is cognac, brandy or grape brandy? What does Rhum traditionnel mean? Is Tequila an appellation of origin or a type of alcohol? You will find answers to these questions in this guidebook.

Introduction

All twenty fingers would not be sufficient to count all types of spirits. This guide introduces all of them and their regional variations, and links them with their appellations of origin.

Globally, 44.8% of total recorded alcohol is consumed in the form of spirits, which is also the most consumed beverage type in the South-East Asia Region (87.9%), Eastern Mediterranean Region (48.3%) and Western Pacific Region (58.8%; Figure 3.7). The second most consumed beverage type is beer, which accounts for 34.3% of all recorded alcohol consumed in the world. It is the most consumed type of beverage in the WHO Region of the Americas (53.8%) and the European Region (40.0%). Only 11.7% of total recorded alcohol is consumed in the form of wine. However, consumption of wine represents more than one fourth of total consumption in the European Region (29.8%). “Other” beverages represent 9.3% of all consumption but constitute the most popular beverage type in the African Region accounting for almost half of all recorded alcohol consumed in this region (65.1%). Other beverages are, for example, fortified wines, rice wine, palm wine or other fermented beverages made of banana, sorghum, millet or maize.

Worldwide and also in all regions, there have been only minor changes in beverage preferences since 2010. The largest changes took place in Europe, where the share of total recorded consumption of spirits decreased by 3% (from 30.2% to 27.2%), whereas wine increased (from 27.6% to 29.8%) as did beer (from 38.4% to 40.0%).

Global status report on alcohol and health 2018, Geneva, ISBN 978-92-4-156563-9, © World Health Organization 2018, Licence: CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO; WHO Regions: AFR African Region, AMR Region of the Americas, EMR Eastern Mediterranean Region, EUR European Region, SEAR South-East Asia Region, WPR Western Pacific Region.

Spirits

[EU] Spirit drink is an alcoholic beverage which complies with the following requirements: it is intended for human consumption; it possesses particular organoleptic qualities; it has a minimum alcoholic strength by volume of 15 %, it has been produced either: directly by using, individually or in combination, any of the following methods: …

Rum 

Rom | Ron | Rhum | Rumm | Romas | Rums | Рум | Ром | Ρούμι | რომი

[EU] Rum is a spirit drink produced exclusively by the distillation of the product obtained by the alcoholic fermentation of molasses or syrup produced in the manufacture of cane sugar or of sugar-cane juice itself, distilled at less than 96 % vol., so that the distillate has the discernible specific organoleptic characteristics of rum.

The minimum alcoholic strength by volume of rum shall be 37,5 %. No addition of alcohol, diluted or not, shall take place. Rum shall not be flavoured. Rum may only contain added caramel as a means of adjusting the colour. Rum may be sweetened in order to round off the final taste. However, the final product may not contain more than 20 grams of sweetening products per litre, expressed as invert sugar. 

In the case of geographical indications registered under this Regulation, the legal name of rum may be supplemented by the term ‘traditionnel’ or ‘tradicional’, provided that the rum in question: has been produced by distillation at less than 90 % vol., after alcoholic fermentation of alcohol-producing materials originating exclusively from the place of production considered, and has a volatile substances content equal to or exceeding 225 grams per hectolitre of 100 % vol. alcohol, and is not sweetened; the term ‘agricultural’, provided that the rum in question complies with the requirements and has been produced exclusively by distillation after alcoholic fermentation of sugar-cane juice. The term ‘agricultural’ may only be used in the case of a geographical indication of a French Overseas Department or the Autonomous Region of Madeira. Also Rhum agricole, Landwirtschaftlicher Rum, Rum agricolo, Rum agrícola, Ром земеделски, Ρούμι γεωργικό, Ron Tarımsal (tr).

[US] Spirits distilled from the fermented juice of sugar cane, sugar cane syrup, sugar cane molasses or other sugar cane by-products at less than 95% alcohol by volume (190 proof) having the taste, aroma and characteristics generally attributed to rum and bottled at not less than 40% alcohol by volume (80 proof).

Registered designations of origin

Rhum de la Martinique

Rhum de la Guadeloupe

Rhum de la Réunion

Rhum de la Guyane

Rhum de sucrerie de la Baie du Galion

Rhum des Antilles françaises

Rhum des départments français d'outre-mer

[FR]

Ron de Málaga

Ron de Granada

[ES]

Rum da Madeira

[PT]

Ron de Guatemala

[GT]

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inSpiritation

Distilled World Baedeker

© Petr Javůrek

Enfant terrible Origin supported and published this book in an edition

1st edition, 2020

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