Where are your products made?
We make all of our rum in our distillery. We use raw fermentables (blackstrap molasses and cane sugar,) ferment and distill our rum, then age in new barrels and/or infuse with various fruits and spices.
What are your products made from?
Our rum is made from sugarcane molasses and cane sugar, so it would be considered a rum industrial, in contrast to a rum agricole that is made from sugarcane juice. Then for the different varieties of rum we produce, they are infused with various fruits and spices to acquire their unique flavor profile.
What kind of barrels do you use and where do you get them?
We use American oak barrels coopered in Kansas City, Missouri by Independent Stave Company.
How long are your products aged?
The aging of our products varies. Our gold rum is aged at least 2, and most are about 4 years now, depending on how the oak affects it. Our other rums spend various amounts of time in infusion, resting to marry the flavors, and time spent in an oak barrel as well.
Are your products organic?
It is very difficult to get all organic ingredients to produce our products, so no, they do not qualify as organic. But we do strive to use as much organic ingredients as possible, and do not add any chemical preservatives. That is why all of our products are 80 proof or more. The rum is the natural preservative in our product, nothing else.
Are your products natural?
We use all real and natural ingredients. This means no artificial flavorings or preservatives. We use the actual fruit, or fruit juice, spices, oak barrels, and cane sugar for those products requiring sweetening.
Do you use preservatives?
Rum is the only preservative used in our infused products.
What is the sediment on the bottom and sides of the bottle?
The sediment that can be found in some of our products is the result of solids from the various fruits and spices coming out of suspension. Temperature swings can cause the solids and oils to precipitate or solidify out of suspension. This is the result of using real fruit, spices, coconut, and cacao in our handcrafted rums.
Why is the Wicked Rum such a high proof?
The Wicked Rum is at 155 proof. The rum is distilled at about 165 proof which has its fullest flavor. When you bring a spirits proof down, it is usually with some source of water. Water affects flavor if nothing more than diluting it. By leaving it close to its distillate proof, you get to appreciate the full flavor of the rum. The trick is in controlling the amount you consume, by using less. In a cocktail this means less dilution of your mixer with water and more flavor of the spirit.
What do you adjust the proof of your products with?
We have excellent water purification and filtration system. Our water after careful inspection and filtration is used to proof our products like our silver rum, and gold rum. Many of the infused rums are naturally lowered in proof by the fruit juices and the water they contain naturally.
What is in the gold rum?
Our gold rum is our fermented and distilled silver rum that has been aged in an oak barrel. The tannins, vanillins, and other trace compounds released into the rum from the reaction of the toasted and charred oak and the rum is what gives our rum its flavor.
What is an infusion?
Infusion at our distillery is the process of placing a fruit and/or spice in the distillate allowing the alcohol and water in that spirit to extract the essence of that fruit or spice and deposit it in our rum. In this fashion there are no other chemicals or processes used that could damage or alter the flavor of the fruit or spice. Cold infusion preserves the flavor whereas steam and heat can destroy or alter a flavor.
What is the difference between infusion and added flavoring?
Infusion is placing the actual fruit or spice in our rum and allowing the natural flavor to leech into our spirit. Flavorings are often artificial or enhanced extractions from some flavor source using chemicals or heat. This then requires preservatives to give it a shelf life until used. These additives and chemicals can lead to off flavors and bad aftertaste.
What is the shelf life? After opening?
Our products are preserved by the high alcohol content. That doesn’t mean the flavor will not change over time though. Heat, light, and oxidation can and will affect the flavor over time. It is up to the individual to decide if they like this maturation and affect. The safety of the product is guaranteed by the preservation qualities of the alcohol.
How big is a batch?
Currently, we ferment in 500 gallon batches that result in about 60 gallons of spirit. Each product batch can vary depending on the amount of product that is moving from our stock. We currently make 50 to 100 gallon batches of our products because those are the sizes of our blending and bottling vessels.
How can I get it where I live?
If you live in Oregon, you simply need to ask for it at your local liquor store. Most of our products are available in the OLCC warehouse and can be sent to any licensed agent in Oregon. If you live in another “control” state, a state that distributes the liquor through state managed outlets, then you can similarly request it and the state you reside in will contact me and place an order. In all the other states it is a matter of getting a local distributor to be willing to import and sell our spirit. If you have some pull with such a distributor see if they will bring it in for you.
What states are your products in?
Various products are available in California, and of course here in Oregon.
What is rum made from?
The definition of rum is “Spirit derived from Sugarcane.” We use cane molasses and cane sugar as our fermentable ingredients.
Is it gluten free?
Our rum and vodka are made from sugarcane, which contain no gluten.
What if I have a nut allergy?
We do use coconut, almond, and walnut, in some of products. So depending on the type and severity of your allergy, you should be cautious.
What kind of still do you use?
Our stills are column stills that allow use in various ways. By leaving the column empty, it acts much like a pot still. We can vary the height of the column affecting the amount of reflux increasing or reducing the amount of flavor carried over in the distillate. By packing the column it acts like a plated column that increases the amount of reflux tremendously reducing the number of distillations required to increase the proof to a vodka, and removing a majority of the flavor.
What are cuts?
Cuts are the separation of compounds determined during the run by temperature, odor, and taste. In a single batch still the wash contains a determined amount of ethanol and other compounds. All of these compounds evaporate at different temperatures. As the pot is heated slowly, the compounds evaporate and leave in order of the temperature they react to. The foreshots and Heads are the first cut, Hearts 2nd cut (the good stuff,) and the Tails final portion. The foreshots and Heads are not good for you, and contain some toxic compounds. The hearts are the cleanest portion of the ethanol that is desirable and what we use in the spirits that go in the bottle. The Tails are also known as the fusel alcohols, generally offensive in odor and taste.
What is Persian Reed?
Persian reed was the description that was given of sugarcane when the Romans were first introduced to cane sugar upon the invasion of the Persian Empire.
What is “Cane” Vodka?
Our vodka is made from Sugarcane. Vodka in the US, is made from any fermentable. The requirement is that it be distilled to a minimum of 190 proof before reducing to bottle proof. So we choose to make our vodka from molasses and cane sugar, distill just above 190 proof, then reduce the proof with our wonderful spring water.
What is Falernum?
Falernum (pronounced fah-learn-um) is a sweet syrup used in Caribbean and tropical drinks. Some reports have the origination of falernum dated back to the 18th century. In the literary magazine All the Year Round, owned by Charles Dickens, Jr. at the time, an unnamed author wrote of falernum in 1892, describing it as "a curious liqueur composed from rum and lime-juice." The earliest known reference in bar manuals seems to be the 1930s. One producer (see below) claims his recipe to date to 1890, winning awards as early as 1923.
Famous drinks using falernum include: Bermuda Rum Swizzle, Don the Beachcomber's Zombie and perhaps Mai Tai, Captain's Blood Cocktail, Frosty Dawn, Key Cocktail, Port Antonio Cocktail, Puka Punch, Royal Bermuda Cocktail, Corn N' Oil, some Rum Collins variations, White Lion, Zombie.
What is Feijoa?
Feijoa is a fruit that is indigenous to South America and New Zealand, but ours are grown and sourced from Brookings, Oregon. They are an unusual fruit with a distinct flavor. Our Feijoa rum is unlike any spirit you have ever tasted.
Why infuse rum instead of vodka?
We chose to use rum instead of vodka for our variety of rums because of its distinct flavor and natural capacity to blend well with fruit and spices. Rum has a reputation for fun, sun, and relaxation in a tropical atmosphere. Also from a marketing stand point we stand out more than we would in the Vodka variations.
How much do you produce?
As of today we produce about an average of a barrel a week.
What do you do with your waste?
We are working on an elaborate system to recycle all of our spent wash, CO2, and solid organic waste on site. Check out our website for more information.
Can we visit the distillery?
We love to have visitors. Please call for an appointment so we can be sure to be around to visit with you.