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Rum infusion


donut

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I live in a country that monopolizes the alcohol production. I can, however, buy pure beverage grade alcohol for roughly $1.75 per liter.

I understand the best time to infuse flavors into rum is during distillation but unfortunately I do not have this option. What would be the procedure to go from pure alcohol to infused rum without it tasting like it was infused in the kitchen.

Daniel

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I live in a country that monopolizes the alcohol production. I can, however, buy pure beverage grade alcohol for roughly $1.75 per liter.

I understand the best time to infuse flavors into rum is during distillation but unfortunately I do not have this option. What would be the procedure to go from pure alcohol to infused rum without it tasting like it was infused in the kitchen.

Daniel

Rum is not an infusion of flavours into beverage-grade alcohol. If you wish to make it taste like it wasn't infused in the kitchen, you had better not infuse it in the kitchen.

Daniel, please find your answer at a hobbyist site (spirits production is legal as a hobby in New Zealand), because there are only commercial producers on this forum, who cannot be seen condoning your activity.

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Rum is not an infusion of flavours into beverage-grade alcohol. If you wish to make it taste like it wasn't infused in the kitchen, you had better not infuse it in the kitchen.

Daniel, please find your answer at a hobbyist site (spirits production is legal as a hobby in New Zealand), because there are only commercial producers on this forum, who cannot be seen condoning your activity.

Thank you for responding. Please understand that I do not wish to produce infused rum in my kitchen. What I am asking - and please forgive me if I am ignorant - is if it is commercially viable to produce infused rum from pure sugar cane molasses based alcohol?

As I mentioned, in my country (which is not New Zealand) the production of alcohol is monopolized by the government. I can buy the pure alcohol from them.

My intention is to commercially produce.

What I have found in this forum is that most of the producers are producing their alcohol from the raw materials. I wish I could but I can't. I do not however see much information on small producers who purchase their neutral spirits and process from there. That is what I am asking about.

Feel free to treat me harsh as I have a thick skin and only want to learn. Thanks for your help.

Daniel

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Hi Daniel,

The "rum flavors" come from the congeners that are produced by yeast during fermentation of sugar cane products. The art of the distiller is to seperate the good congeners from the bad congeners by distilling them. There are no short cuts in making real rum.

Now that does not mean that you could not purchase a sugar cane based alcohol and add flavors such as caramel and spice to artificially flavor your product. It would be very much like the big brand name rums that are already on the shelf at very competive prices.

Perhaps you should first decide if you want to be a blending house or a distillery and then create your brand accordingly.

Good luck!

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Hi Daniel,

The "rum flavors" come from the congeners that are produced by yeast during fermentation of sugar cane products. The art of the distiller is to seperate the good congeners from the bad congeners by distilling them. There are no short cuts in making real rum.

Now that does not mean that you could not purchase a sugar cane based alcohol and add flavors such as caramel and spice to artificially flavor your product. It would be very much like the big brand name rums that are already on the shelf at very competive prices.

Perhaps you should first decide if you want to be a blending house or a distillery and then create your brand accordingly.

Good luck!

Thank you for the post. You have precisely understood my dilema. I cannot be a distiller due to my country not allowing anyone to produce alcohol other then the government owned monopoly distiller.

I therefore am forced to be a blender not by choice. I do not however see much information on blending with fruit and other tropical ingredients. That is where I need help. Thanks for the insight.

Daniel

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Thank you for the post. You have precisely understood my dilema. I cannot be a distiller due to my country not allowing anyone to produce alcohol other then the government owned monopoly distiller.

I therefore am forced to be a blender not by choice. I do not however see much information on blending with fruit and other tropical ingredients. That is where I need help. Thanks for the insight.

Daniel

Do you have to use the alcohol that they produce? Or can you purchase bulk spirits from another country?

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Do you have to use the alcohol that they produce? Or can you purchase bulk spirits from another country?

I have to use their alcohol if I want to sell in the country. If not then I am just an importer. I can buy the bulk spirits for roughly $1.75 per liter. Why do you ask?

Thanks.

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Guest Bonanza

Can you re-distill the bought alcohol with flavors?

You don't produce anything that way, you only add flavor.

I cannot be a distiller due to my country not allowing anyone to produce alcohol other then the government owned monopoly distiller.

Daniel

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I have to use their alcohol if I want to sell in the country. If not then I am just an importer. I can buy the bulk spirits for roughly $1.75 per liter. Why do you ask?

Thanks.

Well, then you may want to be an importer. Check the fine print for the licensing for an importer. I ask because you can purchase rum in bulk, infuse it with whatever flavor you like (or not), and bottle it. Rum has been traded as a commodity for hundreds of years.

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Donut, do you mind if I ask what country you're in? I'm pretty decent at finding laws and perhaps I could find something to solve your dilemma. I'm not finding any country that restricts alcohol production only to the government.

One cannot make real rum from neutral alcohol just by adding flavors; that would be imitation rum and it would taste like imitation rum. If you're not permitted to distill spirits in your country, you're going to have to either import a rum or find a different category of spirits to produce.

There are many, many authentic and historical spirits and liqueurs made from neutral spirits and either infused fruits and botanicals or added essential oils and flavors, but rum isn't one of them.

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Donut, do you mind if I ask what country you're in? I'm pretty decent at finding laws and perhaps I could find something to solve your dilemma. I'm not finding any country that restricts alcohol production only to the government.

One cannot make real rum from neutral alcohol just by adding flavors; that would be imitation rum and it would taste like imitation rum. If you're not permitted to distill spirits in your country, you're going to have to either import a rum or find a different category of spirits to produce.

There are many, many authentic and historical spirits and liqueurs made from neutral spirits and either infused fruits and botanicals or added essential oils and flavors, but rum isn't one of them.

Thanks for the response. I am in Costa Rica. I am an Oregon expat who has been down here since 1997. I can purchase nuetral spirits at 96% alcohol apt for beverage production. It seems like I can get Ron Crudo (raw rum - which I would need to rectify further) however I am having an interesting time at it. Two questions:

1. Can I produce imitation flavored rum as you call it and if so what would be the best procedure to infuse the flavors (ie fruit). This is not my first choice but there is a gap in the market here and I would like to have a product to sell right off the bat.

2. What sort of chemical makeup would you like to see if I could get my hands on the raw rum and further process.

PS-when I am in Portland next I would like to visit your facility. Is that an option.

Thanks again.

Daniel

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