Here is the Proof
Fifteen
men on the dead man's chest—
...Yo-ho-ho,
and a bottle of rum!
Drink and
the devil had done for the rest—
...Yo-ho-ho,
and a bottle of rum!
Treasure
Island
No matter
if you were serving aboard a pirate sloop or man-of-war, the Age of Sail offered few comforts.
Alcohol was the favored morale booster and always aboard.
Alcohol,
in the form of rum, was even included in
sailors' rations. It offered a form of relaxation and entertainment for sailors
during their downtime, alleviated boredom and provided a sense of camaraderie
among the crew members and was often safer to drink than the water aboard ship.
Many sailors viewed their daily ration of rum as a cherished tradition, and it
formed part of the social fabric aboard ship. While the ordinary seamen
received rum, officers were allotted gin.
In the
17th century, rum, however, was not served in English pubs. The prevalent
alcoholic beverages locally served during this time in England were ale, beer, brandy,
and gin. The Royal Navy acquired rum for its crews when porting at its
Caribbean colonies as did the pirates. Now gin was a different story. It could
be distilled locally.
The
English acquired a taste for the spirit
the Dutch called Geneyer while the Royal army was fighting alongside their comrades from the Netherlands.
Dutch soldiers typically took a swig or two before going into battle. ( Dutch
Courage they called it.) The Royal Navy
quickly took gin on board as well and when the law was changed to legally
allow moon shining, the Gin Craze, as it was called, was in full swing. Many people jumped on the chance to
make gin at home; and sell it, no experience needed, sometimes just using stuff
they found around the house to make the mash: “non-botanicals” like
turpentine, sawdust, and sulfuric acid included. This was the precursor to the
“bathtub” gin made illegally during Prohibition, but in the 17th century, who
had a bathtub?
Whenever
the weather turned foul, crowds would gather to explore rows of stalls and tents that popped up along the
Thames advertising “ Hot Geneyer* and Gingerbread.” Now before you start to go
“Martha Stewart,” both gingerbread and
gin have their own unique histories and cultural significance, and there is no
direct connection between the two. Also, the signs really read, “Hot Gin and
Gingerbread.” More than a few Brits had trouble pronouncing Geneyer, especially
when drunk. So, the name was changed to just Gin.
It took a little while, but the laws changed
again. Distillers needed hard-to-get licenses, supply dropped, taxes were added,
and the Gin Craze was over, but it was like the Dos Equis commercial when actor Johathan Goldsmith says, “Stay
Thirsty My Friends.” They did. England remains famous for high quality gin brands like Bombay, Sapphire, Tanqueray,
Hendrick's, Beefeater, Sipsmith and others. These brands are renowned
internationally for their quality and contribute to England's reputation as a
leading producer of fine gin.
Whether it
was Caribbean rum or London Dry Gin. (Dry meaning a more enhanced berry taste.
Look – more spiritual knowledge here) storing alcohol aboard ship was a problem. The barrels leaked, so did the ones with gunpower inside and both were
stored side by side in the ship’s hold. Soggy gunpower wouldn’t work- unless
the spirit was nearly 60% alcohol by volume. The Royal Navy called it Naval
Strength and designed a simple way to access it.
You poured the spirit onto some gunpowder
and put a match to it. If the powder burned after being soaked, it meant a
sufficient alcohol content – and allowed on board. They called the process simply
“Proof,” a term familiar to many
imbibers, maybe you? But now you also know “the why” for Trivia night.
Yo-ho-ho.
Meme:
Alcohol proof in the United States is
defined as twice the percentage of alcohol by volume. Consequently, 100 proof gin contains 50% alcohol.
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