White rum and dark rum from the same mash

Grimturtle · Post by **Grimturtle** » Tue Jan 01, 2008 6:38 am

Hi everyone, I am about to distill my first attempt at rum tomorrow and I am curious to know if I can get white rum (for the ladies) and dark rum from the same distillate by different flavouring methods?

My mash is 25L fermented from 4L dark molasses and 4kg sugar with turbo yeast. My still is an internal reflux, so I plan to (obviously) get rid of the heads, then collect the 78-80C distillate (I guess u call it a cut, comes out at 92%), then collect the rest (80C +) and then mix the two distillates to taste.

I am hoping that I can dilute some of the 78-80C portion to get a white rum, and make a dark rum from the rest. Anyone know if this is possible or have experience with white rums? or even another thread I haven't found? I have read a lot of really good stuff here about dark rums but not much about white rums.

Cheers, I just started distilling a month ago and this site has been like my bible, haha

Ricky · Post by **Ricky** » Tue Jan 01, 2008 7:53 am

unless you are using essence you would be better off detuning your still and collect at a lower abv. i dont think you have read the right post yet about rum. there are some one here that will answer your questions. you do know that the color of dark rum comes from the oak?

Post by **Tater** » Tue Jan 01, 2008 8:55 am

From what Ive read store bought rum is aged in used charred barrels and then filtered back clear for white rum and dark color is left in and /or caramelized sugar is added among other things for flavor in dark .When I make rum for white I just temper to drinking strength and for dark I add my spices caramelized sugar and charred white oak strips to it.Ive also read that turbos don't make as good a rum as distillers yeast or bakers yeast .Ive used both the latter with good results but so far have never tried a turbo.

Post by **MisterSteve124** » Tue Jan 01, 2008 4:33 pm

Most rum is aged in barrels that have already been used to age whiskey or scotch in so maybe you could use some oak pieces from some UJSM.

Post by **blanikdog** » Tue Jan 01, 2008 4:48 pm

tater wrote:dark color is left in and /or caramelized sugar is added among other things for flavor in dark .When I make rum for white I just temper to drinking strength and for dark I add my spices caramelized sugar and charred white oak strips to it.Ive also read that turbos don't make as good a rum as distillers yeast or bakers yeast .Ive used both the latter with good results but so far have never tried a turbo.

I use a wee drop - to ones own taste - of molasses rather than caramel, Makes a really nice rum but you have to be careful about how much to use, or really like the taste of molasses.

blanik

Grimturtle · Post by **Grimturtle** » Tue Jan 01, 2008 5:17 pm

thanks guys, I was under the impression that the higher temp might let some coloured compunds through but evidently not. I'll have to try bakers yeast next time as well. I have to say for an experimental run, it's a lot better than I thought it might be.

Cruiser · Post by **Cruiser** » Tue Jan 01, 2008 6:48 pm

The distillate all comes out clear as water. There should never be any colour.

Even after a number of years in oak casks there is still not much colour. Yes some companies filter aged rum to make an aged white rum. But the main difference between light and dark rums is the colouring added by the company before bottling. Making it darker (using caramel) makes it look more aged and higher quality.

If you use store bought flavourings you can just use one for white rum and another for dark rum and add it to your product (which is essentially a flavourless vodka).

If you're talking about light vs heavy rums then that is a different matter and relates to the cuts done during pot-stilling runs. Sometimes the lighter flavoured rums come from a double distilling process while heavy rums come from a fast pot still run keeping lots of tails in.

Cruiser.

mikeac · Post by **mikeac** » Sun Jan 06, 2008 9:58 am

Cruiser wrote:
If you're talking about light vs heavy rums then that is a different matter and relates to the cuts done during pot-stilling runs. Sometimes the lighter flavoured rums come from a double distilling process while heavy rums come from a fast pot still run keeping lots of tails in.

Cruiser.

Personally I find white rums to be light and dark rums to be heavy (I could be wrong but that is my experience) So when I discuss white and dark I am really referring to heavy and light (If the final product is clear, but tastes like heavy, I'd call it dark

)

I have problems adding tails to my rum, it just tastes too "sharp." I geuss that means I need to age it longer/better? Another thing to note in the quest for a fantastic heavy rum is the addition of sugar, most of the dark/black rums I've read about on their website claim they use all molasses (no sugar). This would, I think, give a heavier flavor.

I also second what Ricky says, If I got product off at above 90% I'd call it vodka, but thats JMHO.

I could be off base here, but I

cannon.co.tn · Post by **cannon.co.tn** » Tue Jan 08, 2008 12:21 am

tater and cruiser, how does one filter out color from a barrel aged distillate?

Post by **Dnderhead** » Tue Jan 08, 2008 1:57 am

you could run thru still or use activated carbon

Post by **Tater** » Tue Jan 08, 2008 6:46 am

cannon.co.tn wrote:tater and cruiser, how does one filter out color from a barrel aged distillate?

I read it here http://www.rumuniversity.com/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow

violentblue · Post by **violentblue** » Tue Jan 15, 2008 4:12 pm

there are just to many types of rum to categorize as light or dark, or light and heavy.

compare Appleton's rum to a Bacardi black and a Bacardi white, the two Bacardi's have more in common with one and other than the appletons, which being an amber should fit neatly inbetween. Tha Bacardi, a cuban rum, and the Appleton's a jamacan rum have very different profiles.

in my opinion (and limited palate) color has little to do with flavor profile (heavy or light) and more to do with marketing. Manufacturers tend to color a heavy rum darker and thats where the confusion comes in.

I think your best bet in getting a light and a heavy rum from the same run would be to separate out the run into smaller portions (1liter to 250ml depending on how big your run is) then use the old sniffer to determine their flavor profile, mix your light rum using more of the milder or less flavorfull portions, and the heavy from the portions that carry the stronger notes. and eliminate the bad smelling stuff. unless you're able to filter it enough to get it to a neutral state, then maybe you can add it to the white rum to lighten it further.

Post by **Dnderhead** » Tue Jan 15, 2008 4:43 pm

If you got a pot still you can run once save some four heavy
distill the rest again four light

Rummeriffic · Post by **Rummeriffic** » Sun Mar 16, 2008 7:40 pm

violentblue wrote:..... Tha Bacardi, a cuban rum, and the Appleton's a jamacan rum have very different profiles.

FWIW, Bacardi is not a Cuban Rum. While the family started making rum in Cuba in 1862, they have not produced a drop of Rum in Cuba for decades. Havana Club, on the other hand is still produced in Cuba. For those of you fortunate enough to Not be living in the USA, you can probably buy Havana Club at the local market. IMHO, the 5 year old Reserve and 7 year old are quite fine Rums (my favorite is the 5 year old).