Tabula Magellanica, a map of routes around Cape Horn, 1635, by Willem Blaeu (National Library of the Netherlands)
From the 16th to early 20th centuries, the perilous route around South America’s Cape Horn was the way that explorers and mariners sailed and steamed between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans as they sought everything from fame and riches to whale oil and gold.
This age of exploration and empire was financed by trade in gold, silver, slaves, cotton, tea, and opium. Equally important was sugar, first a medicine, next a condiment for the wealthy, and then the foodstuff that made tea, coffee, and chocolate palatable and marmalade possible. The same cane that produced sugar also yielded rum, the essential drink that fueled sailors, seafaring, and storytelling throughout this historic epoch.
Maritime historian Andy Jampoler chronicles the centuries of navigation through Cape Horn’s infamous passage, and explores the role that rum played in these voyages.
Afterward, whet your own whistle with rum and grog tastings provided by Lyon Distilling Company of St. Michaels, Maryland.
Other Connections
In the early 1740s, British Admiral Edward Vernon issued the infamous Captain’s Order Number 349, stating that all rum should be mixed with water to diminish its intoxicating effects. His crew showed their disapproval by appropriating his nickname, Old Grog, for the resulting mix. In the next century, the addition of a dash of brown sugar and lime would make it more palatable. Learn how to mix a batch of grog for your own crew.
The tradition of Maryland’s 18th-century rum distilleries and a goal of historical accuracy in their offerings led the founders of Lyon Distilling to make rum the product that launched their business. Learn more about how they came to open their purposely small operation.
