Plugging Into the Rum World
AKA How to Become a Rum Nerd
So you’ve decided you like rum, you’ve read my Rum 101 article, rum reviews and distillery visits, and now you want to learn more. Well fortunately for you, the rum world is vast, and its inhabitants are pretty awesome, but it can be hard to ferret out all the good stuff online and in-person without a few hints from a fellow rum nerd. It’s my hope that this list will flatten your learning curve and get you up to speed as quickly as possible. Now let’s get you to the next level!
Choose an on-page link below or simply scroll through all the resources.
- Rum Books
- Rum Periodicals
- Rum Sites (blogs, news, reviews)
- Rum Industry Sites
- Rum Forums
- Facebook Rum Groups
- Useful Facebook Rum Pages
- In-Person Rum Training
- Rum Festivals
- Where to Buy Rum Online
- Booze-Specific Search Engines
- Where to Buy Rum in the San Francisco Bay Area
- Where to Drink Rum & Tiki Drinks in the San Francisco Bay Area
- Where to Find Tiki Bars Worldwide
Rum Books
If you enjoy reading my stuff, then you’ll probably like these three rum books.
And a Bottle of Rum: A History of the New World in Ten Cocktails by Wayne Curtis
Using ten rum cocktails as the basis for a history lesson on the past four hundred years is a pretty amazing idea, and Wayne pulls it off masterfully. An incredibly interesting and well-written page-turner.
Dave is more known for his whisky knowledge, but he’s pretty hip on rum, too. This book is a more straightforward education on rum and its various styles (complete with tasting notes) but it’s a great coffee table book, and is worth adding to the library.
The Distiller’s Guide to Rum (multiple authors)
If you want to learn about how rum is made at a very granular level, then this is the book for you. This book is written for those who are looking to get into the business, but it’s equally interesting for serious rum nerds who want to understand the biology and chemistry of rum production.
Rum Periodicals
There are two rum magazines currently in production, one is in English, and one in French:
A good source for rum news, reviews, recipes and history lessons. You can download a free pdf version each month from their Web site.
Rumporter is a French rum magazine that’s full of great information that’s laid out beautifully. Unfortunately, it’s in PDF form, so you can’t directly use online translation tools to convert it to other languages. If you can read French, you’ll love it.
Rum Sites, Blogs & Reviews
Don’t take my words for gospel; go out and read some other opinions on rum. The Web has several from which to choose, and I’m proud to count many of these folks as friends.
Barrel-Aged Mind (German/English)
Coeur de Chauffe (French)
Du Rhum (French)
Rum Industry Sites
American Distilling Institute Rum Forum
Rum Forums
Facebook Rum Groups
La Confrerie du Rhum (French)
Useful Facebook Pages for Rum News
Inu A Kena (duh)
In-Person Rum Training
Get out from behind the computer and learn!
Authentic Caribbean Rum Training
ACR’s program is free. Look for a city near you!
Rum University
Serious rum study from the folks behind Got Rum? Magazine, primarily for folks looking to enter the rum biz.
Rum Festivals
Perhaps the best place to learn about rum is at a rum festival. You can taste a wide variety of products and hang out with some of the most fun spirits lovers on planet Earth.
Where to Buy Rum Online
Hi-Time Wine ($10 overnight shipping within CA!)
Master of Malt (great source for EU-only rums)
Booze-Specific Search Engines
Sometimes Google doesn’t cut it when it comes to rum searches. I’ve found some great online sources via these sites.
Where to Buy Rum in the San Francisco Bay Area
Custom Google Map:
https://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?mid=zcLMXwRu8sCg.kgXLnNUXnUvw&usp=sharing
Where to Drink Rum & Tiki Drinks in the San Francisco Bay Area
You don’t have to amass a high rum collection at home. Nearly every rum bar has a program that will enable you to drink your way through their collection, and there’s always a prize for finishing the list. Here are some spots with good rum selections in and around San Francisco:
Where to Find Tiki Bars Worldwide
There’s no better way to find tiki bars (and usually rum) than Humuhumu’s very own:
Critiki
Well, there you have it. You’re on your way to becoming a true rum nerd! Please tell me what I’ve missed in the comments.
Cheers,
Josh
Inu A Kena 
I’m surprised by no mention of http://www.rumproject.com ! They have the most active rum forums I know of. Also the sugar list is very helpful.
Josh…
Thanks for including us on this list of rum resources. We’re trying hard to be the best place to find where to buy any particular bottle of rum. If there’s every anyway we can improve, please let us know.
Thanks,
Sam at 1000 Corks.
As a minor update to the linked map of rum shops in the Bay Area — which is very nice, by the way — Beltramo’s in Menlo Park closed in July 2016 (after 134 years!).