Rum is a global spirit that is closely linked to various aspects of Caribbean culture and history. Additionally, the internet has the potential to give anyone, anywhere in the Caribbean the ability to express their opinions related to rum.
This means that the online rum community should have access to a broad range of voices and opinions from people unaffiliated with any rum company, and from throughout the Caribbean region.
However, this is not the case.
Across the various podcasts, interviews, and other media related to the rum industry, the lack of independent Caribbean voices in the rum enthusiast community is obvious.
It can be observed by looking at the guests of the three biggest, and broadest set of interviews and discussions relevant to rum.
The Rum Connoisseur of the Week
The Rum Connoisseur of the Week series hosted by the Rum Lab is the largest and longest running interview series featuring notable figures in the rum industry and community. In over 10 years, there have been more than 400 interviews.
Of these 400 interviews, 314 interviewees represent companies.
25 people interviewed were mixologists, and just four of these mixologists hail from the Caribbean and Latin America.
21 people interviewed are bar owners, rum festival organizers, or founders of rum societies. Only 2 are from the Caribbean.
69 people interviewed are educators, authors, or bloggers, and only 1 of them is from the Caribbean.
In total, there are only 7 interviewees from the Caribbean that are unaffiliated with rum companies.
The Rumcast
The Rumcast is the biggest podcast related to rum, and on their website, they refer to themselves as “the podcast that helps you navigate the world of rum by talking to the people who shape it.”
Of the guests featured on The Rumcast, 60 represent companies. The remaining 20 include bartenders, bloggers, educators and authors, none of whom are born and living in the Caribbean.
Zavvy Network
Zavvy Network is a network of shows and podcasts that features various beverage industry professionals and influencers. While other spirits are featured, rum has been the focus of the majority of their content.
In their 244 rum focused videos, 151 episodes feature representatives from companies. Of the remaining 93 episodes, 55 are focused on bartenders from Europe and North America who are in some cases presented as experts on Caribbean culture. There has never been a single episode that includes someone unaffiliated with a rum company that is born and living in the Caribbean.
Across The Zavvy Network, the Rum Lab’s Rum Connoisseur of the Week series, and the Rumcast, there are over 700 episodes/interviews. In all three, there are only 7 people born and living in the Caribbean who do not represent a rum company.
The lack of Independent Caribbean voices talking about rum contributes to an industry where companies control the narrative, and are able to white wash Caribbean history, or misrepresent Caribbean culture accordingly.
Colonial nostalgia is normalized by rum companies and the rum community with events like the Rum Tasting of the Century and the Fiftieth Anniversary of Black Tot Day that celebrate Imperialism and take a nonchalant attitude to underdevelopment and inequality.
Image Source; Wikipedia
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