Ingredients
What to buy
- One Barrel, the one-year amber rum
- from Travellers Liquors, Belize City
- or Travellers Five Barrel, aged longer
- see the note on why no method is given
To serve neat
- in a short glass
- at room temperature
- or over one large ice cube
To mix
- cola, over ice, with lime
- the everyday way
- or coconut water
- or pineapple and orange juice
- with grated nutmeg
- or ginger beer
Directions
- Heat drives the spirit in and out of the wood.
- Squeeze it in and drop it in.
- Use a short glass.
- Grate it fresh.
- Fry jacks. Anyone pregnant should not drink alcohol.
- Keep it upright, away from light and heat.
Technique
- The atlas gives no method: home distilling is illegal without a licence in most countries regardless of quantity or purpose, it carries real fire and pressure hazards, badly made spirit can contain harmful levels of methanol, and this is in any case a specific branded product. The John Watling’s rum entry carries the fuller account of rum, colour and age labelling.
- One year is a short age for a rum, but tropical ageing is not temperate ageing. Heat drives the spirit in and out of the wood, accelerating both extraction and evaporation, and the angel’s share lost to evaporation can be several times the temperate rate. Tropical and temperate age statements are not comparable, and the atlas says so rather than letting the number mislead.
- It is an everyday mixing rum rather than a sipping one, and the atlas says so rather than overselling it.
- Build a rum and cola as ice, then rum, then cola. Pouring cola last preserves the fizz and pouring spirit onto ice chills it immediately. The lime is not a garnish — it cuts the sweetness of both rum and cola, and without it the drink is cloying.
- One large ice cube dilutes slowly; small cubes melt fast and water the rum down.
- The punch rhyme — one of sour, two of sweet, three of strong, four of weak — is a rule of thumb rather than a recipe, varying by island and by bar.
- Grate nutmeg fresh. It is genuinely toxic in quantity — several whole nutmegs can cause serious poisoning, which is documented rather than folklore — but a grating on a drink is nowhere near that.
- Rum with cola tastes far weaker than it is, because sugar hides the alcohol entirely, and people drink more than they intend.
- Cooking does not remove all the alcohol, and a soaked cake retains a great deal. Say plainly when a dish contains it.
- Drinking in heat dehydrates fast, and drinking near open water is a documented drowning risk.
- Do not drink alcohol if you are pregnant, driving, handling a boat, or on medication that interacts with it.
- Rum does not age in the bottle. Store it upright, away from light and heat.
Substitutions
- Any Caribbean amber rum substitutes for mixing.
- Travellers Five Barrel is the longer-aged bottling from the same distillery.
- A white rum works in punch and gives a cleaner drink.
- Coconut water replaces cola for a less sweet long drink.
- Ginger beer turns it into a sharper long drink.
- Lime and soda is the non-alcoholic version of the same refreshment.
Variations
- Travellers Five Barrel is aged longer.
- Travellers White is the unaged mixing rum.
- Rum with cola and lime is the everyday drink.
- Belizean rum punch follows the sour-sweet-strong-weak rhyme.
- Rum popo is the Belizean Christmas eggnog.
- Cashew wine is the country’s other traditional drink.
History
Made by Travellers Liquors in Belize City, founded in 1953, and the best-known Belizean spirit abroad.
Frequently asked questions
What is One Barrel?
One Barrel is a wine & spirit from Belize: amber rum aged one year in oak, drunk with cola or neat. Made by Travellers Liquors in Belize City, founded in 1953, and the best-known Belizean spirit abroad.
How long does One Barrel take to make?
One Barrel takes 3 minutes of preparation and none of cooking. The recipe makes buy by the bottle. It is rated easy to make.
What can I substitute in One Barrel?
Yes, within limits. Any Caribbean amber rum substitutes for mixing. Travellers Five Barrel is the longer-aged bottling from the same distillery. A white rum works in punch and gives a cleaner drink. Coconut water replaces cola for a less sweet long drink. Ginger beer turns it into a sharper long drink. Lime and soda is the non-alcoholic version of the same refreshment.
What is the most important thing to get right in One Barrel?
One year is a short age for a rum, but tropical ageing is not temperate ageing. Heat drives the spirit in and out of the wood, accelerating both extraction and evaporation, and the angel’s share lost to evaporation can be several times the temperate rate. Tropical and temperate age statements are not comparable, and the atlas says so rather than letting the number mislead.
