Rum and Britain have a long and tangled past together similar to other plundering European countries such as France, Spain and the Netherlands. Indeed the very origins of the word “rum” has been attributed to each of these nations (and others) at some point.
Like it or not rum was used as a commodity by British Privateers and was used to establish the slave trade in the Caribbean and the US. Empires were built on the trade of goods in the Caribbean and the islands frequently changed ownership between the warring European Empires.
The Legendary Alnwick Rum no less. The Spirit of Northumberland it proclaims. Not much of a proclamation to make really. I can’t think of a drink other than Newcastle Brown Ale the North East has produced, which is famous beyond its own counties borders.
Smith & Cross can trace their heritage back as far as 1788, producing of sugar and spirits. Importing vast quantities of rum and sugar from Jamaica. At one point they had a Sugar Distillery at 203 Thames Street at the old London docks. on the banks of the River Thames.