Awesome post!!! Going out this week to gather the ingredients so my son and I can experiment with your recipe this weekend!!! Couple of questions ... how many Allspice berries and Peppercorns did you use? And how many drops of each EO did you use? Even the lime EO? Again, love this post!!! Great job and thank you!!!
Here's the original recipe I used. I modified it a bit and probably would alter it again in the next batch. (* means alterations) Bay Rum Vodka 6 oz Dark Jamaican Rum, 4 oz Witch Hazel 6 oz Essential Oil (5/2 ratio, Bay to rosemary) 40 drops total; (*added Lime EO: 20 drops) Bay Oil (Pimenta Racemosa) 28 drops Rosemary Oil 12 drops (*I added Lime EO: 20 drops) Allspice 3-5 berries, cracked (*I doubled this amount) Black Peppercorns 6-19, cracked (*I doubled this amount) 2 sticks Cinnamon, broken in pieces Lime Zest from 1 Large 9or 2 small (2 TBLs)(*I doubled this amount) Ginger Root, chopped (1 tablespoon) Add after straining liquid through cheesecloth or paper filter, add: Glycerin 1tsp Begin by grating the lime peel to get its zest. You want the green part of the peel, not the white beneath. This usually yields about two tablespoons of zest. It’s fine if you have more or less than this. Once you have the zest, put it in your pint jar along with the cinnamon stick (break it up ), the ginger, and the allspice berries. Next add the rum and vodka. Next fill the jar with witch hazel distillate. This will be just under two cups. Finally add 40 drops of the essential oils (bay & Rosemary. Cover the mixture with a tight fitting lid and shake well. Shake it well every day for 4 - 6 weeks. Once the homemade bay rum is done, strain off the ingredients and add the Glycerin, This makes enough to fill two 8 oz bottles.
For authentic Bay rum recipes a key ingredient is West Indian Bay leaves (Pimenta racemosa). These are not the regular bay leaves and are different in both shape and most importantly smell. There are different variants of this tree with variations in scents due to slightly different essential oils in the leaves some have a more cinnamon like smell and some have a more lime/citrus scent naturally. Using the bay leaves also yields a nice colour as well.
Yes, indeed; as per my comments in the initial post. Always use the Pimenta Racemosa. Unless one wishes to make a nice italian-style soup!
I don't want to make soup, but the rest really sounds great. Thank You very much for taking the time to post this. I wonder ho it would taste in my coffee instead of using Irish Whiskey?
This sounds awesome. I have been very interested in bay rum scents since I got into all this traditional awesomeness. I have yet to even smell any bay rums. But, for some reason I just know it's my favorite scent lol. It just sounds great to me. I like whiskey colognes so why not rum. I just wish I could find it somewhere around here to sample but, it all seems to be online. I might give making my own a try. I just spent the money a few days ago to make my own AS and now have to flasks full so I should probably wait until I empty one of them. Thanks for the thread. I really enjoyed reading your steps as time passed.
Nice work!! Congrats. What would be the critical thing about the actual Bay Leaves ? Can you elaborate this issue please ?
In the final product, one of the distinct aromas of bay rum is the 'bay leaf' scent. The Essential oils give up their scent immediately into the mix, whereas the whole leaves take a considerable time more to perfume the blend. So it is critical one allows enough time (3 weeks to a month) for the whole bay leafs to steep.
Oh I get it now. Actually we don't have Bay Leaf in Turkey. I just learned that one type of plant grows here, it's called Pimenta Dioica (Allspice) whereas the actual Bay Leaf is Pimenta Racemosa. And I'm not sure whether they smell the same or not.
What can be used instead of Witch Hazel ? It's really annoying but I can 't find witch hazel here too. Can I use some oils such as Peach oil , Jasmin oil or Pinapple oil or what ?
I have seen several DIY recipes, and not one begins with, "Drink 3/4 of the rum. To the rum bottle add..." (astonishing) I was reading St. Johns Bay, and during Prohibition they used aspirin tablets to destroy the alcohol after it was made. People drank it because, well, it had aspirin in it and was good for sore muscles. This was an amazing thread, and I am so glad it is part of TSD!!!
I really appreciate this thread. I wonder if it is cost effective to distill my own bay rum in the long run? Have others done this for the enjoyment of process or quality,value added?