Mad River Distillers is a craft producer of whiskey, rum and brandy in Vermont’s Mad River Valley. They are one of my favorite New England distillers. The use regionally grown non-GMO, fair trade and organic suppliers. And the mashing, fermenting, distilling and aging all take place at the distillery in Warren, Vermont. Mad River spirits can be found in retail stores throughout New England, New York and California, and at their satellite tasting rooms in Burlington and Waitsfield.
New England rum, which emerged in the mid-17th century, became Colonial America's largest industry. The industry was driven by imported Caribbean molasses which distilled, became a popular and affordable spirit. Towns such as Boston, Salem, and Newport were integral to the triangular trade, often exchanged for slaves. By 1770, consumption averaged 3 gallons per person per year.
Caribbean rum's popularity flourished first. Then, the first colonial distillery opened in 1664 (Staten Island), and Boston followed in 1667.
Why New England? New England grew the necessary timber for barrels, and the towns harbored the necessary technical skills, as well a high demand for a cheaper alternative to European brandy.
Molasses, a byproduct of sugar production in the West Indies, was brought to New England, and distilled into rum, and then traded in Africa for enslaved people, who were then brought to the West Indies. In the meantime, New England's stature as a distilling center, especially of rum, flourished throughout the states and the world at large.
Mad River makes five different rums, including a silver, a barrel aged, a vanilla, a first run, and a maple barrel aged rum. But their PX Rum is their highest and most classic styled of this special spirit. The Mad River PX Rum Special Edition is their demerara-based rum (aged first in a mixture of toasted and charred barrels), is finished in Pedro Ximenez sherry casks. The rich notes of vanilla, caramel, and butterscotch of their fine rum are then enhanced with a nuttiness (pecans, hazelnut), notes of cocoa and mocha, burnt caramel, like creme brulee', and a sensuous smokiness that bring the complexity level up a huge notch. Rich, luxurious, and flavorful. Layered, complex, and immensely complex, this spirit would be ashamed to waste on a cocktail - but admittedly, it makes wonderful cocktails as well. What an exceptional bottle!
Mad River PX Rum isn't just history in a bottle - it's some something incredibly special.