Rum isn't what you think it is, and the industry will testify to this. The liquor you've come to associate with Coca-Cola, with college excess and long drunk nights with your boys is more complicated than that. You've grown up and it turns out the sugarcane-derived spirit has done the same.
Speaking with Brian Avenius of Brugal Rum, the Dominican rum producer, the complexity of the spirit emerges. Rum has a rich history that stretches back to the 1600s, and reveals much about the way Prohibition and American participation in conflicts abroad have affected the way we consume alcohol. Put down that slushy daiquiri and listen up. Here are the 10 things every guy should know about rum.