The Virginia Birthplace of American Spirits Collection: The Coast Rum

"America's first spirit was rum... For a solid 150-plus years, that's what we drank." -- Barry Hanenberg of Virago Spirits (CBS6 Richmond Interview)

And somehow we have forgotten that fact. Rum was the widely produced in the colonies, with New England distilleries converting Caribbean molasses into a domestic staple as early as the 1640s . By the mid‑18th century, rum was so embedded in daily life that consumption reached an estimated fourteen liters per person annually, effectively making it the national drink of colonial America. British taxation-- starting with the Molasses Act of 1733 and then the Sugar Act of 1764 -- choked off affordable molasses imports, crippling the industry and paving the way for whiskey’s rise after the Revolution. Prohibition dealt another blow, and when legal drinking returned in 1933, Americans largely favored imported Caribbean rum rather than rebuilding a domestic tradition.

Today. several entities are attempting to rebuild this American Rum tradition such as Caroline Porsiel, Founder & CEO, House of Applejay Distillery and Co-Founder of the American Brandy & Rum (AMBRu) Campaign as well as BevFluence and their timely TERROIR campaign,  a multi-dimensional campaign across seven locked categories: Touriga Nacional and Portuguese varietals, Emerging spirits, Riesling, Rum, Obscure, Italian varietals, and Rye. A third entity is the Virginia Spirits Guild, who in partnership with the Virginia Spirits Board, the Virginia American Revolution 250 Commission, and Virginia ABC, created the The Virginia: Birthplace of American Spirits Collection. This is a limited‑edition three‑bottle release to commemorate America’s 250th anniversary and to highlight the Commonwealth’s foundational role in early American distillation. The trio of spirits includes a botanical gin, a four‑grain whiskey, and an aged rum—each designed to reflect a different geographic and historical dimension of Virginia’s distilling heritage

The rum in the collection - nicknamed the Coast expression -- was crafted under the leadership of Barry Hanenberg of Virago Spirits, who brought together the complementary strengths of Vitae Spirits, Belmont Farm Distillery, and Chesapeake Bay Distillery to create a blend that reflects Virginia’s Tidewater identity and its deep colonial ties to the molasses trade. Drawing on rums contributed by three of the partner distilleries, the team built a spirit averaged 7.5 years of age and weighing in at a robust 105‑proof. From the same CBS6Richmond interview, Hanenberg refers to the Coast as "a sipping rum" that will surprise whiskey drinkers with preconceived notions.  It provides a complex experience, with layers of what I would describe as honey and caramel drizzled on toasted macadamia nuts between earthiness, and oak inspired baking notes. 

The individual components of the rum were driven by each contributor's distilling philosophy. According to anonymous sources, Virago’s house style is rooted in their Caribbean‑influenced pot‑still and a focus on layered, oxidative depth. Their contribution shaped the blend’s weight, mid‑palate richness, and molasses‑forward profile. Vitae Spirits added the brightest, most aromatic elements in the blend. Known for their cane‑juice‑driven distillation and precision fermentation, Vitae’s rum brought lift, tropical notes, and grassy freshness beneath the deeper molasses tones. Belmont Farm Distillery contributed a traditional pot‑still rum that added rusticity, structure, and oak‑leaning edges. And finally, Chesapeake Bay Distillery supplied a clean, column‑still‑driven rum that helped lengthen the finish, sharpen the structure, and keep the blend from becoming overly dense.

"No one goes to the liquor store and says, 'Let me get that American rum.' That category doesn't exist yet. That's what we need to create, and I think when people taste this, they're going to start thinking differently about the rums they can get from the continental United States." -- Barry Hanenberg of Virago Spirits (CBS6 Richmond Interview)

Let's toast to America’s 250th anniversary, the Virginia distilling tradition, and the revival of the American Rum category.