New England Distilling Eight Bells Rum

About New England Distilling Eight Bells Rum

During the American Revolutionary War, the British Royal Navy imposed a blockade against American ports, which prevented the colonists-turned-revolutionaries from importing crucial supplies into the United States. As a result of the blockade, American distilleries, which had been distilling molasses imported from the Caribbean islands into rum, began distilling rye grains instead.

Following the war, the epicenter of the burgeoning American whiskey business was in Pennsylvania and Maryland. In the Mid-Atlantic region, distilleries made use of excess rye grains to craft rye whiskey, which was beloved throughout the young nation. In the 1850s, John Jacob Wight took the reins at a whiskey distillery near Baltimore. Wight, as any good Marylander would do, began producing Sherwood Rye Whiskey. The whiskey was such a hit that the U.S. Army began stockpiling it for medicinal purposes. The distillery thrived for decades until Prohibition closed its doors in 1920.

More than 90 years later, Ned Wight, John Jacob's great-great-great grandson, has resumed the family distilling tradition, crafting bourbon, rye, rum, as well as gin. Eight Bells Rum is a gold rum that is distilled from Caribbean molasses using direct-fire pot stills. It is aged in ex-bourbon barrels for at least 3 years before being bottled at 90 proof. Great for sipping or cocktails, the rum has notes of spice, vanilla, caramel, oak, and dried fruit.

Grab your bottle of this rum today!