Planteray Mister Fogg Navy Rum
Alexandre Gabriel, owner and master blender of Maison Ferrand and the West Indies Rum Distillery, has long been driven by a curiosity in the history of spirits and reviving forgotten techniques. That is evident in the birth of Citadelle Gin from the discovery of an old gin recipe to launching Mathilde Liqueurs, inspired by cassis his grandmother made.
His latest venture, Planteray Mister Fogg Navy Rum, reflects that ongoing curiosity. The newly-released, limited-edition rum is a carefully crafted homage to the history and techniques of navy rum production.
Gabriel’s inspiration for Planteray Mister Fogg Navy Rum came from a deep-seated fascination with the history of navy rum production.
“Navy rum influenced and really shaped rum as we know it today,” Gabriel tells Forbes. “Rum is one of the only spirits that admits and explains that it blends from different origins to create a rum.”
This curiosity led him to collaborate with Matt Pietrek, a fellow rum enthusiast, who dedicated months to researching the archives of the British Navy. This research unearthed invaluable historical techniques and documents that have since shaped the production of Mister Fogg.
“The idea of a master blender is that when you blend different spirits, your goal is to make one spirit better than any of the components separately,” Gabriel says. “The incredible thing about rum is that you do this with rums from worldwide origins; this is an old tradition that is rooted in navy rum. This came out of necessity technically—no one dreamed it.”
‘I always wanted to know the true nature of navy rum, the true technical nature that’s based on … [+] history. I was fascinated by it,’ says master distiller Alexandre Gabriel.
Navy rums are exactly what one might imagine when thinking about rum transported on ships in the 19th century. They’re often dark in hue and high in alcohol content.
“I was sure that it was going to be 54.5% alcohol because we saw pictures of old bottles and [Pietrek] found the documents to support this,” Gabriel says. “But then he found documents that explained that the navy realized the way they were measuring alcohol was not as accurate, so while they were labeling 54.5%, the sailors were getting more like 55.7%.”
That was a big difference, he continues, as this high proof version, often referred to as “navy strength,” ensures the rum’s stability and robustness.”
We decided to make Mister Fogg at 55.7% because now the instruments are accurate enough that we can label the bottle as what the rum is inside,” Gabriel notes.
One of the most unique aspects of Mister Fogg is the process of “proactive vatting,” in which the rum is held in large open wooden vats, allowing for significant evaporation and oxygenation. Gabriel likens this method to making a béchamel sauce on the back burner, achieving a “nice oily concentration” that adds to the rum’s complexity. This technique, though challenging, was essential in staying true to the traditional methods uncovered during their research.
In addition to proactive vatting, Gabriel also incorporated “double aging” and “dynamic aging” into the rum’s production.
“This process, which we now call ‘dynamic aging,’ creates a great interaction between the liquid and the wood as the liquid is moving around in the barrel,” Gabriel explains. The result is a rum that is not only rich in flavor but also steeped in history, reflecting the journey of rum across the seas in barrels subjected to varying temperatures and humidity levels.
The journey to create Mister Fogg was not without its challenges. Recreating 19th-century vatting techniques, navigating the intricacies of French customs regulations and ensuring the rum maintained its historical integrity were all hurdles that Gabriel and his team had to overcome. Yet, for Gabriel, these challenges were part of the allure.
“The fact that the navy was ready to lose more than 10% every year through angel’s share evaporation with open vats that were gravity fed to mellow down the rum, this showed that they cared about the quality of the rum and they were being very creative in the techniques of making it,” Gabriel says. “That is the aspect that inspired me to make Planteray Mister Fogg Navy Rum.”
Available as a limited edition, Planteray Mister Fogg is accompanied by an in-depth book, ‘Exploring … [+] 300 Years of Royal Navy Rum and Its Technique,’ co-authored by Alexandre Gabriel (right) and rum historian Matt Pietrek (left).
Looking forward, Gabriel remains focused on the legacy of Navy rum and its influence on modern rum production. He sees the creation of Mister Fogg as a way to honor the past while pushing the boundaries of what rum can be.
“For us, it’s a creator’s journey with the desire to share,” Gabriel says. “All in all, we hope there’s other people as crazy as ourselves in a way who want to share an adventure with us. I think that’s what it’s about, and it’s the reason why we go to work in the morning.”
