Grog recipes have varied through the ages. The ancient original mix of barrel water and 94 proof black rum that British sailors first drank, sometimes mixed with sugar and lime juice.
The first Grog, historically laid at the feed of a particular admiral, Edward Vernon, was an effort to thin the British sailors daily share of Rum with water, to curtail drunkenness. Seeing that a sailors daily 'tot' was 1/8th of a pint, and distributed at noon each day, this seems a reasonable worry.
The drink took off, and assumed the nature of a tradition overnight. The same admiral was said to have allowed his sailors to trade bread rations for sugar and lime juice to add in, coming quite close to what we might call Grog today.
Traditionally, a British officers tot was given straight, while ratings were given a measured (and carefully watched over by the men) mix of 2 parts water to 1 part rum, making the basis of the original Grog.
Herself here, interjecting with a bit more historical fun. Why Rum? Caribbean islands were recently occupied, given Brits a taste for the stuff! Water, while ideal for hydration... well...fish pee in it! It took up a lot of cargo space and could and would go stagnant and grow algae. Beer, although the drink of choice due to it's high calorie content and ability to keep well also took up a lot of precious cargo room. Rum did not spoil, is easier to store, and it's 'restorative' abilities were even better than beer. The last of the Rum ration tradition in the British Navy was July 31st, 1970, and all the sailors wore black arm bands to mourn. You can read more about this super interesting history at: The Lost Tiki Lounge
Today, any massive bar book will yield up a dozen recipes for modern jazzy versions. That said, does this ancient beverage really *need* a recipe? Just do what floats your boat....
All for me beer and Tobacco...
Through a literary adventure, the desire to sample Grog came upon me, and this we see is the beginning. I'm trying to stay within the framework of the books I'm reading, so that means not the simplest recipe, but the one just after.
1 part rum, two parts water, and sugar and citrus to taste if available.
Well, I spent all me tin with the lasses drinkin gin....
Trying to stay close, I found Turbinado raw sugar and made a near simple syrup with it. A few splashes of that, half a lemon squeezed in, 1/2 a mug of cold water, and finish with 137 proof Cruzan rum, which is what we have on hand today.
Far across the western ocean I must wander.......
The house pronounces this drink as 'Yummy!, with a measure of AAARRRRRrrrrr! and several 'Fill er up Matey's'!
I'll continue the experiment, especially when I find a few bottles of Pusser's original British navy rum. I know where to find it.... but it's in far-away land.
