A few weekends ago I was in Savannah, Georgia. A wonderful little riverside town replete with history, quaint old buildings, some great bars - including the posh, yet unpretentious Peacock Lounge, and a lovely Tiki bar called Bamboo Room. Another thing it has is bootleggers. Well, it did during prohibition. In fact, if I reflect on some of my favorite places they all seem to have one thing in common. From New York down to Savannah. New Orleans to the Florida Keys and out towards the Caribbean. They all played a major role in bootlegging.
Perhaps, I’m drawn to this type of place. Perhaps, it’s simply that circumstance favored some of the most important and beautiful locales along the eastern seaboard. Fortune certainly did. If there’s one thing we’ve learned from our trists with prohibition it’s that it turns common people into criminals, criminals into millionaires and nobody stopped drinking. Mark Twain famously wrote, "Prohibition only drives drunkenness behind doors and into dark places, and does not cure it, or even diminish it".
There were a few ways to drink alcohol during prohibition. Travel to a place where it was legal. i.e., Havana. You could make it yourself. If you didn’t have a cultural or religious exemption you could always become a moonshiner. You could procure a prescription from a pharmacist. Or, the easiest and most affordable way - purchase it illegally. And how, you ask, would one purchase booze in a country in which its sale is outlawed! And not some bathtub gin that’ll make you go blind and slap your grandma but real, authentic, 100% grade A American spirits? For that we turn to the first true American spirit - rum. Said rum was pouring in faster than even Hemingway could drink it through Florida, where it made its way up the Savannah River or sailed northwest through the Gulf of Mexico to New Orleans.
Sure, up north a nascent crime syndicate becoming known as the Mafia was moving whiskey and wine but, in the deep south and tropics, rum runners ruled the illicit booze trade. Even our beloved Donn the Beachcomber claims to have gotten his start running rum across the Gulf. Today we’re going to talk about the most infamous rum runner of them all and the tropical libation named for his illustrious occupation.
Ladies and gentlemen, my name is Tony and this is Pod Tiki.
It would be oversimplifying to say prohibition was all about decreasing alcohol consumption. As with most social movements it did not happen in a vacuum. Political intrigue, racism, and moral supremacy are all issues encircling the temperance movement. Politically, people against drinking were fed up with the corruption taking place by politicians making deals in taverns or using booze to coerce votes. Both of which did indeed happen. To that effect I will remind you that our country was founded in taverns. Personally, I would have more faith in politicians deciding the course of our nation over a few pints rather than by the highest bidder. And whether or not I agree with what he or she’s saying I’d still drink their beer. The racial part comes by way of the stigma that immigrants were defiling our pure and sovereign nation with their bibulous cultures. You know, the very same pure and sovereign nation that claimed manifest destiny in order to push natives off their ancestral land and used slave labor to create an economy. The Germans with their beer. Irish with that bedeviled whiskey. And lo! Those petulant Italians with their wine and their Catholicism. To say nothing of the French with th- oh, wait. They helped us win the war so we’ll let them slide. Which brings us to the morality front. I should say perceived morality. For, it was through the temperance movement such groups as the KKK rose to power, hitching themselves to the prudent outcry of religious extremists as a platform to launch hateful rhetoric. Prohibition was one of those blemishes on American culture that lends itself to wonder what we as a nation actually stand for. We are a nation of immigrants. From the pilgrims, who were kicked out of their country for religious extremism, to the slaves that were brought here nefariously, to the Statue of Liberty that greeted my great-grandparents as they arrived from Italy fleeing an oppressive government. But, we presently and historically, don’t want new immigrants who want to come experience that American dream we’re all told still exists.
Yet, as with many illustrious trades, there are the cool parts. Pirates, mobsters, most religions if we put aside the murderous debauchery we’re left with swashbuckling adventures the likes of which I used to clamor for at book fairs. I don’t recall bootlegging being a huge part of my scholastic curriculum, but if it was there is one man who would stand out as the hero: Bill McCoy.
This was definitely the heyday of offshore bacchanal. We’ve discussed in length on Pod Tiki about Havana, Jamaica, and later Hawaii being the playgrounds for those with the means and desire to imbibe. But what of those harboring the desire without means? Those folks counted on rumrunners to bring the party to them. It’s funny, in the litany of elicit boozetowns New Orleans often fails to be mentioned. That’s because they simply didn’t acknowledge the law. This is a fact, the Crescent City, civilians, lawmen, and politicians alike, has such roots in alcohol as part of their culture that no one in town enforced the Volstead Act. At least, not to locals. Therefore, it was the perfect place to unload all that Caribbean rum.
Many classic libations from this era, including New Orleans’ own Hurricane, are thought to be products of the voluminous quantities of Jamaican rum being delivered by rumrunners. It’s said in order to get a bottle or two of Scotch or Wine from Europe a bar owner had to purchase cases of Jamaican rum. This was surely a boon to someone peddling in rum drinks. Maybe even offer the surplus of ingredients it takes to experiment with different kinds of rums and mixing them together and adding all kinds of exotic ingredients.
Another one of these offloading towns was another place we seldom talk about but is so indelibly linked with Tropiki: Key West. Key West is one of the few outlaw days of old that still plays host to myriad outlaws and outcasts flocking to its tiny shores to this very day. Earnest Hemingway, Jimmy Buffett, and Tennessee Willimas are but a few of the famous names. But with millions of honorary expats flocking there each year to experience a bit of that old Florida audacity Key West is most known as a place to go to not be recognized. Mostly due to the fact that everything there is so flamboyantly grandiose you’d have to be pretty odd to stand out there. Key West is so tongue in cheek they even briefly seceded from the U.S. demanding to be known as the Conch Republic. Besides Hemingway and Buffett their next most infamous resident was a fire chief and politically aligned drug dealer named, ready for this, Bum Farto. I shit you not. Pun intended.
Alas, back to rumrunners. The term rum-runner was given to those smugglers carrying booze from the Caribbean, mainly Bimini, in the Bahamas, to Florida, the Gulf coast and all the way up the eastern seaboard. As alluded to earlier all the other European booze, such as gin, whiskey, or wine, also came in through the Caribbean. Therefore, rumrunning referred to smuggling any illegal alcohol. The difference between rumrunning and bootlegging is that rumrunning refers to alcohol smuggled by sea, while bootlegging is smuggling over land. Illegal distribution of alcohol using suped up stock cars along the beach in Daytona, Florida which led to stock car racing would be an example of bootlegging. Whereas the cocaine cowboys of 1980’s Miami dashing across the Florida Straits in high powered cigarette boats are descendants of rumrunners.
We’re going to tackle Bill McCoy’s career on a timeline but, I want to begin by prefacing how this man’s gestalt legacy is truly greater than the sum of its parts. His namesake, The Real McCoy, has come to take on a meaning which the greenest child or grayest veteran understands. I think we should all hope our names to be redolent of such abstract notions. Although, some eponymous epithets are favored over others. If I ever find myself in a jail cell I would much rather them say “he Dillinger’ed us”, than, “we Epstein’ed him”.
William McCoy was born in Syracuse, New York in 1877 into a very straightlaced family. His father, also William, was a humble brick mason who served in the Union Navy during the Civil War and the McCoy family were actually teetotalors. Bill Jr. tangentially followed in his father’s footsteps by enrolling in Pennsylvania Nautical School and graduating top of his class. He subsequently served on many ships around the Caribbean and was actually at Havana Harbor in 1898 when the USS Maine exploded catalyzing U.S. involvement in Cuba’s war with Spain.
In the early 20th century the McCoys moved to Holly Hill, Florida. A town just north of Daytona Beach. A town I’m quite familiar with from growing up nearby. We’ll refer to Wiliam Jr., as Bill from here on. It was here that Bill became known as a master yacht builder for rich families such as the Vanderbuilts and Carnegies.
Here’s where things go off the rails. Like most cases that drive good people into criminality, it begins with money. Or, lack thereof. See, by this time Bill McCoy was making a living building freighters. With the influx of highways being built up and down the coast of Florida, re: Henry Flagler, who was pretty much Florida’s Conrad Hilton, the need for freight ships was way down. Add to Bill’s struggles that his wife left him and both his pious parents had died and we find Bill in a desperate sort of way. So, Bill Mcoy employed his superior boating expertise and dabbled in transporting alcohol from the Bahamas up to New Jersey’s “rum row”. The term “rum row”, refers to the gathering of rum laden ships anchored just beyond the sovereign line of any given port. Many states along the east coast had rum rows.
He eventually made enough to buy a schooner he named Tomoka after the river in Holly Hill. But, McCoy was no smuggling chump out for a few runs and a few dollars. He enterprised and franchised this shit with a fleet of boats under his purview. Bill even invented a new style of rumrunning on a scale that would’ve made Lucky Luciano raise an eyebrow. He bribed a British official in Nassau, which was still under the crown at the time, to register his boats as British vessels. Therefore, as long as he stayed 3 miles from the coast of the U.S. he was doing nothing illegal. Bill began selling his booze from large ships anchored offshore to smaller independent vessels that would mule it in. Good thing there was no RICO Act back then. Building his operation into an empire he was essentially the Al Capone of the water. But, there’s one more aspect of this wanton endeavor that solidified his legacy.
Many runners of that day would water down their spirits to increase profit. Be it because of some moral aptitude or due to the fact that Bill had himself started drinking by this time and appreciated quality, but he would never compromise his product by cutting it with water. McCoy became a legend in his time for having the best rum. Thus, whenever a potential customer inquired about the veracity of their purchase they asked whether or not it was the “real McCoy”? This wasn’t just for the sake of integrity, but for safety. Recall that there were lots of “homemade” spirits making the rounds. This might be the domain of hipsters with a home brewing kit nowadays, but during prohibition it meant unregulated alcohol pervading the public and making people sick. Even to death, at times. Kind of reminds me of what we’re experiencing now with government controlled substances vs. street level drugs. Like high engagement bartenders in this, our modern day, Bill McCoy took pride in having the knowledge and means to provide upper crust quality spirits en masse. A prohibition era Robin Hood, of sorts. For this, I admire the man.
Soon Bill McCoy became the focus of Attorney General Mabel Walker Willebrandt. Prohibition wasn’t a gender issue, but it’s worth noting that some of the biggest players in the teetotaler movement were indeed women's leagues against drinking. Between Willebrandt and some of the organized crime families bearing down on him McCoy began to feel the pressures of empire.
On 23 November, 1923 the the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Seneca set upon Tomoka, irrespective of them being in international waters. The crew of Seneca boarded Tomoka and under fire McCoy was forced to surrender.
In court Bill McCoy gave this statement, “I have no tale of woe to tell you. I was outside the three-mile limit, selling whisky, and good whisky, to anyone and everyone who wanted to buy.”
Forgoing a drawn out trial McCoy plead guilty consequently serving a 9 month sentence. His is one of those rare cases of maritime scallywaggery that didn’t end dangling from a rope. McCoy served his time and retired back to Florida where he invested in real estate and took up boat building once again. Thus, perpetuating the long list of scoundrels retiring to Florida in relative obscurity.
There’s more to indulge ourselves in regarding the rum wars and prohibition, but that, my friends, is for another day and another drink.
So, how did this hero of prohibition get his own rum brand and a drink named after his trade?
There are two prevailing theories regarding the Rumrunner’s origin. The first is linked to New Orleans and a book entitled Famous New Orleans Drinks And How To Mix Them by one Stanley Clisby Arthur, circa 1937. This is not the popular modern version brandished by so many beach bars today, but its naming reflects the superlative predisposition New Orleans holds to rebellious celebration. The recipe also displays the city's ties to tropical drinks as well as a precursor to Donn the Beachcomber’s style. Being a simple punch riff the 30’s Rumrunner is a tip of the straw fedora to the Caribbean with an added touch of Peychaud’s to give it that NOLA touch. However, I’ve been drinking in New Orleans and can attest that the NOLA touch ain’t no tap on the shoulder. More like a punch in the liver.
Here’s the recipe:
1 oz Light Rum
1 oz Jamaican Rum
1 oz Pineapple Juice
¾ oz Lime Juice
¾ oz Simple Syrup
2 dashes Peychaud’s Bitters
I interpreted “light rum”, as a silver Puerto Rican rum based on other similar recipes from the era. For Jamaican rum I used, big shocker, Myers’s Dark. I’ll come back to this later. Presently, let’s get to the more familiar modern drink.
This popular version takes us to another prohibition port of call - the Florida Keys. Islamorada, to be specific, at the Holiday Isle Tiki Bar in the early 1970’s. Bar manager John Elber purportedly invented his Rumrunner in order to clear out old inventory. That is overwhelmingly obvious in the ingredient list. Especially, through the use of so many add liqueurs. Namely, banana and blackberry. Also, the rums are very vague. Light rum, and Navy strength rum. This suggests bartenders were probably instructed to use whatever bottles were excess and throw the overproof in there perhaps to dissuade patrons from overthinking what they were drinking. After a few of these in the Florida sun you’re not thinking of much.
Elber named the Rumrunner after the illustrious history the Keys have in that trade. Since then the drink has come to represent tropical beachside tippling at large. The first time I recall having one was a frozen concoction under the thatched roof of the Tiki bar deck at Coconuts on the Beach in Cocoa Beach, Florida.
I should say, this is one of those drinks that’s totally acceptable to serve frozen. But, today we’re going to focus on the liquid OG. A drink that generally goes together, that is, there aren’t any contradicting flavors, but also a drink that doesn’t necessarily make sense in breaking any new ground. More like a ground that was broken and prepped for greatness, but the builders ran out of funds and let it sit fallow till grass sprouted from the mounds of earth. Then, a second, less reputable, builder came in and put up a paper structure on the previously tilled ground.
Here’s the recipe I’ve deduced as being the best version:
1 oz Planterey 3 Star (or heavy light rum)
1 oz Hamilton Demerara 151
1 oz Banana Liqueur
1 ¼ oz Lime Juice
2 oz Pineapple Juice
½ oz Grenadine
¼ oz Blackberry Liqueur
Shake everything with crushed ice and open pour into a Hurricane Glass. I feel like the use of Hurricane glass here could be an homage to the original New Orleans version. Add a few dashes of Angostura bitters if it’s still too sweet.
Okay, I have to admit this configuration is pleasant. It just needed some tweaking from the “official” recipe. But, then, this is one of those tropical libations that seems to avail itself to interpretation. The original version only had 1 oz of lime juice but ½ oz of Blackberry liqueur. This caused the dark fruit to be very prevalent. I wanted it to be lighter and beachy, but it tasted like a poor man's Singapore Sling. Not really sure what the idea of this drink is. Blackberry and grenadine give a knock-off Heering taste. There’s so many better drinks in this vein out there. But, then again, it was thrown together to get rid of old inventory.
My updated recipe dials back the blackberry and, wallah!, the banana comes springing to the fore. Rum became present, but still a bit too sugary for me with all the liqueurs. So, I increased the lime juice by ¼ oz to keep it tropically tart.
The best version still tastes a little too much like a wannabe Singapore Sling. I suppose if you are going to order one, hope it comes like this. Balanced, at least. Heavier light rum like Probitas or Planterey 3 Star adds a creamy body to the texture. Essence of banana is present but in an artificial flavor kind of way.
All in all. Stay away from this abomination. Holy shit, it’s such a beach bar staple that I really wanted to like it. I should’ve known when NONE of the top authors in Tiki or tropicalia mention it in their books.
It’s a tropical punch and if you handed me one beside the pool on a cruise ship I would drink it and say, “It’s pretty cool that the bartender is trying to make something classy.” Perhaps I’m being too hard on the ol’ Rumrunner. It’s not terrible, I suppose. My main gripe is that it tastes like an already more famous drink. If John Elber was a songwriter here in Nashville I would advise the Raffles Hotel sue him for plagiary.
This is an unrefined, liqueur heavy, cloyingly sweet, boozy for the sake of just getting drunk not enjoying a cocktail, cocktail. I haven’t had a tropical let down this bad since that one night in Jamaica. However, here’s a pro tip: Omit the pineapple juice and this actually becomes a wonderful punch!
But, what about that first 30’s era New Orleans Rumrunner we discussed earlier? This is definitely not the rumrunner we know, but the one we love. This is a way better cocktail. Balanced, tasty, tropical. It's for sure just a punch riff, but it’s way better than trying to overcomplicate with all the other junk ingredients. However, it’s not widely accepted as the Rumrunner proper, even though it should be in my opinion. The bitters and austerity of ingredients keeps it decorous and cocktailesque.
There’s one more facet of Bill McCoy’s legacy we should address before wrapping things up. If you enjoy perusing the isles of your fine rum purveyors like I do you’ve probably seen or even bought a rum called Real McCoy. Furthermore, if you’re a rummy like myself you know that it’s made by one of the premier rum producers in the Caribbean. Foursquare Distillery in Barbados. Foursquare not only keeps in the tradition of unblemished rum by not adding any additional sugars to their rum, but another fact I’ve stumbled upon over the years is that the Real McCoy line is the same as Foursquare's high end rum offerings which they sell under their own name, only proofed down to a more approachable ABV.
The spirit comes in a blanco, which is great for Mojito, daiquiris, or cocktails calling for light rum. The flagship 5yr rum is an amazing example of Caribbean spice Barbados is known for with a little butterscotch on the finish. It’s what I usually get. If you’re feeling more refined the 12yr kicks the pepper up a bit while smoothing out the nuance. I prefer the 5yr, but the 12yr is an incredible rum. If you’re one of those leather tongues who needs some pain to feel alive may I direct you to the Prohibition Tradition Rum 100yr Anniversary 12yr. Aged in American ex-bourbon and Virgin white oak casks this throwback is bottled at 100 proof and was released a few years back to commemorate the 100 years since Bill McCoy’s prolific prohibition prowess. 6,000 bottles were produced in that first run. I’m not sure if it’s a yearly release but I can still find it around me.
If you’re into Tiki you’re probably into mixing up your own drinks at home. You may even be a rum nerd. In such cases we’re often left with random ingredients. Usually liqueurs or odd bitters, but also some specialty spirits at times. Maybe you’ve found yourself in this completely hypothetical scenario in which perhaps you’re relaxing on the back porch. There’s a good cigar resting in the ashtray and offering streams of fragrant smoke up to the gods. Pencil Thin Mustache by Jimmy Buffett presently plays from a speaker. The sun is saying goodnight to your little portion of the planet with striations of violet and celestial hot pink painted across the sky like so many thin brush strokes fading to a dark azure that could be the inverted image of an evening sea on the horizon. You just settled into an old comfortable adirondack chair when you hear a voice. Is this an angel? The voice of God? Of A God or The God? No, it’s your wife bellowing her common refrain from in the house. “Can you make me a delicious adult drink!”
You get up, go inside, and realize you have nothing that makes a standard beverage. So, you’re forced to get creative.
I’ve made up lots of drinks I’ll never remember how to recreate. Some really good ones, even. Even though they probably tasted way better then in my already faded mind. Therefore, I can’t tease John Elber too much for creating the Rumrunner. It has, after all, become a legend much in the same way its namesakes did. It’s just always better to create out of desire and not just to use up old stock. Hence why there’s been a bottle of Cruzan Black Strap in my bar for 3 years. Just make sure when the notion of extemporaneous tippling tips your way to keep the liqueurs to a minimum and when it comes to spirits always use the real McCoy!
Sources: liquor.com, diffordsguide.com, theeducatedbarfly.com, wikipedia.com
We have some exciting stuff in the works and please let me know if I’ve missed any classics we haven’t covered yet. Most of all be safe and Keepi Tiki!