View source for Bay rum

{{short description|Type of cologne and aftershave lotion}}
'''Bay rum''' is a type of [[Eau de Cologne|cologne]] and [[aftershave]] [[lotion]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://stjohnsbayrum.com/pages/history-st-johns-bay-rum|title=History of St Johns Bay Rum|website=stjohnsbayrum.com|publisher=[[St Johns Fragrance Company]]}}</ref>
Other uses include as under-arm [[deodorant]] and as a [[fragrance]] for [[shaving soap]], as well as a general [[astringent]].
[[File:Double distilled bay rum front.jpg|thumbnail|right|upright|19th-century trade card, showing bay rum from St. Thomas.]]
==Origins==
It is a [[distillate]] that was originally made in [[Saint Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands|Saint Thomas]] "and probably other [[Caribbean|West Indian islands]]"<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Maisch |first1=John M. |title=On the Origin of Bay Rum |journal=[[American Journal of Pharmacy]] |date=1861 |volume=33 |page=289 |location=Philadelphia}}</ref> from [[rum]] and the leaves and/or berries of the West Indian bay tree, ''[[Pimenta racemosa]]''.
John Maisch identified the leaf in the [[herbarium]] at the [[Philadelphia Academy of Natural Sciences]], collected in [[Saint Croix]], "by the late Dr. Griffith", which was identified as ''[[Myrcia|Myrcia acris]]'', now transferred to the genus ''[[Pimenta (genus)|Pimenta]]''. Maisch added that it was "very probable that various species are made use of for the same purpose." According to an 1889 reference, other ingredients may be [[citrus]] and [[spice]] oils, the most common being [[Lime (fruit)|lime oil]] and [[oil of cloves]]. A drop of oil of cloves is added to two parts bay oil and one part pimento oil in one of two recipes for bay rum;<ref>{{cite journal |title=Practical notes and formulæ |journal=The Chemist and Druggist |date=1889 |volume=34 |page=576}}</ref> the aromatics are steeped in alcohol and as a last step an equal part of "good rum" is added, and [[cinnamon]].
==Popularity==
[[File:SitH - Rexall Bay Rum.jpg|thumb|upright|At 58% alcohol by volume and despite "for external use only" indications, [[Rexall]] Bay Rum was one way to duck the restrictions on alcohol during the era of [[Prohibition in the United States]] (this particular bottle is ''not'' from the prohibition {{nowrap|era{{hsp}}{{mdash}}}}{{hsp}}it dates from the 1950s or early 1960s)]]
It was first made fashionable in [[New York City|New York]]<ref>Alice M. Coats, ''Garden Shrubs and their Histories'' (1964) 1992, ''s.v.'' "Laurus"</ref> and other American cities before it was available in Europe.<ref>"That it is little known in Europe may also be judged from the fact that it is not even mentioned in ''Piesse's Art of Perfumery''" (Maisch 1861); George William Septimus Piesse, ''The Art of Perfumery'' (1857)</ref><ref>A recipe for bay rum from the Philadelphia College of Pharmacy was included in ''The Pharmaceutical Journal'' (Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain) 23 February 1878:679</ref> This [[Rexall]] bay rum example (''pictured'') from the [[Prohibition in the United States|Prohibition]] era in the United States was labeled "for external use only", but with 58% [[grain alcohol]] it was often used as a legal, if somewhat toxic, source of beverage alcohol.<ref>''Stills in the Hills'', a 2012 exhibit at the White River Valley Museum, Auburn, Washington.</ref> A 1933 recording by Ashley & Foster references drinking bay rum purchased from the Raylass Chain department store in Gastonia, North Carolina.<ref>Archived at [https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/zFoMZX-gy2Y Ghostarchive]{{cbignore}} and the [https://web.archive.org/web/20210115181311/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zFoMZX-gy2Y Wayback Machine]{{cbignore}}: {{cite AV media| url = https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zFoMZX-gy2Y| title = Ashley & Foster Bay Rum Blues (1933) | website=[[YouTube]]}}{{cbignore}}</ref>
==Products==
Proprietary bay rum lotions are produced by labs in several West Indian countries, as well as American and European fragrance companies. The original bay rum from St. Thomas by [[Albert Heinrich Riise|A. H. Riise]] continues to be produced locally in the [[US Virgin Islands]] by the West Indies Bay Company.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.stjohnsbayrum.com|title=St Johns Bay Rum Aftershave - The Original Bay Rum}}</ref>
The [[bay laurel]], the "bay leaves" in common culinary use, are from a completely unrelated species, ''[[Laurus nobilis]]'', and not the West Indian bay tree. Bay laurel can be used to produce a similar, although not identical, product.<ref>{{cite book |last=McCamant |first= J.M. |date=1908 |title=Mack's Barbers' Guide |pages=94-95}}</ref>
==References==
{{Reflist}}
[[Category:Perfumes]]