Pusser’s
Rum Powers Trans-Atlantic Celebrations; Online
Store Launched
Tortola,
British Virgin Islands, December 29, 2004 - Pusser’s
Rum, the original rum of Great Britain's Royal
Navy for 330 years, recently ensured that participants
with the 19th annual Atlantic Rally for Cruisers
(ARC) were “in good spirits” before,
during and after their 2,700 mile crossing from
Las Palmas de Gran Canaria in the Canary Islands
to St Lucia.
Pusser’s
Rum victualled the 190 yachts with a Pusser’s
Survivial Kit of commemorative bags skipper’s
and crew caps, bottles of Pusser’s Rum,
the world famous Painkiller mix and the recently
introduced Grog - a mix of real lime juice, burned
dark cane sugar and water as served in Great Britain’s
Royal Navy on the orders of Admiral ‘Old
Grog’ Vernon. A Pusser’s Pirate’s
Party saw the participants off in the Canaries
and Pusser’s Rum welcomed the fleet in St
Lucia on Saturday December 11.
At
the ARC 2004 prize giving held at the Gaiety Nightclub
in St Lucia participants were welcomed with Pusser’s
Rum cocktails and a chak chak band before the
prize giving started.
Pusser’s
Rum presented ship’s decanters for first
place, flagons for second and hip flasks for third
in each class. A special Pusser’s Rum Survival
Kit for the last yacht to cross the finish line
in each cruising class was also awarded.
“A
trans-Atlantic crossing is no mean feat and we
at Pusser’s appreciate the dedication that
it takes to plan and undertake such a crossing.
We’re proud of our involvement with the
ARC. If there’s one thing a hardy sailor
needs, as proved by nearly 350 years of Royal
Naval tradition, it’s a good tot of rum
to up spirits,” said Charle Tobias, founder
and CEO of Pusser’s.
During
the Prize Giving, US$3,000 was raised at a charity
auction for a Pusser’s Rum marine chronometer,
bought by Claus Heinrich, owner of the yacht Amoenitas.
The auction proceeds will go to buy equipment
for the St. Lucia Yacht Club Youth Sailing Project,
which aims to introduce young people from all
backgrounds to the sport of sailing.
The
ARC prize giving ceremony coincided with the opening
of Pusser’s online store at http://www.pussers.com.
Pusser's
drink mixes such as Grog and Painkiller are now
available online to complement the legendary Pusser's
Rum together with a complete line of Caribbean
spices & condiments, Pusser's t-shirts and
a host of other items including Pusser’s
Rum Cake and Nelson’s Blazer buttons.
“We
will continue adding items regularly until most
of our Co. Store has been replicated on the net,”
said Tobias. “Watch out for our exciting
new ‘Rum Island’ clothing line which
we will launch online soon and at our Co. Store
on our delightful little island of Pusser's Marina
Cay.”
For
more than 300 years, from the earliest days of
wooden ships and iron men, sailors of Great Britain's
Royal Navy were issued a daily ration–or
"tot"–of rum by the ship's "Purser"
(corrupted by the sailors to Pusser's).
On
July 31st, 1970, the Admiralty Board abolished
the daily issue of Pusser's Rum. In 1979, entrepreneur
Charles Tobias resurrected the Pusser's Rum tradition.
He obtained the rights and all the blending information
from the Admiralty and formed Pusser's Ltd. on
Tortola in the British Virgin Islands. He began
bottling and selling Pusser’s Rum to the
public for the first time in 1980. Prior to then,
it was restricted to the Royal Navy.
Today's
Pusser's Rum is still produced with the blend
of five West Indian rums in exact accordance with
the Admiralty's specifications. Unlike most rums,
it is predominantly a "pot-stilled"
rum. The distillation process is similar to that
used for single malt scotches, which produces
greatly enhanced flavor using no flavoring agents.
It is 100% natural.
In
2001, Pusser's was awarded the "Gold Medal
- World's Premier Dark Rum" at the International
Wine & Spirits Festival. In 2003, Pusser's
Rum won a "Double Gold Medal" at the
San Francisco World Spirits Competition. For more
information on Pusser's Rum visit: http://www.pussers.com.
