Bay Rum Trees : VI History
Did you know, Villa Solare has not one, but two bay rum trees. Why is that of interest? The bay rum tree was so important to the early post-Columbus Virgin Island economy, two of the north shore beaches were named after the tree. If you’re thinking you’ve been to all the beaches and none are called ‘Bay Rum’, then read on… Bay rum is tightly woven into the fabric of Native Virgin Islands culture. In the olden days, every single pantry in the Virgin Islands contained a bottle of bay rum tonic for medicinal purposes. It is the one historic industry that St. John and St. Thomas can claim as being our very own. The history of Bay Rum dates back to the colonial era when sailors and merchants traversed the Caribbean seas. It is said that sailors, inspired by the aromatic bay leaves found in the region, began concocting fragrant potions by infusing rum with bay leaves and other spices. This blend served not only as a delightful fragrance but also as a tonic for tired muscles and a remedy for various ailments. Albert Heinrich Riise (11 September 1810 – 18 October 1882), was a Danish pharmacist, merchant, and rum manufacturer on Saint Thomas. He became intrigued by this local remedy and found that blending bay leaf oils with fine Virgin Island rums produced a remarkable fragrance. His innovative creation received the Centennial Medal in 1876, along with accolades in New Orleans and Chicago. In Virgin Islands history, St. Croix, due to its achievements in agriculture, became known as the garden of the West Indies – where sugar was king. St. John, however, the smallest of the three Danish West Indian islands, was noted as the home of the bay tree from the leaves of which was produced the famous bay rum tonic of these islands. Virgin Islands bay rum attained the reputation of being the finest in the world.The prolific cultivation of the bay rum tree on St. John supplied great quantities of leaves. It is from the leaves that the essential oil of bay was extracted which provided St. John with its most important industry. St. Johnian bay oil was shipped to its sister islands of St. Thomas where it was manufactured into bay rum. Possessing one of the finest deep-water harbors in the entire Antillean chain, St. Thomas was a center of commerce and a natural conduit for exporting the finished product to many parts of the globe: Europe, South America, the United States and the Caribbean.The estate owners on St. John paid the leaf pickers eight cents per bag for their labor-intensive work; each bag could hold up to 75 pounds or more but contained no less than 60 pounds apiece. The lower the weight, the lower the wage. The leaves were then carried to a still apparatus where the oil was extracted. Aside from the scent, the tree is recognizable by its bark, which peels off like cinnamon sticks. The similarity to cinnamon bark is the reason why Europeans referred to the bay leaf trees as Cinnamon and ended up naming two beaches after it: Cinnamon Bay and Caneel Bay (Caneel being the Danish translation of cinnamon). Bay leaves are dark green and shiny. They are also quite sturdy. Traditionally, bay leaf has been used to treat pain, injuries, and sickness. It has also been used in cooking. The younger leaves are generally omitted from cooking because they leave behind an unpleasant menthol taste. Some authorities recommended three pickings of the leaves per year. Others believed that it was best not to interfere with the trees for a whole year; in this way, the leaves would increase in oil content the longer they remained on the tree.There are two methods for making bay rum. One way is to mix the bay oil with rum or with alcohol and water and then distill it. Another way is to distill the leaves directly into the alcohol instead of first extracting the bay oil. From the latter method, the product obtained is considered to be superior in aroma and strength. From one quart of the oil a lot of bay rum can be made, depending on the strength to which it is distilled. In the early 1900s, prior to the transfer of St. Thomas, St. John and St. Croix from Denmark to the United States, approximately 4000 quarts of bay oil were produced in St. John on an annual basis. About 60,000 cases of bay rum (each case contained twelve quart-size bottles) were produced on St. Thomas. Large amounts were sent to Panama through the canal from whence it was transshipped to countries on the western coast of South America. The Van Beverhoudt family of St. Thomas produced and sold very fine bay rum and soap products. In these modern times, the Virgin Islands custom of making high-quality bay rum is being kept alive by the West Indies Bay Company, headquartered in Havensight on St. Thomas. Mr. Jerry Woodhouse, who owns the business, explained that his operation dates back here to 1946. They produce pleasant- smelling fragrances for ladies and men that are attractively packaged in bottles that have a natural looking island-type straw appearance.
If you want to try some bay rum cologne, the Spice Shop in downtown Cruz Bay sells it.
If you are interested in seeing a bay rum tree up close, use the sketch above to see if you can find them in the yard. The aroma from its leaves gives them away. If you pluck one leaf and roll it in your hand, you can unleash more oils and increase the aroma. Enjoy your vacation.