flipHot Rum Punch from the Islands
Hot Rum Punch from the Islands
Why this dish? Rum is the most direct link between Jeanne and the Antilles: it is the spirit of the Islands that traveled throughout Paris. A hot, sweet, spiced punch evokes both the Bohemian nights of the Latin Quarter and the warmth of a sugarcane country.
A comforting hot drink: rum lengthened with boiling water, sweetened with cane sugar, perfumed with cinnamon, nutmeg, and lime zest. The grog of the Islands that warms Parisian evenings.
Bring your glass close, come on, the night is cold and long. A splash of rum, steaming water, a little cane sugar and the peel of a lime: that's enough to rekindle the fire under the ashes. It's the drink of my country I'm pouring, and when the cinnamon rises to my nostrils, I no longer feel Paris's rain — I dance again, inside myself, under other stars.
- •Rum from the Islands — a good measure (base spirit)
- •Cane sugar — to taste (sweetness)
- •Cinnamon, nutmeg — a pinch (warm spices)
- •Lime zest — a few strips (citrus aroma)
- •Boiling water — to lengthen (hot base)
Hot Rum Punch from the Islands
A comforting hot drink: rum lengthened with boiling water, sweetened with cane sugar, perfumed with cinnamon, nutmeg, and lime zest. The grog of the Islands that warms Parisian evenings.
Why this dish? Rum is the most direct link between Jeanne and the Antilles: it is the spirit of the Islands that traveled throughout Paris. A hot, sweet, spiced punch evokes both the Bohemian nights of the Latin Quarter and the warmth of a sugarcane country.
Bring your glass close, come on, the night is cold and long. A splash of rum, steaming water, a little cane sugar and the peel of a lime: that's enough to rekindle the fire under the ashes. It's the drink of my country I'm pouring, and when the cinnamon rises to my nostrils, I no longer feel Paris's rain — I dance again, inside myself, under other stars.
Ingredients (period version)
- Rum from the Islands — a good measure (base spirit)
- Cane sugar — to taste (sweetness)
- Cinnamon, nutmeg — a pinch (warm spices)
- Lime zest — a few strips (citrus aroma)
- Boiling water — to lengthen (hot base)
Ingredients
- Agricole or amber rum — 5 cl per glass (base spirit)
- Cane sugar (or cane syrup) — 2 tsp (sweetness)
- Cinnamon stick + grated nutmeg — 1 + 1 pinch (warm spices)
- Lime (zest + juice) — 1/2 (citrus aroma)
- Simmering water — 10 cl per glass (hot base)
Method
- Heat the water with the cinnamon stick and a few strips of lime zest to infuse.
- Place the cane sugar at the bottom of a heatproof glass (with a spoon to prevent cracking).
- Pour in the rum, then the hot infused water, and stir to dissolve the sugar.
- Grate a little nutmeg on top and add a squeeze of lime juice.
- Serve immediately, very hot. (Non-alcoholic version: replace rum with spiced apple juice.)
How it was made : Punch (from a traveling word for a mixture of alcohol, water, sugar, spices, and citrus) was very popular in 19th-century Paris, popularized by returns from the colonies. West Indian rum, a byproduct of the sugar trade, was its soul. It was served hot in winter, iced in summer.
The contemporary twist : Present it in a smoked glass, with a cinnamon stick as a stirrer and a thin slice of lime flamed on top — a 'music-hall Creole punch' worthy of a stage artist.
Jeanne Duval · Charactorium
