DIY Bay Rum AS

Nick the Knife

Nick the Knife

Krill Enabler
Grand Society
Joined
Sep 4, 2012
Location
Coffs Harbour, NSW
Gents,

After all the Bay Rum chat on the site I stumbled upon this....makes for fascinating reading (complimented on the general subject by this). Granted not something that everyone would want to do/try but I think I might put it on my 'potential projects' list as I really think it sounds incredibly easy and should give a very good product that can be adjusted to one's tastes e.g add more lime oil etc.

I have quite a few of the ingredients already - witch hazel and Pimenta racemosa oil are prolly going to be the trickiest things to find.

Don't count on it being done anytime soon but I will keep it as an idea to possibly try.....haha love to hear if anyone else wants to give it a whirl (or has access to a Pimenta recmosa tree! Though I think the oil would be a lot more user friendly)

Cheers, Nick
 
Sounds like a great idea. I might also give it a try sometime...
 
Not speaking upon behalf of him, yet I'm confident that Will @Barrister & Mann would afford basic advise if you genuinely are interested in scents and manufacturing.
Naturally, just don't expect him to provide you with his recipes and trade secrets.
 
Good Bay Rum is turning out one of my favourites - I dread the day that the last drop has been negotiated out of my Captains Choice. So big thanks @Nick the Knife for posting this. And this I will try and try...until I can mimic the Captain himself!
 
stillshunter said:
Good Bay Rum is turning out one of my favourites - I dread the day that the last drop has been negotiated out of my Captains Choice. So big thanks @Nick the Knife for posting this. And this I will try and try...until I can mimic the Captain himself!
Click to expand...
Bad Bay Rum is just a daily then ?
 
I am a big fan of Bay Rum! I like making my own shaving soaps and aftershaves, including Bay Rum. I still have some of the last batch I made and my friends say it came out pretty good. I have to tell my production is absolutely homemade, therefore it is made at home and it is not intended for sale.
It is however now many years I am experimenting on aftershaves and soaps: it is a lot of fun, moreover shaving with the products you make is priceless.
 
Nick the Knife said:
Oh well if you can share any tips or advice we would be most appreciative as that sounds excellent.
Click to expand...

Sure, my pleasure! As for Bay Rum, you are right in saying Pimenta Racemosa is not so easy to find, whereas Witch Hazel - in case you want to use it in your Bay Rum - is relatively easy to find. My Bay Rum does not contain any Witch Hazel and it is made from 100% dark rum, aged for seven years, to be precise.
Fresh Pimenta Racemosa leaves are quite hard to find - or at least, it is hard to get them from Italy - and the easiest solution is to use its essential oil, and this is what I do.
You should not use dried leaves - you should never use dried leaves or vegetables when you are going to make aftershaves, cosmetics or soaps - because the smell is quite different and weaker, including the fact some of the essential properties are volatilized or, even worse, oxidized.
Did you start making your Bay Rum already?
 
razorguy said:
Sure, my pleasure! As for Bay Rum, you are right in saying Pimenta Racemosa is not so easy to find, whereas Witch Hazel - in case you want to use it in your Bay Rum - is relatively easy to find. My Bay Rum does not contain any Witch Hazel and it is made from 100% dark rum, aged for seven years, to be precise.
Fresh Pimenta Racemosa leaves are quite hard to find - or at least, it is hard to get them from Italy - and the easiest solution is to use its essential oil, and this is what I do.
You should not use dried leaves - you should never use dried leaves or vegetables when you are going to make aftershaves, cosmetics or soaps - because the smell is quite different and weaker, including the fact some of the essential properties are volatilized or, even worse, oxidized.
Did you start making your Bay Rum already?
Click to expand...

Hi RG, thanks for your feedback and advice.

No I've not started yet - measure twice and cut once is very much a mantra I try to abide by - so I tend to do a LOT of research and looking into before doing anything much at all. So you've got my(and many others!) full attention with any info you want to share when you have the time (no rush as it's more a longer term project than something I need to bang out this weekend!)

Thanks again.
 
Both my wife and I like Bay Rum with SWMBO saying it must be easy to make and we can sell it and make a fortune. Well … … … you've gotta love her plans; just her idea of easy is me doing all the work. From the sites I've looked at, this is for a "love of shaving"/personal enjoyment thing and not making money. Still, keep the posts up @razorguy.
 
DONE!!!

Made a batch of Bay Rum this afternoon. A half batch so I can experiment as it matures; adda bit here, a dash there etc.

50 ml of Captain Morgan Spiced Rum
50 ml of Witch Hazel
30 drops of West Indies bay essential oil (Pimenta Racemosa)
1 x whole nutmeg, crushed
1/2 stick of cinnamon, crushed
3 x dried whole cloves
zest of 2 limes (I only had lime juice so I added 3/4 teaspoon)
1/4 x teaspoon whole black peppers
1/2 x teaspoon of vanilla extract

I shook it all up and the Bay essence smelt great. I've now got it stitting in an airtight container for 4 weeks. I'll give it a shake every few days to mix it up. If at the end of 4 weeks I don't believe it is strong enough, just whack it back in the cupboard for a few more weeks. The scent not sweet enough, add a touch more vanilla. When ready strain solution into a nice bottle. Paper coffee filters make good strainers. Chemist Warehouse sell a collection of different sized brown bottles that you can make your own "Dangerous Dale's Bay Rum Reserve After Shave" labels on your colour printer.
A few recipes I saw said add Vodka or Witch Hazel. Being on the tight side I chose the cheaper Witch Hazel.

I will report on how it progresses.
 
Dale.Whiley said:
50 ml of Captain Morgan Spiced Rum
50 ml of Witch Hazel
Click to expand...

Well done!
It however seems the alcohol in your Bay Rum is going to be pretty low. I don't know if this is what you wanted, but assuming your Rum has about 38%, you are likely to get about the half of that.
Your Bay Rum will have a pretty good astringent quality (because of witch hazel) not so "burning" and the extraction of essential properties from solid ingredients will be moderate.
Don't forget to keep the jar in a dark place and let us know how it goes!
 
razorguy said:
Well done!
It however seems the alcohol in your Bay Rum is going to be pretty low. I don't know if this is what you wanted, but assuming your Rum has about 38%, you are likely to get about the half of that.
Your Bay Rum will have a pretty good astringent quality (because of witch hazel) not so "burning" and the extraction of essential properties from solid ingredients will be moderate.
Don't forget to keep the jar in a dark place and let us know how it goes!
Click to expand...
More rum!
The trouble is he's now finished off the rest of the bottle and will have to go buy a new one.
 
filobiblic said:
More rum!
The trouble is he's now finished off the rest of the bottle and will have to go buy a new one.
Click to expand...
As I said somewhere else (about scent in JGJS soap) I haven't drank alcohol in 18 years (25/01/1997} so there is the whole bottle left.
razorguy said:
Well done!
It however seems the alcohol in your Bay Rum is going to be pretty low. I don't know if this is what you wanted, but assuming your Rum has about 38%, you are likely to get about the half of that.
Your Bay Rum will have a pretty good astringent quality (because of witch hazel) not so "burning" and the extraction of essential properties from solid ingredients will be moderate.
Don't forget to keep the jar in a dark place and let us know how it goes!
Click to expand...
The rum is 35% A good burn makes it I reckon. That's why newbies like me value the input of this collection of wise minds. As I stated earlier, I only made a small batch and will do this the first few times as I learn. Sounds like I might need to add Vodka in the second brew and cut down the Witch Hazel.
 
Dale.Whiley said:
As I said somewhere else (about scent in JGJS soap) I haven't drank alcohol in 18 years (25/01/1997} so there is the whole bottle left.
Click to expand...
Impressive discipline. (Must have missed your earlier comment and just thought I'd give a little ribbing...)

It'll be interesting to hear about your experimenting. I'd be keen to give it a go myself since I enjoy a good bay rum.
 
Dale.Whiley said:
As I said somewhere else (about scent in JGJS soap) I haven't drank alcohol in 18 years (25/01/1997} so there is the whole bottle left.

The rum is 35% A good burn makes it I reckon. That's why newbies like me value the input of this collection of wise minds. As I stated earlier, I only made a small batch and will do this the first few times as I learn. Sounds like I might need to add Vodka in the second brew and cut down the Witch Hazel.
Click to expand...
My friend, for alcohol, try spirytus.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top