Just what is a Liqueur Rum?

I see this label get applied to certain rums from the days of yore.

As well as in this 1941 DTB rum list.

I can't imagine these products were actually rum liqueurs as we would use the term today: spirits with lots of sugar added. The age on those two Wray and Nephew products and the generally higher price of "Liqueur" rums on the menu implies that these were higher quality, probably generally older rums and not cheap, young spirits that were sweetened to make them palatable.

Does anyone know what the term entailed back in the early 20th century? Did it have a specific definition that denoted some standard of production, like "bottled-in-bond" or "straight" or was it just a bit of nebulous sales jargon like calling something deluxe or superior?

[ Edited by: PalmtreePat 2017-08-06 14:29 ]

To be honest, I always thought that was a bit of a colloquialism. My understanding is that "liqueur" was the original French for "liquor" and I always rather assumed that it was a stylization from regions with French influence, like Tahiti.

On 2017-08-07 14:49, HopeChest wrote:
To be honest, I always thought that was a bit of a colloquialism. My understanding is that "liqueur" was the original French for "liquor" and I always rather assumed that it was a stylization from regions with French influence, like Tahiti.

That makes sense. However the term was used, it seems to have mainly been an English colony thing. None of the Spanish or French islands seemed to use it.

Also, looking closer at that menu, it's weird to see that the 17 year rum Trader Vic would eventually use in the Mai Tai was originally a Don the Beachcomber-exclusive bottling.