Chapter 82: Rum

“Master, the Rum you mentioned has been brewed. Would you like to taste it?” Chris walked over carrying a bottle of liquor.

Last time, Ji En returned from Karlt City and brought back a group of slaves, including several who knew how to brew liquor. In the territory, some waste molasses remained from sugar extraction. Due to technical limitations, this waste molasses, which contained a lot of sugar, couldn’t be further processed to extract white sugar.

It was wasteful to simply discard it, so Su Lun thought about using this waste molasses to brew Rum. In his previous life, Rum came into existence because of waste molasses. At that time, large areas of sugarcane were planted in South America, and after sugarcane was crushed for sugar, it also produced a lot of waste molasses.

The plantation owners invented Rum made from waste molasses. Coincidentally, due to technological issues at the time, fresh water carried on long sea voyages easily spoiled. Most importantly, Rum could treat scurvy. So many ships carried large quantities of alcohol, which could be stored for long periods without spoiling and prevented sailors from getting scurvy.

Thus, Rum spread around the world through the Age of Exploration, and turning waste molasses into Rum became another source of income for these plantation owners.

Using waste molasses to brew alcohol was quite good. It produced a lot of liquor without consuming grain, which was good news for Su Lun, who faced grain shortages. In this era, there were very few forms of entertainment. Even in the southern Caren City, nobles’ entertainments were limited to hunting and banquets.

Performances by Bards or circuses were also rare. Commoners had even fewer entertainment options, with the most common being going to a tavern for a drink. Su Lun’s territory had many Barbarians, all strong and energetic, full of vitality every day. To let them vent their excess energy, Su Lun specifically built a Training Ground for them to compete.

Now, preparing liquor was similarly intended for this purpose. Moreover, there was another reason: trade in the territory had already begun. Over time, more and more Caravans would arrive, surely bringing many Mercenaries and Caravan guards. These people would definitely need to find entertainment venues.

Su Lun’s territory had no seafood merchants, nor were there any young ladies selling abalone. The task of spiritual civilization construction was long and arduous. So they could only come to the tavern. Mercenaries and guards like these had fairly decent pay and spent money freely. Once a tavern was established, it would definitely become an important revenue-generating project for the camp.

This solved the waste molasses issue, added a form of entertainment, and could make money—killing three birds with one stone. There was no reason not to do it.

Taking the Rum, Su Lun first smelled it. There was a faint aroma of alcohol. He poured out the liquor; the Rum showed an amber color. Su Lun took a small sip; the taste was quite good. It was refreshing with a fragrant scent, much better than the Ale he had drunk before.

The Ale Su Lun bought previously were low-priced goods, tasting somewhat sour and astringent. The merchants added a lot of water to them. This kind of Ale was also the most popular in taverns, simply because it was cheap enough—just two Copper Nale for a cup.

It could be said that such Ale was essentially water with a bit of alcohol, far inferior to this Rum.

“This liquor tastes pretty good,” Su Lun said in a good mood, putting down the cup.

“This Rum is the best-tasting one they’ve brewed,” Chris said, picking up the cup Su Lun hadn’t finished and tasting it.

“What’s the cost?” Su Lun asked. If the cost of this liquor was too high, he could only sell it as premium liquor and continue brewing cheaper alcoholic drinks.

“According to your instructions, the Rum is brewed using waste molasses, diluted with a large amount of water, then fermented with yeast. The cost for a barrel of one hundred liters of Rum is about twenty Gold Nar,” Chris reported knowledgeably.

Su Lun quickly calculated. This price still had no advantage compared to Ale.

“Master, this Rum can be diluted with water. The one you drank is undiluted,” Chris explained with a smile. “This liquor can be diluted by half. The taste will be much lighter comparatively, but it’s still much better than Ale.”

“Then dilute it by half. You calculate the price,” Su Lun agreed directly. Mixing water into liquor was a normal practice in this era, though of course, premium liquors weren’t treated this way.

“Make this Rum into both low-grade and premium liquor. Give the premium liquor a better name, and adjust the taste further. We’ll sell both types together,” Su Lun said.

“Okay, I’ll go instruct them to do it right away,” Chris nodded.

“By the way, add thirty Points to each of the brewing slaves. Give fifty Points to the one who brewed this liquor,” Su Lun instructed.

“Have them adjust the liquor as soon as possible.”

Chris nodded, then left with the Rum.

Next, those brewing slaves quickly adjusted two types of liquor according to Su Lun’s requirements. The premium Rum was clearer, almost transparent, with a unique fruity aroma when smelled. It tasted refreshing, sweet, and crisp, with a sweet, moist, and richly fragrant palate that was very good.

The low-grade Rum tasted much worse, but it was still refreshing to drink, with a semi-transparent reddish-brown color. From appearance to taste, it was still much better than Ale. Similarly, the cost was controlled to ten Silver Nael per barrel, a price already close to that of Ale.

The premium Rum was much more expensive. After adjustment, this Rum cost twenty Gold Nar per barrel. Su Lun planned to build a glass factory in the territory, then bottle it for sale. He wouldn’t sell much per bottle—just two Gold Nar. One barrel could fill at least two hundred bottles.

Su Lun also gave this liquor a name—Hanlu Wine—and made up a story to enhance its value. This was a common marketing strategy in his previous life, but using it in this world was definitely a first.

As long as the story was touching enough and the liquor tasted good, it would quickly gain market traction. Of course, if Su Lun had sufficient connections to have the King use this liquor at court banquets, the effect would be even better. But if he had such connections, would he be reclaiming wasteland in this godforsaken place?

With the liquor ready, Su Lun immediately started building a tavern in the town. The location for the tavern had already been chosen and could start construction directly. Progress on the tavern was very fast; in just two days, a tavern that could accommodate seventy to eighty people was completed.

[Tavern: Town building. A lively tavern lets people relax after a day’s work and have a drink. The presence of a tavern makes the town more prosperous. The tavern’s existence attracts those who enjoy alcohol. Prosperity +5, Pleasure +5, Information +5, Security -2. Special effect: Has a chance to attract wandering Heroes to stay.]