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Grog
2 ponies rum
water
ice
Pour the rum into an 8-ounce tumbler, add ice, and fill to the
brim with water. Stir. Drink.
In the old days in Louisiana, especially in that section
settled by the British, Irish, and Scottish pioneers, the
tipple in high favor was called "grog." It was made of
the locally distilled tafia or rum, and was dispensed by
the British plantation owners of the Feliciana district as
a cheap yet potent beverage to slaves who worked the
cotton fields. Many references to the drink are to be
found in tattered documents written during the days of
the Spanish domination. It was set down in them as
"mezcla de argmrdicnte con agua."
In 1753 the French of New Orleans knew rurn as a
drogue (a cheap or sorry commodity) and, while it was
known as tafia, it was also called guildive (divine fer
mentation), and eau de vie sucre, meaning "sugar
brandy".
The name "Grog" was derived from "grogram, a
material of rough texture, ordinarily of camel's wool,
used in the making of cloaks. The designation came
about in this way: In 1740 Admiral Edward Vernon
liberally diluted with water the rum he served the sailors
aboard his frigate. It was the admiral's custom to wear a
grogram cloak in foul weather, and for this reason the
tars called him "Old Grog" behind his back. Forthwith
his tars derisively termed the weakened drink "grog,"
and the name has stuck through the centuries, as witness
"grog shop," likewise "groggy," indicating the unsteady
gait that follows a too-liberd sampling of spirits.
Sixty-three