Petition to WIRSPA: for Purity and Honest in Rum

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Capn Jimbo
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Petition to WIRSPA: for Purity and Honest in Rum

Post by Capn Jimbo »

I am proud and pleased to say that as promised, the Tot's intuitive and powerful observations (in the recent WIRSPA thread) re the sugar issue, with minor additions (as also promised, lol), have now been expressed in an official petition aimed toward WIRSPA.

Inasmuch as his post was the direct inspiration for this, I thought he should have the honor to be the first to sign it, and he did.

Again - a huge thanks that I gladly and publicly express here. Cheers to our friend and compatriot in our unceasing effort to support good and pure rum. The Black Tot is definitely part of the solution...

Please sign it, and spread the word.



*******
http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/rum ... e-rum.html
Last edited by Capn Jimbo on Wed Feb 24, 2016 7:22 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Capn Jimbo
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Post by Capn Jimbo »

I am simply gobsmacked...


...and in a few words... Holy Fackin Shite!

To be fair, I notified the Tot late last night that the/his petition was up and that I'd withhold announcement so that he - rightfully - would have the chance to be the first to sign it. I figured I'd sign it today. So now - less than 18 hours later, the petition already has 22 signatures, including Richard Seale, Serge and others!

Turns out that in just a few hours I became #22, which honestly is just fine with me. It now seems that the issue of sugar - for which we have long fought - has really hit the sweet spot. This is not our first petition (see my sig), but damn, this one has taken off. Rum drinkers are seriously offended by this blatant cheating and misrepresentation. There is no such thing as a "sweet rum" despite the twisted claims of the Preacher and his monkey minions.

Thus the three most important links you can post and spread, in order are:
Last edited by Capn Jimbo on Thu Feb 18, 2016 1:09 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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The Black Tot
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Post by The Black Tot »

My pleasure, gents. And thanks back at the capn for an equally and characteristically eloquent introduction.

Get it on yer facebook pages!
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Capn Jimbo
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Post by Capn Jimbo »

Some amazing numbers...



Some history. A couple years ago we instituted a huge thread dedicated to the takeover of rum by the Big Three, who somehow managed to obtain billions - yes billions - of dollars in massive, multi-year subsidies that actually lead them to be able to actually be PAID to distill and sell their tricked out, cheap shite industrial rum and the cost? The cost was predicted to be the destruction of Caribbean rums as we knew them.

These predictions came true as the Big Three took over 90% of the shelves and 100% of the eye level prime shelves. MGXO adjusted their blends. Flor de Cana went NAS. El Dorado turned to sugar, and built their own multi-column industrial still to become a supplier of bulk to the Big Three. Faux-premiums were created with new phony stories, unprovable age statements, expensive bottles and yup - TONS of sugar.


Through all of this the Petition to Save Caribbean rum grew...

...slowly and steadily to the current 402 signatures. Considering the amount of time and effort, and national attention, and even with the signatures of Dave Broom, Beachbum Berry, Kergommeaux and others, apparently this issue suffered from what rum drinkers either didn't fully comprehend, or care.

But the undisclosed alteration of rum with sugar and the like? A completely different story. Now the story was not so indirect, it meant up to 12 teaspoons of sugar were added to their expensive but phonied up "premium" rum. Ergo when we posted the Tot-inspired petition to WIRSPA to regulate these cheaters?

Banzai!!

This petition has gone from zero to 45 signatures in little over the first 24 hours. That friends is mindboggling. The real mother of this: Swedish and Finnish tests, and a long awaited protocol provided by Johnny Drejer. The whole paradigm changed within months. Distillers could continue to lie, but they were outed. Anyone could now look up their rum on the Master Sugar List.

And these drinkers were surprised and in many cases, just plain angry. As well they should. When you pay top dollar for a "super premium", then you learn - from actual tests - that it has been heavily sugared and flavored - just flavored rums in expensive bottles - well, then the rum buyer is rightfully disturbed.

The Petition to WIRPA gave them an outlet to join together with many others to express their discontent. Trust me, the distillers have taken note. I am proud to note the Richard Seale had the courage to speak out, to link the petition and to sign it openly, in his own name.


In sum...we have a winner!

Friends, this is the moment. All the pieces are in place. Please, please, please take the time to promote the Petition to WIRSPA, and also the Master Sugar List. Refer to them in your posts elsewhere. Tweet them. Add them to your Facebook page and/or on your posts on other pages.

The time is now. I recommend the following copy:
"Friends, it is now apparent that more than half the rums we buy are secretly altered with up to 12 teaspoons of sugar per bottle, not to mention undisclosed cheap flavorings and other things. Please join Richard Seale and other rum lovers from around the world and sign this Petition..."
My good friends, it has been your loyalty to the cause of good and pure rum over these years that have brought us to this point. Our distiller friends and ordinary people of the Caribbean thank you. Our position - the right one - is finally getting big traction.

I beg you to spread the word as much as you can for the next few weeks...
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Capn Jimbo
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Post by Capn Jimbo »

bump.... now up to 50 signatures. Be sure to spread the word, to keep the momentum going. Many thanks...
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Post by Capn Jimbo »

...yet another bump, but for another reason.


Having been in this petition business for awhile, here's what happens:
  • 1. The petition gets its 15 minutes worth of fame. For "Save Caribbean Rum" this was after author Davin Kergommeaux consulted with Dave Broom, found out the issue was real and posted an article. For this current petition I believe it was a Facebook listing and post that involved Richard Seales - who signed it.

    2. The petition gets signed by key webmasters and afficiandos. In this regard Save Caribbean Rum did quite well, and got signed by some very well known authors, and most of the rum webmasters.

    3. The original burst of interest fades simply when the mention and links become fewer. If people don't hear about it, they can't sign.

    4. The petition lives on and demonstrates slow growth as people run across a mention or link in their readings.
In the world of marketing, it's all about "share of mind". If people aren't presented with the information, or if it does not seem worthy (ie a bad idea), it's over. Unfortunately, this petition started explosively, but seems prematurely at stage 4 - slow and steady growth. Not good. This is a HUGE issue whose time is quite ripe, and now. All it needs is for a critical mass of commentary to drive it to stunning success.


About this petition and sugar...

I believe the notion of sugaring has truly caught the attention of most rum drinkers. Though a few are hanging on to the notion that sugaring and "sweet rums" are just fine; serious rum lovers are shattered, hate the alteration and support the goal of honesty in labeling.

Thus, we have a good, worthy and agreeable issue. Most rum lovers do NOT want hidden alteration. The petition is a good one, lacking only excited exposure. What you post, what you say and where you say it means a lot. As for me, and as done for Save Caribbean Rum (402 sigs), I will contact key webmasters and ask them to post and/or promote the petition. Please do what you can.

Trust me, the signature of Richard Seales is extremely meaningful. A powerful signature indeed. Better yet, he promoted it, and posted an excerpt of my email to WIRSPA.

Please do your part....
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Post by JaRiMi »

Capn Jimbo wrote:...yet another bump, but for another reason.


Having been in this petition business for awhile, here's what happens:
  • 1. The petition gets its 15 minutes worth of fame. For "Save Caribbean Rum" this was after author Davin Kergommeaux consulted with Dave Broom, found out the issue was real and posted an article. For this current petition I believe it was a Facebook listing and post that involved Richard Seales - who signed it.

    2. The petition gets signed by key webmasters and afficiandos. In this regard Save Caribbean Rum did quite well, and got signed by some very well known authors, and most of the rum webmasters.

    3. The original burst of interest fades simply when the mention and links become fewer. If people don't hear about it, they can't sign.

    4. The petition lives on and demonstrates slow growth as people run across a mention or link in their readings.

In the world of marketing, it's all about "share of mind". If people aren't presented with the information, or if it does not seem worthy (ie a bad idea), it's over.


About this petition and sugar...

I believe the notion of sugaring has truly caught the attention of most rum drinkers. Though a few are hanging on to the notion that sugaring and "sweet rums" are just fine; serious rum lovers are shattered, hate the alteration and support the goal of honesty in labeling.

Thus, we have a good, worthy and agreeable issue. Most rum lovers do NOT want hidden alteration. The petition is a good one, lacking only excited exposure. What you post, what you say and where you say it means a lot. As for me, and as done for Save Caribbean Rum (402 sigs), I will contact key webmasters and ask them to post and/or promote the petition. Please do what you can.

Trust me, the signature of Richard Seales is extremely meaningful. A powerful signature indeed. Better yet, he promoted it, and posted an excerpt of my email to WIRSPA.

Please do your part....
I shared this in Facebook in various groups, hope it gets as many signatures as possible. The cause is truly well worth supporting!
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Capn Jimbo
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Post by Capn Jimbo »

Finally! An impressive distiller video that confronts the issue head on...


https://youtu.be/pZpdn6jjbfc
(Credit to Richard Seale)
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