What do you mean could would you? What is that type?
Distilled spirits are distilled spirits. They would more likely have rum or gin than whiskey. You can search the gin strength because there was a naval standard strength that easily exists today. I’m sure rum was about the same.
Even for pirates who usually went against governments?
Gin came from the British military in South Asia. I think we can then assume that if pirates had any gin that would steal it from British ships would maintained a naval strength standard.
Otherwise rum was the drink of the Caribbean formed out of the sugar triangle. Slaves were brought from Western Africa to the new world and used on sugar plantations. That sugar was then used to make rum and played a large role in the founding of America.
I think this question deserves some sources so let’s look into it further.
Found an article here:
Norton, Louis A. "RUM: The Spirit of the Sea."Naval History, vol. 31, no. 2, Apr., 2017, pp. 20-23.
On higher alcohol content for the navy:
The naval tradition of consuming alcohol at sea has a long history. In the beginning, this attempt to reduce some of the boredom of shipboard duty was a public-health measure. Potable water stowed on board a ship at sea for any length of time became stagnant, with algae blooming within the storage casks, so mariners quenched their thirst with beer. Its alcoholic content and hops helped control the growth of microorganisms, and a daily allowance of beer helped take sailors' minds off shipboard difficulties. In more southerly latitudes, however, beer would spoil before the vessel reached her destination. Officers often sailed with a stash of whiskey, and it was noted that this spirit, with a higher alcoholic content, did not have a spoilage problem.
On rum and percentage, it seems it was much higher!
During the 17th century, an inexpensive, plentiful, and nonperishable spirit became available for the lower ranks on board ships in the Caribbean. As European countries colonized the islands, the newcomers established sugarcane plantations. Local sugarcane could be made into molasses that when fermented and distilled yielded a 140 proof (70 percent) alcoholic beverage that became known as rum. Before long it began to be used as an economical reward for the efforts of sailors on board naval vessels sent to defend the island outposts from pirates and invasion from hostile nations.
Rum and the navy
When demand for sugar increased, sugarcane plantations spread rapidly, and the planters found themselves with more rum than they could sell locally. Because a large inventory of the spirit in Caribbean warehouses was an open invitation for trouble from pirates, plantation managers sought and found another ready market-Royal Navy pursers. Ironically, British colonies initiallly were forbidden from exporting sugarcane distillates, but the Royal Navy's purchase of spirits as a victual was deemed permissible because it enhanced the life of the king's sailors as well as provided a windfall for the plantation owners. In 1687 the Royal Navy officially adopted rum from British Caribbean islands as part of a crew's daily ration. This act was the genesis of a naval tradition that has lasted almost 300 years.
I think this is much clearer for the navy and also shows I may be wrong about gin. They were drinking either 70% rum or grog. It seems as time went on the navy would weaken the rum so that the sailors weren’t drunk all the time.
Grog - water, rum, lime juice, sugar, and possibly cinnamon, grapefruit juice, pineapple juice, honey.
https://www.wideopencountry.com/grog/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grog#Various_recipes
https://www.wineenthusiast.com/recipe/grog-drink-recipe-navy/
Why would their’s be stronger? If anything, I would expect them to be watered down.
pirates went against some governments while working for some others. In some cases "they" were the government
Not a historian: I'm reading that rum from that time was in the range of 95.5 proof (54.6% ABV), which is not a concentration impossible to source for yourself in these times. You could try your palate on some Everclear or Spirytus Rektyfikowany if you want to try your luck with 95%. I've had both, and they are intense and liable to cure you of any curiosity.
Source was https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rum_ration
To be clear, Everclear is 190 proof or 95% alcohol. Most spirits sold in stores are ~80 proof or 40% alcohol.
Be very careful with Everclear. One can easily poison themself.
"Be very careful with Everclear. One can easily poison themself"
Yeah, I once tried it and got accused of jumping on the grunge bandwagon.
While the most famous variety is 190, it's available at a number of lower strengths, including as low as 120. I suspect this is to allow sales in areas that have restrictions on high proof spirits.
Your warning is still valid, even on these lower strengths. Being completely neutral, it's easy to disguise in mixed drinks.
Proof is 2x ABV. 95.5 would be 47.75% alcohol. Rum is typically not that high but super easy to find whiskey in that range
I keep forgetting that very simple formula. Anyway, Pusser's does rum in the errantly calculated ranges noted in the wiki article.
I miss Pussers, that shit got super hard to find post-covid.
Looks like they ship. Just mentioning, in case you want to get ahead of the next pandemic...
Kraken dark rum is 94 proof.
And it's delicious
And it comes in a fun jug.
I still sail the high seas and the whiskey hasnt killed me