Every year on 31st July, rum enthusiasts, Royal Navy veterans and maritime history lovers around the world raise a glass in memory of one of the most poignant moments in British naval history: Black Tot Day. The anniversary of the last ever issue of the daily rum ration to Royal Navy sailors on 31st July 1970. No spirit is more closely associated with this tradition than Pusser’s Rum, the Original Navy Rum, produced from the same Admiralty blending recipe that fuelled centuries of British maritime history.
At Fareham Wine Cellar, we stock the full Pusser’s Rum range and, as a wine and spirits merchant based in Fareham, Hampshire, with lots of naval connections, this story has a connection to our own town that makes it particularly close to our hearts.
The Royal Navy’s daily rum ration, also known as the “tot”, was one of the longest-standing traditions in British military history. The history of the rum ration dates back to 1655, when the Royal Navy began providing sailors with rum instead of beer, a change influenced by Britain’s acquisition of Jamaica. By 1731, the daily ration was standardised at half a pint of rum per sailor, diluted with water to create a mix known as “grog”. It was thus named after Admiral Edward Vernon’s cloak, a heavy, weather-resistant outer garment made from a fabric called grogram (grog is also the word from which “groggy” derives).
Over the following centuries, the tot became far more than a drink. It was a daily ceremony that marked the rhythm of naval life, a morale booster connecting seafarers across generations and oceans, through war, exploration, and the brutal conditions of life at sea. It also became an onboard currency with sippers and gulpers. Sippers was a small taste of a friend’s tot in return for a favour or debt, whilst gulpers was a single, big swallow for a large favour.
As naval technology advanced and modern warfare demanded greater discipline and efficiency, concerns about alcohol consumption grew. With increasingly complex machinery and weapons systems on board, it was deemed unsafe for sailors to consume alcohol during duty hours. In the Great Rum Debate in Parliament on 28th January 1970, lawmakers voted to end the tradition with concerns about naval discipline and safety outweighing the nostalgic ties to three centuries of custom.
On 31st July 1970, at 6 bells in the forenoon watch – 11 am – the cry of “Up Spirits” was made for the final time. Across the globe, on every Royal Navy vessel, glasses were raised for one last toast. Sailors wore black armbands. Some poured their rations into the sea. Mock funerals were held across the fleet.
The Fareham connection: At HMS Collingwood, here in Fareham, Hampshire, Black Tot Day was marked with a mock funeral procession complete with a black coffin, drummers, and a piper. The Portsmouth General Post Office issued a special cancellation stamp: “Last Issue of Rum to the Royal Navy 31 July 1970.” For a town as closely tied to the Royal Navy as Fareham and Portsmouth, this was not a distant historical event; it happened on our doorstep.
The name Pusser’s comes from Royal Navy slang for the “purser”, the ship’s supply officer responsible for issuing the daily tot. When the Admiralty discontinued the rum ration in 1970, they retained the original blending recipe. In 1979, Charles Tobias acquired that recipe and founded Pusser’s Rum, and is still produced under licence from the Admiralty recipe once issued daily to Royal Navy sailors. It is made at Demerara Distillers Ltd. in Guyana from molasses, using traditional wooden-sided pot stills dating back to 1732. Forbes Magazine once famously called Pusser’s 15 Year Rum “the Single Malt of Rum” and “one of the ten most memorable rums in the world.”
Every 31st July, pour a tot of Pusser’s Rum — neat, or diluted with water as the sailors once did — and raise a glass at 11 am, the time the final tot was issued. The traditional toast is simply “to the tot.”
More than fifty years after the final cry of “Up Spirits”, Black Tot Day remains an important date in Britain’s maritime calendar. Whether you’re a Royal Navy veteran, a history enthusiast or simply curious about authentic Navy Rum, Pusser’s Rum offers a rare opportunity to experience a spirit made to the original Admiralty specification.
If you want the authentic rum, Pusser’s Blue Label, Gunpowder Proof, and 15 Year Old are all available at Fareham Wine Cellar, 55 High Street, Fareham, or online with UK-wide delivery.
Black Tot Day is an annual commemorative day, held on 31st July, marking the end of the Royal Navy’s centuries-old tradition of issuing sailors with a daily tot of rum. The tradition was abolished on 31st July 1970, and the date has since been observed annually by rum enthusiasts and Royal Navy veterans.
A tot was the daily measure of rum issued to Royal Navy sailors. What started as half a pint (284ml) was reduced over time to 71ml, still a significant measure of overproof rum, served daily without exception.
The Royal Navy’s rum was produced to the Admiralty’s own blending recipe, combining rums from Guyana, Trinidad, and Barbados. The closest modern equivalent is Pusser’s Rum, which is produced from the original Admiralty recipe.
They are the same rums bottled at different ABVs. Pusser’s Blue Label is bottled at 40% ABV, originally bottled at this strength as the maximum permitted for distribution to naval bases. Pusser’s Gunpowder Proof is bottled at original Admiralty strength – 54.5% ABV – with a fuller, more intense character. Both use the same Admiralty recipe; the Gunpowder Proof simply delivers more of everything.
“Up Spirits” is the historical naval command meaning the call to issue the daily rum ration. It would have been signalled, normally between 11 am and 12 pm, via a boatswain’s whistle and the cry “Up Spirits!”. It was a signal for the sailors to muster for their daily “tot”.
Grog was invented by Admiral Edward Vernon. On August 21, 1740, the then Vice-Admiral ordered the sailors’ daily rum ration to be mixed with water to stop drunkenness on board. He ordered it to be mixed: half a pint of rum with a quart of water. Later, sailors would add water and lime juice to improve the taste and prevent scurvy
The full Pusser’s Rum range is available at Fareham Wine Cellar, 55 High Street, Fareham, Hampshire, PO16 7BG – or order online with UK-wide delivery. Call 01329 822733 for more information
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