Tap Handle #757: William Grant & Sons - Sailor Jerry Spiced Rum
Rarity: promotional, fragile
Mounting: internal 3/8" nut
I had been holding off on profiling my Sailor Jerry tap due to some damage to it, so when a version in good condition came into my hands through a fellow collector, I figured it was finally time to give the tap its due. This hula girl playing a ukulele is one of the more well-recognized designs that Norman "Sailor Jerry" Collins produced, as it appears on the label of every bottle of Sailor Jerry Spiced Rum. She stands on a round base, painted metallic gold, in which the name of the rum appears. This "label" is actually either silkscreened or painted on and is practically impossible to repair when damaged...and the taps are easily abused, as they received heavy use at special promotional events - you won't find Sailor Jerry Rum on tap in your local bar. It's uncertain whether the taps are still being produced; I picked up my original tap back in 2015 but I didn't really see them start hitting the secondary market until 2018. Since then the volume has increased quite a bit. Initial prices hit as high as $465 before dropping to a more reasonable $150-$300 range over the past year. A shorter "shotgun" version of the tap exists and also commands a premium price on the secondary market.
Norman Keith Collins (January 14, 1911 – June 12, 1973), known popularly as Sailor Jerry, was a prominent American tattoo artist in Hawaii who was well known for his sailor tattoos. As a child in the early 1920s he hopped freight trains across the country and learned tattooing from a man named "Big Mike" from Palmer, Alaska, originally using the hand-pricking method. In the late 1920s he met Tatts Thomas from Chicago who taught him how to use a tattoo machine. Collins practiced his tattooing skills on bums in return for cheap wine or a few cents. At age 19, Collins enlisted in the United States Navy. During his subsequent travels at sea, he was exposed to the art and imagery of Southeast Asia. When Collins mustered out of the Navy, he settled in Honolulu. At the height of WWII, over 12 million Americans served in the military and, at any given moment, a large number of them were on shore leave in Honolulu. Hotel Street was a district comprised almost exclusively of bars, brothels and tattoo parlors, and was where Collins, as Sailor Jerry, built his legacy. Ironically, Collins was deeply influenced by the culture that started the war in the first place - the Japanese. The most proficient and sophisticated tattoo artists of the times were the Japanese masters known as Horis. Collins became the first Westerner to enter in regular correspondence with these masters, sharing techniques and tattoo tracings.
Collins made significant contributions to the art of tattooing. He expanded the array of colors available by developing his own pigments. He created custom needle formations that embedded pigment with much less trauma to the skin. He became one of the first artists to utilize single-use needles. His tattoo studio was one of the first to use an autoclave to sterilize equipment. Yet tattooing was just one dimension of his life. He continued to pursue his maritime interests as captain of a three-masted schooner that toured the islands, and had his own radio show called Old Ironsides. Collins was out on his Harley when he had the heart attack that would take his life. He asked that upon his death, his shop be passed on to his proteges, Don Ed Hardy and Mike Malone. If neither took the place over, Jerry left instructions it was to be burned to the ground. Malone took possession of the shop and ran it for almost 25 years. Every year since 2015, a Sailor Jerry Festival is observed in Honolulu.
Click through to read more about Sailor Jerry's Spiced Rum and to see more photos of this iconic tap...
Sailor Jerry Rum is part of the Sailor Jerry brand family, which includes all sorts of merchandise inspired by the tattoo designs of renowned artist Norman "Sailor Jerry" Collins. The brand is owned by his proteges, Don Ed Hardy and Mike Malone. As an anti-sweatshop company, Sailor Jerry Ltd. produces nearly all its items in the United States and sells them from the company's web site. The company also showcases rising talents within the Tattoo industry in its "Artist Series" which it describes as a way to "keep Sailor Jerry's legacy alive and kicking". The Sailor Jerry brand was purchased in 2008 by Scottish whiskey giant William Grant & Sons. In 2018, the brand unveiled its first line extension: Savage Apple. That same year, Louise Collins, the widow of Norman Collins, sued William Grant & Sons for “unauthorized use and misappropriation of Sailor Jerry’s name and persona”.
Sailor Jerry Ltd. produces a 92 proof spiced Navy rum featuring a quintessential Sailor Jerry hula girl on the label. As the bottle is emptied, additional pin-up girls designed by Sailor Jerry are visible on the inner side of the label. The rum is distilled in the U.S. Virgin Islands. In the 18th and 19th centuries, sailors received rum rations. There were two ways to take the edge off rum: one was to age the liquid in wooden casks, which sailors rarely bothered with; the second was to blend in spices. This is what most sailors did and is what the Sailor Jerry brand does, going out of their way to find the best Caribbean rums to make Sailor Jerry Spiced Rum. The ones that make the cut are blended together to create the ideal base for their unmatched recipe of natural spices. Their higher proof spirit is historically accurate. In fact, the term “proof” comes from the method whereby sailors could assure their rum rations weren't being watered down. The ship's captain would ladle out a sample from the day's rum barrel in front of the men. He'd douse it with gunpowder, then give it a spark - if the rum was full strength, the powder ignited, giving sailors “proof” of the integrity of their rum.
Crafted after extensive research into historical maritime rums, Sailor Jerry developed a smooth rum with a rich flavor. The result is a high-proof spirit that's perfect for mixing in your favorite cocktails, including Long Island Iced Teas, Mai Tais and Mojitos. It has vanilla aromas at the onset, followed by buttery toffee and a touch of cinnamon. The palate shows rich vanilla tones, with warm notes of cinnamon and nutmeg, and a long, dry finish that balances subdued sweetness and a hint of toasted toffee. Sailor Jerry Spiced Rum has won numerous awards, including Gold at The Rum Masters in 2015.
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