A.H. Riise St. Croix Brand Rum Denmark Virgin Islands

a.h. Riise was the son of the captain and merchant Jens Christian Riise (1773–1814) and his wife Margrethe Elisabeth Krabbe (1779–1869). His father died at sea when his ship was caught in a storm. After school, he apprenticed at the pharmacy in Ærøskøbing and from 1825 to 1830 worked at the pharmacy in Fåborg. Afterwards, he traveled to Copenhagen, where he graduated in 1832. While continuing to study botany and chemistry, he simultaneously worked in various pharmacies in the capital. The long-held desire to visit the West Indian Islands was fulfilled in 1838 when he obtained the privilege to work as a pharmacist in the Danish West Indian Islands. Upon his arrival in St. Thomas, he first worked in a medical practice. The following year, he founded his own pharmacy together with a doctor. In 1843, he bought out his partner and became the sole owner of the pharmacy. Business was good, and the company grew. Riise traveled, among other places, to the United States and Trinidad. Equipped with a large stock of all kinds of goods, especially pharmaceutical products, the St. Thomas pharmacy became known on the surrounding Caribbean islands. Riise showed a lively interest in botany and used the plants and animals of the Caribbean to produce pharmaceutical, cosmetic, and alcoholic products. Among other things, the then well-known Riise's Bay Rum (a type of cologne/perfume) was significantly involved in the later prosperity of A.H. Riise. A.H. Riise was also a pioneer in the distillation and sale of rum and bitters from the West Indian Islands, which were then used as medicine for stomach ailments and other health problems. A.H. Riise was very successful with his rum from the West Indian Islands. He exported it to several continents, with Riise's rum enjoying particular popularity in his home country Denmark. Riise exported his rum under various brands, including Old St. Croix Brand, Riises Guava Rum, and A.H. Riise Rum. Under the brand A.H. Riise, Caribbean rum is still marketed today by the Dansk-Vestindisk Rom Kompagni. Over the years, A.H. Riise rum has won multiple awards and medals at various competitions and exhibitions. The first award was given to Riise in 1893 at the Colombian World Exhibition in Chicago.