Harewood's historic cellar records show large quantities of fine wines and spirits bought and consumed from the 18th century onwards.
Harewood House, like most other country houses, entertained lavishly and frequently, but surprisingly the rum was consumed quite sparingly: only one or two bottles were drunk every year, with the exception of one day in December 1805 when a startling eight bottles were drunk.
By the start of the 20th century the rum seems to have been more or less forgotten, a drink that had gone out of fashion, the bottles still stored under the same bin numbers, but hidden away on a high shelf at the back of a dark cellar.