What the dance drinks
Drinks of the dancehall
The liquor that named riddims and inspired them, the crate at a man's foot, the champagne that replaced it: every bottle here has a specific place in the music.
17 records · curated by the atlas editors
A sampling, not a complete record — the archive runs deeper than any list of it. Tell us what is missing.
Built to be the drink of the dancehall, by brief, in a meeting that lasted minutes.
drink · Well supportedGuinness Foreign Extra Stout (Jamaica)The incumbent Magnum was told to displace: which answered by sponsoring the sound clash.
drink · Well supportedRed StripeA dark ale in 1928, a lager from 1938, and the name on the Sumfest stage since 1993.
drink · Well supportedWhite overproof rumThe one nobody had to market. Cane spirit at 63%, and a riddim named after it.
drink · Well supportedHeineken in JamaicaBrewed in Kingston long before Amsterdam owned the brewery.
drink · ProbableDandy ShandyWhat you hold when you are not drinking. Also a children's street game.
drink · ProbableRed Label WineHeld the tonic-wine market until a brand built for the dance took it.
business · Well supportedDesnoes & GeddesThe Kingston firm behind most of the bar: Red Stripe, Dragon, Ting, Guinness and Heineken under licence.
business · Well supportedLascelles deMercadoThe rum house that made Magnum, and the counterweight to D&G on the bar.
cultural practice · ProbableThe crate and the bottleA crate at a man's foot was a night's supply. A bottle held up is a statement.