Factory Tours?

[KINGSTON]

Quick Question: Who gives the best Factory Tours in the Rum Biz? Every Year my Wife and I go to the Caribbean for vaca. I might be nice to fit in a visit to a Rum Factory.

Kingston
Long Ashes and Tall Glasses!

[Dood]

Quick Question: Who gives the best Factory Tours in the Rum Biz? Every Year my Wife and I go to the Caribbean for vaca. I might be nice to fit in a visit to a Rum Factory.

Kingston
Long Ashes and Tall Glasses!

Anguilla Rums, Ltd gives tours (Pyrat Rum). The facility isn't very impressive and you are not allowed to take pictures.

[KINGSTON]

I saw a mini tour of their Factory on the Food network. It was a story on Caribbean food and Travel. It's been a few years now- But it intrigued me. I would love to check out their Factory but taking pics is half the fun!

[Edward Hamilton]

If you're looking for a rum factory tour the most interesting are in the French islands where you can see the cane being crushed, the juice being fermented and then distilled and in some places you can visit the aging warehouse. Yes, by definition, all warehouses are aging, but in the rum industry the aging warehouse is where the barrels are being aged.

From a tourist's perspective the only problem in the French islands is that the rum season is only a few months a year and most of it coincides with the high season for hotels and airline flights.

At the molasses based distilleries you might see molasses, distillation and barrels being aged but you will miss all the sugar cane crushing operation since these distilleries generally buy their molasses from a third party. Appleton is one of the few distilleries that own their own molasses source, but again that is only in operation a few months a year.

But there are a lot of places to see distilleries other than the French islands. Grenada's River Antoine crushes cane with one of the last water wheels still in operation in the islands. There is only one other of which I am aware. The rum isn't exactly what I would call connoisseur's choice, but it is a tour not to miss if you are on Grenada.

I hope to have the next book out in a few months which will give information on most of the distilleries in the Eastern Caribbean.

Depending on what island you are going to and what time of year I might be able to give you better suggestions.

[Rum Runner]

Looking forward to the next book Ed!...We're planning a "theme " trip called "Rum and Rocks"...Discovering food, drink and culture down Island..At least that's my title...Hers' is "Rocks and Shopping"...We have come to an agreement.

[angelsword]

Looking forward to the next book Ed!...We're planning a "theme " trip called "Rum and Rocks"...Discovering food, drink and culture down Island..At least that's my title...Hers' is "Rocks and Shopping"...We have come to an agreement.

If you spend as much on rum as my wife does on "rocks", then you will own one extremely well stocked bar. And I don't just mean "home" bar. :eek:

[cigar-aficionado]

Mountgay and Foursquare run good ones in Barbados

[Berbician]

Appleton is probably the best rum tour that I've been on - if you book in advance, they will also provide lunch.

Foursquare and Mount Gay (both in Barbados) are quite good.

River Antoine (Grenada) is a very good tour, but the rum is revolting:eek: - apparently they've been making it in exactly the same way for over 200 years. You will find much better Grenadian rum at both Clarke's Court and Westerhall, although Clarke's Court no longer do a full tour, while Westerhall no longer distill their own rum.

I visited Demerara Distillers Limited (who make the various El Dorado rums) a few years ago, on my own, and they were very reluctant to divulge much information - I think they thought I was a spy from a rival company. I've heard that they now do a proper tour - next time that I'm in Guyana I'll give it a try.

[Scottes]

I visited Demerara Distillers Limited (who make the various El Dorado rums) a few years ago, on my own, and they were very reluctant to divulge much information - I think they thought I was a spy from a rival company.
DDL seems to have very tight lips. I can't find much out about any Guyana distillers (what ever happened to the place in Port Morant?) or Demerara rums in general...

[Berbician]

At one time, every sugar plantation in Guyana had its own distillery.

Now, there are only two left - DDL at Diamond, East Bank Demerara; and DIH (D'Aguiar's Industries and Holdings) at Thirst Park, just outside Georgetown. DDL claims to have a 90% market share.

The Port Mourant sugar plantation no longer has its own sugar factory, never mind a distillery - sugar cane from Port Mourant is transported to the nearby Albion factory.

There are plans to build a distillery at Skeldon, on the west bank of the Corentyne River, but I believe that this plant will only be making ethanol for industrial use:(.

[Edward Hamilton]

Now, there are only two left - DDL at Diamond, East Bank Demerara; and DIH (D'Aguiar's Industries and Holdings) at Thirst Park, just outside Georgetown. DDL claims to have a 90% market share.

The Port Mourant sugar plantation no longer has its own sugar factory, never mind a distillery - sugar cane from Port Mourant is transported to the nearby Albion factory.

There are plans to build a distillery at Skeldon, on the west bank of the Corentyne River, but I believe that this plant will only be making ethanol for industrial use:(.

All of the distilleries are now consolidated at DDL.

[Edward Hamilton]

Appleton is probably the best rum tour that I've been on - if you book in advance, they will also provide lunch.

Foursquare and Mount Gay (both in Barbados) are quite good.


Mount Gay isn't an actual factory tour. Rum has to be bottled has to be in a facility separate from the distilling operation, for tax reasons I'm told. Foursquare is probably the best tour on Barbados in terms of seeing the distillery, while Mount Gay's tour is a short film and a tour of the aging warehouse and bottling facility.

[Hank Koestner]

Ed, which months are the best to visit Martinique? And, if you go in the off season when they are not distilling, do they all have places where you can taste? I am going to plan a long trip to Martinique, hopefully some time this year, or next. I have to see if our economy effects my business. Of course
my plan is to send or bring back a large stock of Agricole we cant find here. It will have to be scheduled around the trip to New Orleans, of course.
I will have more questions for you once the planning actually begins.

[Edward Hamilton]

Late January through about the end of May is the best time. The rum distilling season depends on the weather. When the distilleries are not making rum most have a tasting room. I wouldn't plan on seeing much in August, being French, most businesses are closed the whole month. So last week in July and the first week in September aren't the best times to see the most.

The good news is that there are weekly direct flights to Martinique from Atlanta on Saturdays, or you can connect through St Lucia on American and there are flights on Air France that connect through Haiti and Guadeloupe.

[Count Silvio]

You can read about the Pyrat Rum factory over at Refined Vices. (http://www.refinedvices.com/content/view/59/1/) Big thanks to Dood for taking the time to write the article. :)

[RobertBurr]

My son and I have been invited to tour the Appleton Distillery in Jamaica in early March. I'll post a review here when we return.

[Count Silvio]

Ellis just sent me this nice article describing his visit to the Appleton Estate. (http://www.refinedvices.com/appleton-estates-rum-tour-shore-excursion-deluxe) Many thanks, Ellis!

[Ellis34]

I would love to go on all the tours in this thread. Right now I have a bermuda cruise booked and am trying to get a tour of Goslings. They wont return my e-mails. I will keep trying. Might be interesting.

[Count Silvio]

Goslings never returned my e-mails either. Perhaps it is time to pick up the phone I think? Maybe they have some problems with their mail servers.

Would absolutely love to read about your tour to Gosling's.

[TheRumelier]

I didn't know there was a Gosling's tour. It would be fairly short as they don't produce their own rums, they buy them from other countries. Bermuda doesn't usually spring to mind when I'm planning my rum trips, due to its isolation, lack of distilleries and expense getting there.

[Ellis34]

It didn't seem like a rummy sort of place to me either, but i couldn't pass on a free trip! Besides, I will probalby be able to pick up so bottles that I can't find in the states.

[Beachfinder]

Nobody said anything about the Baccardi factory tour in Puerto Rico... It was great! Free samples of all kinds, nice gift shop and best of all, no limit on purchases for US Citizens... It's a must do...

Beachfinder

[ferdie1125]

If you happen to be iun Puerto rico, Bacardi offers a nice tour also (more for tourists than rum connosseors, but still nice).