— BARBADOS —
 

The story of rum begins in Barbados. Barbados was in 1627 the originator of sugar cane cultivation in the Caribbean. Rum is produced in 1642 and demand rapidly soars on the old European continent. Rum has already won the hearts of island sailors and is not new to the island of Barbados. Soon it wins the hearts of the English sailors. Legend has it that when the sailors return to England they offered gifts of rum from Barbados to prove that they had indeed crossed the Atlantic.

The undisputed birthplace of rum, Barbados is an island dotted with windmills in ruins once used for grinding sugar cane to extract the juice.

Eventually, the sugar industry begins to decline, but the island continues to produce excellent rums, distinguished by traditional local methods. Indeed, distillers have not completely abandoned the pot stills for column stills, and they are frequently found side by side. A special fermentation technique imbues local distilleries with rich and flavorful aromas.