Your Ultimate Guide To Barbados

How Rum is Refined

There was a time when all across Barbados, one would see fields and hills of sugar cane swaying in the wind. Though the island still has a number of sugar cane fields, the rate of production is quite unlike years gone by.

Rum production and sugar cane go hand in hand. After all, rum is made directly from the juice of the sugar cane.

Barbados' sugar canes are cut by way of machete or machine. The cut canes are then taken to the sugar factory where they are crushed and the juice extracted. The fibrous residue left behind is called bagasse and is often used as a mulch for gardens or as a valuable fuel. The juice is filtered with slaked lime and the 'mud' is washed onto filters to reclaim any lingering sugar. Through a process of boiling, the filtrate and the clarified juice are concentrated. Crystallisation begins as the thick syrup is left to cool. The resulting 'wet sugar' was put to a side where most of the uncrystallised liquid would readily drain off in the form of molasses. This molasses would then be used in the manufacture of Barbados rum.

The fermenting process takes place and the juice becomes alcohol. Throughout the distilling process, in the bubbly stills, birth is given to a spirit. Aged barrels are then used to store the rum and as it stays put in these aged barrels, the uniqueness of Barbados' golden rum and mellow flavours come alive.

The master blender sniffs and sips this high quality spirit in an effort to ensure its final flavour. Barbados' rum is ready to go.

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