Barbancourt is the most famous of all Haiti’s distilleries and dates back to
1862.
Dupré Barbancourt brought the process of double distillation using pot stills as per the Cognac producers in his home region of Charente, France employed.
Working entirely with fresh sugarcane juice, rather than the more commonplace molasses as found in the rest of the Caribbean and beyond.
There are times when the juice is reduced to a syrup to allow it to be kept longer prior to fermentation.
Currently, Barbancourt produces their
Rhum on a more efficient
three-column continuous distillation system and so not directly comparable to the original double-distillation process.
There is one exception: that the first column strips the solid matter from the wash and the second and third columns serve to concentrate the Spirit.
The Rhum is then aged in
French Oak barrels and is run through a complex blending system to impart complexity and ensure consistency. All Barbancourt Rum bottled free from any additives.
The
2010 earthquake in Haiti had a big impact on the facility and around a third of its aged stock (valued around $4M) was lost, however, the company continues to rebuild.