Barbancourt is an interesting distillery. Calling the House of Barbanourt eccentric would be a stretch, but it is definitely an anomaly in the rum world. Standing out as it does from the pack, Barbancourt attracts more than its fair share of controversy. While few deny that Barbancourt produces delicious and quality rums, some question the raw materials used. The marketing blurb goes that Barbancourt distills exclusively from fermented fresh sugar cane juice, following the seasonal rhythms of the sugar cane harvest to produce a Haitian version of Martinique’s famous agricole rums. However, there are those who say Barbancourt takes a less discriminating approach, feeding its fermenting vessels and stills with sugar syrup and molasses during the seasons when fresh sugar cane juice is unavailable, producing a delicious but odd hybrid that is quite unlike the rums of Martinique. Through visiting the distillery I hoped to learn about how Barbancourt is made, what makes it unique, and where it fits in comparison to other rums.

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In Haiti I was surprised to find all sorts of obscure products bearing the Barbancourt name.  Besides the well known Barbancourt rums there was a comprehensive range of Barbancourt liqueurs, and a rum called Berling, also produced by Barbancourt.  In fact, most of these ‘Barbancourt’ products have nothing to do with the internationally famous Rhum Barbancourt.  Haiti has two rum and spirits producers, both legitimately using the Barbancourt name.

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Barbancourt in a coconut on the beach, an excellent reason to visit Haiti.

Strangely though, I only tried Barbancourt once before visiting Haiti*. I first tasted Barbancourt while in Cambodia, a trip on which I seem to have tried a lot of interesting products. For a small and poor country Cambodia has a surprisingly good selection of imported booze. This must say something about the type of foreigner Cambodia attracts. In any case, that Cambodian taste of Barbancourt made a big impression. I do not recall which of the Barbancourt products it was (probably the 5 Star), but it tasted unlike any other rum I had tried.

On my trip to Haiti I wanted to see what Barbancourt products were available there, which ones were popular, and how the locals drank their rum. I also wanted to visit the Barbancourt distillery and learn more about how Barbancourt rum is produced. I will write about the Barbancourt distillery later. For now lets just look at the rum.

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I meant to post this weeks ago. . .

While in the Dominican Republic I spotted a magazine article saying that Bermudez rums were in the process of being launched in the United States for the first time.  The Bermudez rums are pretty good.  The Bermudez Aniversario 1852 ended up being the bottle I took out of the country with me.  Yes, I even picked it over the Brugal Extra Viejo!

I have no idea if Bermudez will be made available throughout the whole of the United States.  The article only mentions North Carolina.  What do I know anyway?  Perhaps Bermudez has been available in the U.S. for years and a new distributor is simply creating some publicity for themselves?

However, just in case there is somebody in the United States who read about Bermudez rum on this blog, wants Bermudez rum,  and cannot find Bermudez rum, here are the contact details of the importer:

C&R Imports

(919) 272-4165

pereza@cnrimports.com

Maybe somebody can import this stuff to New Zealand?

When the world thinks of Haitian rum it generally thinks of Barbancourt, an exceptional product compared by some with the finest cognac. Barbancourt is universally well received and can hold up its head in the finest of company. Few care to know Clairin, Haiti’s ‘other drink’, Barbancourt’s rustic and alcoholic cousin, a relative frequently found incoherent and exhibiting delirium tremens.

While traveling in Haiti I made an effort to get to know Clairin. It was no easy task. Requests for information were often met with nonsensical babbling, contradictory answers, and invitations to have a swig of something horrible. Only occasionally was I rewarded. At the end of it all I was left thinking Clairin is probably a waste of time. I would like to be proved wrong, but for now that is how I see it.

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I have been traveling around too much to be in Mixology Monday mode recently.  Unfortunately I missed the last one on 19th Century cocktails.  How did I manage to miss that?  It sounded great.  Ahh. . .the travails of travel.

Anyway, this time round the theme is Guilty Pleasures, hosted by Two at the Most.  The main idea behind the theme seems to be ‘comfort cocktails’, similar to ‘comfort food’. There is also a suggestion that it could include drinks that appeal a poorly educated palate.  Hmm. . .

Forgive me if I randomly muse rather than picking a single drink.

OK, what I’m really going to do is smack you in the face with a Bunnyhug.  However, I’ll soften the blow by first musing on cream, creme de menthe, and other inoffensive things. (more…)

I am now in Antigua, Guatemala, sipping on Mayan hot chocolate - which sounds like a tourist gimmick but may not be.  I left the Dominican Republic about three weeks ago, spending a couple of weeks in Haiti before getting on a COPA air flight to Guatemala via Panama.  The original plan had been to travel from Port-au-Prince to Guatemala City via Havana, but this proved a little difficult to arrange.  Everything in Haiti is difficult.  Internet and power in Haiti were absolutely horrible so I was pretty much unable to blog while I was there.  Of course laziness also played a part.

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I have been going into Hostaria 24 so regularly that the other night the Italian boss stopped by my table just as I was finishing my meal to have a drink with me.

He had noticed me gradually working my way through his rum list and offered me whatever rum I wanted on the house.  We got chatting about the rum.  Surprisingly, his more unusual rums all come from New York, arranged by a friend working in wine sales.  The irony of a restaurant in the Caribbean sourcing rum from New York!  If only more restaurants would go to this kind of trouble.

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This is another rum review from the selection at Hostaria 24 in Sosua, Dominican Republic.  The other night I tried their two El Dorado rums, the 12 YO and the 15 YO.  Both were good.  However, I am only going to review only the 15 YO here.  The 12 YO was the end of a bottle and tasting oxidized.  I got big banana tastes and not a whole lot else.  The 15 YO was from a fresh bottle, and having drunk it on two consecutive nights I think I can write a reasonable review.

El Dorado 15 YO

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The main bar strip in Sosua has an excellent little Haitian-staffed Italian restaurant called Hostaria 24.  The pasta there is always al dente, the sauces are great, and to keep things interesting they even do Haitian stewed goat.  The real bonus though is their rum selection.  The menu lists an impressive range of rums from Haiti, Martinique, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Venezuela and Guyana.  If nothing on the list tickles your fancy you will find more rums sitting around behind the bar that somehow never made it onto the menu.

I have been eating there regularly as I try and work my way through their rum list.  Yesterday I stopped by for some spaghetti carbonara, which I washed down with Prestige Beer (Haiti’s national brand), Monte Cristo 12 year old rum, and Santa Teresa 1796 Ron Antiguo de Solera. Tasting notes follow.  No tasting notes on the spaghetti but it was good.

Prestige Beer (5.6%)

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