Mountain gay rum

Travel Distilled tells the story of Mount Gay Rum, from its origins in Barbados in the 18th century to its current status as one of the world’s finest rums.

Mount Gay, the world’s oldest rum producer, has a rich history that spans over three centuries.

It remains a cornerstone of the Mount Gay portfolio.

In addition to Eclipse, Mount Gay expanded its offerings to include other expressions, such as Mount Gay XO (Extra Old), a premium aged rum launched in the early 2000s. Molasses is very different than the sugar that you might use to sweeten your coffee or tea. In the 1980s, Mount Gay underwent a modernization process, updating its facilities while preserving its time-honored methods.

Hundreds of years ago, Mount Gay could rely on the molasses from local sugar cane for all of its needs, but that’s no longer the case as there simply isn’t enough available land anymore. Though the distillery’s first Coffey still only dates to the 1970s, other column designs were added to the mix around the time of American Prohibition.

Finally, there’s the 1703, a blend that varies from year to year and might include 30-year-old rums.

Always be aging.

Like all tropically produced spirits, Mount Gay ages nearly three times as quickly as spirits barrel-aged in cooler climates.

They do hold onto a few house secrets, though, like their proportion of column still and pot still in each blend.

If you’ve ever spent time around a marina, chances are you’re familiar with Mount Gay, a rum that strives to maintain a deep relationship with the sailing community. And there’s a whole lot of rum aging in Mount Gay’s four warehouses.

The distillery and plantation grounds are home to a centuries-old, 300-plus-foot well. The brand’s flagship product, Mount Gay Eclipse, was introduced in 1910 and became one of the most popular rums in the world. The taller, narrower neck Fragasa pot stills will create lighter, fruitier rums. Around 10 percent of the aging rum is lost to evaporation annually.

The proprietary yeast strain is based off a captured wild yeast, which Mount Gay’s team then bred for consistency.

You’ll know a Mount Gay fan when you see them.

Mount Gay has been closely linked to the world of sailing for decades, as symbolized by its red (often worn-out pink) logo-bearing hat. Mount Gay is very transparent about its production process.

Each unique distillate will become allow the Master Distiller to create layers of flavor. Its legacy is deeply intertwined with the history of rum itself, and the brand has become synonymous with quality, tradition, and craftsmanship.

Mount Gay Rum: Origins and Early History

The story of Mount Gay begins with the arrival of sugarcane in Barbados in the 17th century.

Today, Mount Gay produces the majority of Barbadian rum that is exported globally. The Mount Gay Distillery sources molasses from both Barbados and other neighboring Caribbean islands. There are three 12,000-barrel facilities and one larger, 13,000-barrel warehouse. The team at Mount Gay strongly suspects production was going on even earlier, and has recently uncovered a deed from 1654 that might seal the case.

A spot called Mount Alleyne existed on the island at the time, so they settled on his middle name. The Black Barrel expression, a mix of pot and column distillates, spends time in repurposed bourbon barrels as well.