Rentavillas Travel Blog

For the rum lovers, here’s a list of the major rum distilleries within the caribbean.

Bahamas

Bacardi
Ole Nassau Rums (Burns House Ltd.)

Tropical Paradise in a bottle!! That’s the way people describe Ole Nassau flavoured Rum Liqueurs. Coconut, Pineapple and Banana, each distinct flavour has its own tropical sensation caught in their special blend of fine rums and secret flavourings.

Todhunter-Mitchell Distilleries

Barbados

Mount Gay Rum
Many people believe that rum was being produced on the Mount Gay Rum Estate from as early as 1663. However, the first surviving written evidence of this is a legal deed dated 20th February 1703.

R.L. Seale & Co.

Bermuda

Bacardi

Cayman Islands

Grand Cayman Bottlers & Blenders (Blackbeard’s)
Tortuga Rum

Cuba

Havana Club

Distileria Alzola
Arechabala Industries
Bacardi
Ron Matusalem
This legendary SPIRIT OF CUBA blends aged fine rums according to a secret family formula that has been passed down for generations.

Dominica

Shillingford Estates (Macoucherie Rum)

Dominican Republic

Barcelo & Co
Brugal & Co

Dutch Virgin Islands

Saba Spice Rhum
Delicious homemade Saba Spice, a sweet rum-based liquor, made from the local spices in the kitchens of many Saban ladies.

Grenada

The Grenada Sugar Factory (Clarke’s Court Rum)
Grenada Sugar Factory, Ltd. The most popular brand in Grenada, is made by the Grenada Sugar Factory Limited. It is situated in the Woodlands Valley, in the parish of St. George’s, and has been in operation since 1937. What makes Clarke’s Court rum unique, is that they use local fresh crushed cane juice, in the preparation of their range of fine rums. Their Old Grog is a smooth blend of aged rums, while their flagship Original White Rum is a 138 proof, strong rum. Each rum is distinctive, with is own character.

River Antoine Rum Distillery (Rivers Rum)
Westerhall Estate Grenada

Haïti

Rhum Barbancourt
The Rhum Barbancourt plant was founded in 1862 by the Gardere family and thus began the distillation of the world’s finest Haitian rums. Rhum Barbancourt is a superior premium white rum distilled twice in copper pot stills. Unlike other island rums, Barbancourt is made directly from sugar cane juice, pressed from hand-cut, locally grown cane. Barbancourt uses a sugar cane growing in the fields of the Plaine du Cul-de-Sac. It is common belief that this cane is evocative of its genuine soil, the terroir. A unique wild yeast, originating from this area, probably exists, which proliferates on the cane stalks, thus producing these peculiar esters, taste and aroma of Barbancourt brands, during the fermentation process.

Jamaïca

Appleton Rum
Appleton Estate is the oldest and most famous of all of Jamaica’s sugar estates. It is nestled in the fertile Nassau Valley on either side of the Black River in the Southwest of Jamaica. The origins of Appleton Estate date back to 1655 when the English captured Jamaica from the Spaniards. Frances Dickinson, whose grandsons Caleb and Ezekiel were the earliest known owners of the Appleton Estate, took part in that conquest of Jamaica, and it is believed that Appleton Estate was part of the land grant that Dickinson received as reward for his services. Appleton Estate Rums are a unique style of rum produced only in Jamaica. Estate rums date back to the days of the old plantations, when special rums were developed exclusively for the tables of the estate’s absentee owners.

Puerto Rico

Bacardi
Captain Morgan Rum (Seagram)
Destileria Serralles (DonQ et DonQLimón)

St. Lucia

St. Lucia Distillers

Saint Vincent & Grenadines

Jack Iron (Carriacou)

Trinidad & Tobago

Caroni
Fernandes Distillers

Tortuga

Tortuga Rum Co.
Founded in 1984, Tortuga Rum Company has grown to become the largest duty-free liquor business in the Cayman Islands. Tortuga Rum is a combination of Jamaican Rum and Barbados Rum specially blended for the Cayman Islands.

British Virgin Islands

Pusser’s Ltd
Rum and the sea are inseparable, and no rum is more akin to the sea and the seaman than is British Navy Pusser’s Rum. For more than 300 years, sailors of Great Britain’s Royal Navy were issued a daily ration of rum by the Purser (corrupted to “Pusser” by the Jack Tars). From 1655 to 1970 “Pusser’s Rum” was one of the few daily comforts afforded those early seamen of Britain’s Navy as they fought across the globe to keep the Empire intact and its sea lanes open.

British Navy Pusser’s Rum is the same superb blend of five West Indian rums as served on board Their Majesties’ ships for three centuries. Today, it is still blended in accordance with the Admiralty’s exacting specifications of 1810.

Callwood Distillery
The secret of Callwood’s Arundel rum is that it is “all natural”. “This rum does not produce headaches or hangovers because it has no chemicals or preservatives,” claims Michael. The raw rum which comes out at 100 to 150 proof is sold at 80 proof. The aging process mellows the rum, taking out the strong, harsh taste. Because the rum is made from sugar cane juice, instead of molasses, it is unique and because of the shortage of sugar cane, can only be produced in small quantities.

Virgin Islands

Cruzan Rum
Red Rum

If your next vacation plans take you to the Caribbean, a fun way to take a peek at your destination is to watch a movie that was filmed there. Throughout the years numerous box office hits have been filmed in the waters and islands of the Caribbean. The area provides film makers a backdrop of lush tropical scenery, historical buildings and sandy beaches. Here is look at some of the films that were shot in paradise:

Earlier films shot in the Caribbean include 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea and Swiss Family Robinson. Both movies are from Walt Disney Pictures. 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, released in 1954, was filmed in various areas in the Bahamas and Jamaica. Swiss Family Robinson, released in 1960 was filmed in Trinidad and Tobago. Swiss Family Robinson today is still one of Disney’s most successful films.

Popular films of 1970’s shot in the Caribbean included The Godfather II and Apocalypse. Both films had scenes that were shot in the Dominican Republic. During the filming of Godfather II production was delayed for a month while Al Pachino recovered from Pneumonia on location in Santo Domingo.

In the 1980’s films made in the Caribbean included some major box office hits. Cocoon I & II were filmed in the Bahamas. The Dogs of War was filmed in Belize, Never Say Never Again was filmed in the Bahamas, the Final Scenes of Trading Spaces were filmed n the US Virgin Islands and Splash was also filmed in the Bahamas.

The 1990’s saw numerous movie crews travel to the Caribbean for filming. Movies released during this decade include:

– Amistad which was filmed in Puerto Rico. While watching the movie take note of the Slave Fortress. An old colonial fort in San Juan was used as the location of the Fortress.

– Captain Ron which was filmed in Puerto Rico.
The Thomas Crown Affair which was filmed in Martinique. In the movie, Crowne’s Caribbean getaway was a home on the Island first owned by one of the original 30 families to settle there during the 1600’s.

– The Shawshank Redemption which was filmed in the US Virgin Islands.

– The Silences of the Lamb’s final scenes were filmed in Bimini, Bahamas.

– Contact was filmed in Puerto Rico.

– Goldeneye was filmed in Puerto Rico.

Speed 2: Cruise Control was filmed off the shore of St. Martin. Final scenes of this movie cost more than the entire filming of Speed, its predecessor.

Over the last decade, Hollywood has continued to use areas of the Caribbean for on set movie locations. After the Sunset and Into the Blues were both shot in the Bahamas and Open Water was shot in the Virgin Islands. Walt Disney’s Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl and its sequels were all shot in the Caribbean. St. Vincent, The Grenadines, The Dominican Republic, The Bahamas and Bermuda can all be found in scenes throughout this movie trio.