Barbados: FourSquare Rum Distillery Tour + Tasting with Top Shelf Bartending Academy Friday 20 April, 2018
Tucked away in the southern countryside of Barbados, on 8 acres of a former sugar plantation, is the magnificent Foursquare Rum Distillery and Heritage Park. This working rum factory is well known for its collection of rums, producing a wide range including the highly favoured Doorly’s, Old Brigand and E.S.A.Field. Foursquare Rum Distillery is the proud winner of the Rum Distillery of the Year in November 2016 at the IWSC in London, UK
In addition to the working factory, the Heritage Park with its historic buildings, colonial architecture and folk museum, offers a step back in time and a tribute to the important role that sugar and rum has played in Barbados’ history.
The factory operates on a core principle of being environmentally friendly and most of the “waste” produced is re-used is some way.
Sugar and Rum culture is serious in Barbados. Sugar has been an ideal crop for Barbados. White gold as it was called, produced great wealth, fame and stature for the island and the original plantation owners, and was in many ways suited to the island. It made good sense to grow sugar economically and horticulturally as its root structure helped to preserve the fragile top soil.
There are 1,500 small farms throughout Barbados which can produce some 60,000 tons of sugar annually.
Four Square Rum Factory and Heritage Park is quite an experience but first and foremost it is a rum refinery which produces quite a few world renowned rums; these include …
• E.S.A. Field
• Doorlys
• Old Brigand
• FourSquare Spiced Rum and
• Tommy Bahama
Foursquare sells bulk rum to blenders and other producers, so you likely have had Foursquare rum at some point. The distillery uses a mixture of pot and column stills to create a classic Bajan-style rum. The Doorly’s 12 resides at the top of their range and is aged in used-bourbon white oak casks, then finished in port and madeira casks, spending a minimum of twelve years in wood. Previously available only at the distillery, this rum recently received US label approval.
We got a chance to do an authenic wine tasting of the different Doorly brands and flavors. We are also gifted a bottle of 12 year aged Doorly’s Rum.
The TopShelf Bartending Academy Philosophy: We will deliver the best service, through better product knowledge, better training and excellent performance
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OK now this looks like an amazing place to go and visit, I bet it is really interesting to see how rum is made and everything that goes on behind the scenes.
This looks like the most fun tour inside and out. I am not a rum drinker usually but i would love to sample that rum. I want to go there and take i the sun, sugar cane and rum,
I tell you, if I ever go on this tour with my husband, I’m coming back solo. He loves rum and I imagine he’d just park it there and consider it his new home.
That sure looked like a fun trip! I love that this distillery is environment-friendly. How wonderful it would be to learn about rum making and tasting the finished product too!
Barbados is such a gorgeous place. I’ve never been there but have always been obsessed with making the trip one day in the near future. This place seems like a really cool spot to visit. That’s so cool that they gifted you a bottle.
This place looks fascinating. I like going places and learning the history. A rum distillery is a great place to explore. I need to experience once, you guys learned a lot and had a bottle to go.
I have not traveled to Barbados yet. I am thankful you shared this post. Visiting a rum distillery in Barbados sure looks like something to look forward to!
The TopShelf Bartending Academy Philosophy: We will deliver the best service, through better product knowledge, better training and excellent performance
That looks like it was so much fun! I would love to be able to tour that distillery one day. Very cool!
OK now this looks like an amazing place to go and visit, I bet it is really interesting to see how rum is made and everything that goes on behind the scenes.
This looks like the most fun tour inside and out. I am not a rum drinker usually but i would love to sample that rum. I want to go there and take i the sun, sugar cane and rum,
Fun! Barbados is one place in the Caribbean I have yet to visit. I am fortunate enough to have experienced an amazing rum tour in Grand Cayman.
Another place I would like to visit on a vacation. How fun are you all having!!! I love your hair and all the other stuff going on.
This looks like so much fun! I am not a rum drinker but think it looks like a great place to visit!
I tell you, if I ever go on this tour with my husband, I’m coming back solo. He loves rum and I imagine he’d just park it there and consider it his new home.
What fun you must have had! A tour of the distillery looked fantastic!
This would be an awesome tour and tasting. It would be something my wife and I would enjoy doing together.
A rum distillery tour and tasting in Barbados would be exciting! I can see you had a lot of fun and perhaps learned about rum making.
That sure looked like a fun trip! I love that this distillery is environment-friendly. How wonderful it would be to learn about rum making and tasting the finished product too!
This sounds like my kind of night! I have done tequila tasting but next rum tasting! Sounds like fun!
Touring a distillery is definitely on my list of things to do. Looks like a ton of fun and I love learning about the process.
What an awesome excursion! I have always wanted to go to Barbados!
Barbados is on my list but Lawd at this point what isn’t on my bucket list! Y’all had fun and I’m jealous
Barbados is such a gorgeous place. I’ve never been there but have always been obsessed with making the trip one day in the near future. This place seems like a really cool spot to visit. That’s so cool that they gifted you a bottle.
What a fun tasting experience! I love seeing the behind the scenes of how things come to be, so I know I’d be captivated by the production process.
It sounds like an amazing place to tour and explore. It’s definitely perfect if you have your best girls with you!
Wll rum straight from the Caribbean is good. LOL. I know I want to get to Barbados as a part of my travel bucket list for sure.
This place looks fascinating. I like going places and learning the history. A rum distillery is a great place to explore. I need to experience once, you guys learned a lot and had a bottle to go.
It looks like you had a fantastic time. There’s nothing better than exploring amazing places with amazing people.
That sounds like so much fun! I would love to do this!
I have recently realized that I love Rum so much!! I totally would love to explore and taste some of the goodness!
I’ve been to Barbados before and have only been to the caves. I would love to visit a rum distillery though!
I wish I could visit this place one day! It’s great that their factory is eco-friendly!
That is amazing about the amount of sugar the farms grow. Does rum have a lot of sugar in it?
I have not traveled to Barbados yet. I am thankful you shared this post. Visiting a rum distillery in Barbados sure looks like something to look forward to!
i bet that was a lot of fun getting to go. i like that they are an environmental friendly distillery. what a great experience!
Sounds like a great trip! So interesting to check how things are made and of course, have a taste!
Mmm this sounds like my kinda day out! Love a bit of proper rum! Sounds and looks like you had an amazing time!
That looks like a very nicely kept distillery. Barbados would be such a fun trip one of these days.
Great pictures! Do you plan to go back?
I always love to spend time with great finds. It looks like you had an amazing time!
What a great idea for a day out! Sounds like fun
Looks like a fun tour. Havent eexperienced the same and I wonder how.it.ia to.be like touring the bottling plant.
Wow this place looks like such fun! Great photos!