Rhum Barbancourt is an outdated model with an extended historical past. Based in 1862 by Dupre Barbancourt, it stays inside the household, and remains to be tied to the island.
The model has a novel historical past, being each a favorite of the novelist Graham Greene, who was seen ingesting it there ceaselessly in the course of the time of the Papa Doc dictatorship, and being utilized in voodoo, a neighborhood faith practised by Toussaint Louverture, chief of the Haitian Revolution, himself.
Now, it’s increasing to a special island: the UK. “Spirit Cartel’s portfolio of manufacturers match with the premium imaginative and prescient we’ve for Rhum Barbancourt,” Delphine Gardere, Rhum Barbancourt’s CEO, instructed FoodNavigator.
“They’ve the data of the UK market throughout totally different channels and function masking key geographical areas. Spirit Cartel can also be very centered on model constructing which aligns with our mission of showcasing Haitian excellence and craftsmanship. By means of our distribution partnership, all of Rhum Barbancourt’s award-winning expressions will likely be accessible in the UK.”
The drink, Gadere instructed us, remains to be fashionable with modern-day Haitians, and its primary market is in Haiti. Nevertheless, the model is increasing abroad, and the UK isn’t its solely market exterior to Haiti. “Rhum Barbancourt is definitely distributed in 28 nations around the globe, with the USA being our second largest market,” Gadere instructed us. “The model has all the time been fairly fashionable in Europe. In 2022, following a whole improve of our packaging we re-launched the model in key markets akin to Italy and France to nice success.”
Nevertheless, the model is tied to Haiti’s historical past, having been a rum producer there for greater than half of its existence as a state. And the drink remains to be made there. “The model,” Gardere instructed us “is embedded within the historical past of Haiti, and every era works to advance it for the subsequent one.”
Dealing with shocks
Since its founding, Rhum Barbancourt has confronted an array of challenges. For instance, Haiti’s 2010 earthquake put manufacturing again considerably.
“The earthquake occurred in 2010,” Gadere instructed us, “and it was certainly one among our most difficult instances, dropping fairly a little bit of inventory and having to place huge efforts in rebuilding and reinforcing our buildings.”
Now, the model faces new challenges, as political instability worsens in lots of areas of the nation. Rhum Barbancourt, nevertheless, nonetheless operates there. “Our rum is constituted of sugar cane juice and the sugar cane is regionally harvested.
“It may be very tough, however we offer as a lot help as attainable to our suppliers. We work primarily with native cooperatives that in flip work with native farmers. We attempt as a lot as attainable to encourage farmers to construct sustainable enterprise fashions.”
Regardless of these shocks, the rum remains to be made in Haiti, because it has been for the reason that firm’s founding.
