Takamaka Dark Spiced Rum 70cl (Packaging artwork may vary)

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So what is Hydrodynamic Cavitation? In short, it’s a mechanical process that brings about chemical reactions and molecular changes in liquid that would otherwise happen over time. These include the development of deep, natural flavors as well as mellowing of the rum. It’s hard to articulate what a remarkable feat it was to create a rum brand that has grown to this size in Seychelles if you haven’t been, but a good place to start would be to say there was no sugar industry when the brothers started. Only a small amount of sugar cane was grown to produce a local fermented beer called Baka, so the Takamaka team swiftly set about establishing links to plant sugarcane in areas they felt were underutilized, collaborating with farmers to both ensure a consistent supply and to give them an extra income.

The stills used had been installed 12 years ago and at the early stage of the businesses, Takamaka invested as much as they could afford – focusing on quality rather quantity. So by 2021 not only did they need larger stills - but these direct gas fired stills had naturally, over more than a decade, become rather thin. Therefore the decision to invest in new pots still had been made. The result - this unaged rum from their original cane stills will never be seen again. We’re opening up new markets, engaging with amazing people in the bar industry and drinks industry, and we want to continue with our cask-ageing programme,” says Richard. “This next year is about continuing to grow and push ourselves – and staying motivated. We’ve got some very exciting projects to come.” Bernard’s father-in-law actually oversees the brand’s growing practices, in which sustainability plays a role thanks to a no-pesticides program, a policy of using bagasse (the waste from sugar cane) for animal feed, and providing large tanks for rainwater collection. Committing to ethical practice isn’t much a problem for Takamka, scaling up volume on the other hand is. Despite Takamaka almost single-handedly creating an industry for it, we’re still talking tiny numbers. Historically the distillery has never been able to produce more than 4,500 litres of finished cane rum in a year. Maybe Australia, Southeast Asia, as well,” notes Bernard. “Singapore is really cool, and Hong Kong.”I can see why. I truly love what the Takamaka team has made. This is a singular project, born out of a true love for both the island and the spirit, one that has only lasted because of tremendous resilience and resourcefulness. They could have done it so differently. They could have just bottled someone else’s rum. They could have just bought in cane. They could have just sold up when it started going well and retired to the beach. Instead, they brought spirit to The Seychelles, and better they made one that embodies this incredible island. Takamaka Rum is a brand of rum that is distilled, aged and blended in the Seychelles, at the Trois Frères Distillery, on the main island of Mahé. [ citation needed] The distillery has been operating since 2002, and was founded by the d’Offay brothers, Richard and Bernard d’Offay. It is the first and only commercial rum producer and exporter in Seychelles. [ citation needed] History [ edit ] Today they have access to five genetically different types of cane which vary in colour from green to striped green and yellow, red to the purple “kann di vin” or wine cane, which is the rarest and sweetest one in the Seychelles. The team actively support cultivation of this specific variant including growing it within their own Clos at La Plaine St Andre. The cane that is grown in the Seychelles has distinct terroir notes from the island’s unique granitic soil which is mixed with beach sand.

While there are a couple of local bottlers, Takamaka is the only distillery on the island. The brand produces a mix of pot and column still rums, molasses- and sugarcane-based bottlings, and also boasts a unique ageing programme, numerous barrel cellars with variable climates – plus, the distillery works with 25 farmers to source its raw materials. Rum was first introduced to the Seychelles in the mid 16th century by the British Navy. Sugar cane cultivation on the islands began in the late 1800s and early 1900s, primarily to supplement the supply of sugar from infrequent visits from ships. As the delivery of sugar to the islands became more frequent, the use of sugar cane began to evolve - initially to making fermented cane juice known as 'Baka'. [ citation needed]

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Twenty years ago, brothers Bernard and Richard d’Offay pursued a personal passion project to create their own rum. Their vision was clear, to create a liquid that would capture their remote, tropical island home in the Indian ocean: the Seychelles.

While there has always been a small amount of cane gown, it was almost exclusively used to make "Baka", a cane juice beer of sorts. The team have spent over a decade supporting a collective of local farmers enabling them to add to their income by planting sugar cane. The team support sustainable farming practices by anchoring the growers to a no-pesticides program, returning the bagasse for use as animal feed and providing large tanks for rainwater collection. Takamaka also act as non-official consultants suggesting cane variants and harvesting schedules for free. This article contains content that is written like an advertisement. Please help improve it by removing promotional content and inappropriate external links, and by adding encyclopedic content written from a neutral point of view. ( May 2017) ( Learn how and when to remove this template message) Steven explains that it also maintains esterification and oxidation, all processes that happen naturally inside a cask, and that you can also add different types of wood fines (literally a cask shredded down to tiny pieces) to impart barrel-esque influences. You can’t add them directly into the tank because even though you get the flavours you want like caramel and vanilla, the fines get broken down too small for filtration. Instead, Steven worked out that doing a soaking period of seven days with the wood fines prior, then filtering the spirit and running the cavitation works better. Then the rum comes out a darker colour, with flavours from the wood fines perceptible in the spirit. Tasting it, I can’t quite compare it to anything else I’ve had. I think it’s too tannic to be bottled on its own, but it’s an intriguing blending component. White Overproof 69 Rum – Much higher than the standard 40% ABV, Takamaka 69 has an ABV of 69% and is best used in mixed drinks. 70CL/69%A Seychelle-szigetek lakói már a régi időkben is élvezték a Takamaka rum korai változatainak finomságát, és megalapozták a szigetvilág rumkultúráját. Seychelle ugyan nem természetes otthona a cukornádtermesztésnek, az itt élők azonban mégis számtalan lehetőséget találtak a rumkészítésre. Az erjesztett cukornádléből varázsolt Baka után úgynevezett „rhum arrangét” készítettek, ez a helyi rum, gyógynövények és fűszerek keveréke volt (rendszerint családi recept alapján készült, és emésztést elősegítő italként fogyasztották).

First in the series is Extra Noir, a blend of pot- and column-distilled molasses rums, soaked with ex-Bourbon oak wood fines, then pressed with both French and ex-Bourbon cask wood. The rum is rested in second-fill ex-cane rum French oak casks for 60 days before bottling. At 43% ABV, expect a rum that is full-bodied and punchy, with high-ester funk, spice, vanilla and sweet undertones – perfect for a seriously sippable Highball. Rum Arrangé was created by macerating leaves, fruit, seeds, bark, and other ingredients for up to six months, after which it was drunk as a digestive or sweetened with cane sugar syrup. It was inspired by how sailors would preserve fruits and spices in alcohol. Seychelles Cane rum therefore remains an artisanal product with Takamaka historically never having been able to produce more than 4,500 litres of finished cane rum in a year. However – the decade of support is starting to pay off as more farmers have started to plant both on Mahe but now also on La Digue and the team have set their sights to achieve 7,000 litres of Seychelles Cane Rum per year by 2024. The home of the famous Takamaka Rum company is located on La Plaine St. Andre in Seychelles. It was built in 1792 by Jean Franois Jorre, an estate that used to be a part of a plantation that included a copra kiln and a cinnamon and patchouli distillery. Today, the distillery is where the Takamaka team members find new ingredients and flavours to make their unique and authentic rum.

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Sokáig a Baka volt a Seychelle-szigeteki iváskultúra leghíresebb itala, azonban olyan erős volt, hogy pár kortya könnyen véget vethetett egy hangulatos bulinak. A készítéséhez -a korai mexikói tequila előállításához hasonlóan- erjesztett cukornádlevet használtak, és ezt a helyi közösségek még ma is előszeretettel fogyasztják. A Seychelle szigeteken korábban óriási népszerűségnek örvendett a helyi gyümölcsökből, zöldségekből és pálmaolajból finomítás nélkül készített ital, a fahéjból, vaníliából és fűszerekből álló Baka. A régi időkben a Baka volt a valuta ezeken a szigeteken, az embereket azonban sokszor annyira megviselték az intenzívebb ízek, az ital fogyasztói másnap nem tudtak aktív munkát végezni. We see a lot of tourists and visitors coming to see the distillery on a daily basis, compared with three or four years ago – now we’re seeing 10 times more than what we had. It’s almost like a self-fulfilling prophecy; the more people that know about Takamaka, that see it available in a local shop, it all starts to snowball, like a flywheel effect. We seem to be on that trajectory now and it’s great,” Bernard adds. The Seychelles has never had a sugar industry, the Takamaka team had recently reached out to Antoine Marie Moustache who is the former Permanent Sectary to the Department of Agriculture. She kindly was able to share from the“ Annual report on Agriculture and Crown lands”authored by P.R. Dupont the first recorded reference to sugar in the Seychelles was in 1919. The report went on to elaborate that“ no sugar was manufactured in the colony and the culture of sugar cane was restricted to about 20 acres because of a tax on acreage.”