INTRODUCTION: Marie-Galante is part of the Guadeloupe archipelago and is only 30 kilometres away. Christopher Columbus discovered it in 1493 and named it after his flagship, the Maria Galanda. The island’s first settlers in the 17th century grew cotton and indigo. Then, with the arrival of African slaves, sugarcane became the sole source of the island’s wealth. Sugar refineries and distilleries coexist harmoniously. Of special note: they both traditionally use windmills to crush the cane. By the nineteenth century, there were about a hundred mills on the island, hence the nickname of Marie-Galante: the hundred mills island. 

It was in the cellars of the Bielle distillery that Chantal Comte selected a Rhum Agricole Brut de Fûts hors d’âge, (a rare, cask-strength, very old, special French Antilles rum). Its thick nectar is surprisingly powerful as the alcohol first wafts up to the nose: 55% after natural evaporation by ageing in barrels, without filtration, reduced without the addition of spring water. 

TERROIR: Marie Galante island 

ROBE: Warm gold, amber notes, thick. Full-bodied. 

NOSE : After the heady alcohol sensation, come tropical fruit notes (bananas, passion fruit, mango) and plenty of freshness (candied orange peel, ginger), and vanilla bean. A very complex and rich nose with light woody notes. 

MOUTH: (closed mouth tasting for spirits) Sensation of smoothness, voluptuousness on the tongue. Confirmation of the fresh aromas of exotic fruits. Also salted butter caramel notes, an influence of the nearby sea. Rare notes of beeswax and honey. A rum of exceptional finesse, airy. Magnificent persistence! 

SERVING SUGGESTIONS: This rum goes superbly well with Grand Havanas (as fitting its Caribbean identity!). Also marvellous in dark chocolate desserts, and great with a finely caramelized apple tarts, exotic fruit sorbets and for pure delight, as an after-dinner drink in a tasting glass, at room temperature.