83: Diving into English Harbour Rum and Antigua Distillery with Calbert Francis

The Rumcast

In this episode, we sat down with Calbert Francis, global export manager for Antigua Distillery Ltd. to talk all things English Harbour Rum.

Antigua Distillery Ltd. is interesting, as it doesn't fit neatly into the English/Spanish/French categorizations (and is a great example of why they're flawed categories in the first place). While some might expect it to be "English" style, there isn't a pot still to be found at the distillery—everything is 100% column (and the column is quite unique).

We chatted with Calbert about:

Antigua Distillery's Portuguese origins and the unique backstory behind the distillery (which dates back to the 1930s)

The birth of the English Harbour brand (and why it almost didn't get off the ground)

The distillery's unconventional modified column still (and what makes it different from other column stills)

The potential return of English Harbour's 25-year release

Experiments with high-congener rum production and atypical maturation that led to some of the distillery's most memorable limited releases

Carnival culture in Antigua

The difference in the local market and export markets' rum tastes

The evolution of English Harbour's cask finish releases

The additives question

What the distillery is planning for its 90th anniversary

And more!

Photo Credit: Prayitno Photography

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