Barillito from Puerto Rico

[Ed Hamilton]

There are only two Barillito rums bottled in Puerto Rico, two star and three star, the stars are on the neck of the bottle.

Although both of these rums are quite a departure from the light rums that are popular in Puerto Rico, some of the lightest in the islands, Barillito rums are considered on of the prizes of Puerto Rico. If you are going there and bring back a bottle of these rums for your Puerto Rican friends you can't go wrong for gifts. But don't just buy a bottle or two, unless you don't plan on tasting it yourself. It's not uncommon for tourists to the island to buy a bottle for a friend, taste it and then wish they had bought more, and not have any to share when they get back to the states. There is a small amount of these distinctive rums sold in the US but distribution has historically been in small markets in Puerto Rican neighborhoods. Buy it when you see it.

What sets these rums apart is how they are blended. In spite of being made and bottled on the site of the Fernandez hacienda just outside San Juan, these rums are distilled here any more. High proof alcohol from Bacardi is brought here by tanker truck and then the magic begins. To this alcohol the family's secret recipe is added and then aged in large oak wine barrels from Europe,  over 500 liters each compared to the usual 165 liter capacity of the whisky barrels used to age most other rums.

The blending is done prior to aging and at nearly the proof at which the rum will be bottled. Most other rums have water blended to reduce the aged proof down to 40% alcohol or so for bottling. At Fernandez, very little water has to be blended in the final days prior to bottling.

Another reson this rum is so sought after is that it is aged at least three years and the three star is aged up to six years although small amounts of rum that has aged many more years is added to the premium three star to give it added flavor.

Since this is a small family operation, they don't produce massive amounts of their rum, and, they don't want to expand distribution which would mean increasing the warehouse and everything else at the facility.

The original warehouse was built just after World War II and when I was last there I was offered a glass of rum that had been aging in one of the original barrels. I can hosestly say that it was one of the smoothest, most enjoyable glasses of rum that I have ever tasted.

Cheers,

[J R]

I love Barrilito. It has a wonderfully rich flavour and I can only asume after reading your post that pressed sugar cane or raw molasses must be one of the "secret" ingredients. Just to let everyone know, Hi-Time has a fairly constant stock of the 3 star and occasionally the 2 star. And as is the case with all of our rums, can ship to anywhere in the world. However in some cases it may be more economic to go to Puerto Rico and buy it yourself. :-)

JR

[Ed Hamilton]

As for the secret ingredients, there may be some sugar cane syrup but certainly not molasses. But I can tell you that the alcohol is molasses based.

[Jason Perlow]

Opened my first  bottles of 2 star and 3 star this week. I must say I prefer the 3 star but both are #### good rums, and excellent value too.

[Ed Hamilton]

I agree with your comments after the first sip, but after a couple of bottles,  I prefer to drink the 2 star and keep the 3 star for special occasions. I find this to be the case with a lot of rums.

[Damian]

Great to find some other fans of this rum!  I fell in love with it during my recent two year stint in San Juan and have never been without a bottle or three of the "tres estrellas" since.  You can buy it duty free in the San Juan airport for about eleven bucks a bottle, I always pick some up when I go back to San Juan.  

Ed, thanks for clarifying the Bacardi relationship.  The rumor circulating around San Juan was that Bacardi had a significant ownership stake in (if not outright ownership of) this little distillery.  I have sampled the rum on the tour and it is wonderful, plus the people are exceedingly friendly and are always thrilled to sell a bottle to an enthusiastic gringo on the premises.

[Bolivar Petit Corona]

Thanks, Ed for this thread, it's a good one.

[PR Rum Time]

I found this very interesting:

Each barrel is labeled with the date that it was sealed and a casual inventory of the casks will reveal rums that have been sitting for 10, 20, 30, even 40 years! There is a story that a single barrel was put aside in 1942, with orders that it only be opened when Puerto Rico is a free, independent nation. For 63 years then, this cask has patiently waited for that day, when it will be brought to the square in the center of Bayamon and its contents offered free to all who wish to drink from it.

Just how do you think 63 y/o unblended rum would taste?

[Ed Hamilton]

Just how do you think 63 y/o unblended rum would taste?

Contrary to popular thought, rum, or any spirit, can be aged too long and gain a taste that isn't very nice. Too much wood, too much smoke, and an compound called rancio in the whiskey industry.

Having said that, when I was at the Barillito facility in 1994, I tasted some of the rum in the oldest barrel. Unlike most rums, Barillito is aged in large casks, approax. 160 gals, and doesn't suffer from an excess of wood. Of the hundreds of rums I've tasted this was one of the smoothest and most enjoyable I've had the pleasure of consuming. The bad news is that Puerto Rico is a long way from independence and like all spirits aging in barrels in the tropics, every year the barrel is giving some of it's contents to the angels that protect it.