Everybody loves a good story, and somehow rum seems to go hand-in-hand with intriguing stories. Family owned La Favorite Distillery in Martinique has its share of intriguing stories to tell!

Rhum Agricole Vieux

However, this is not the end of the story, there is more to tell. In 1909, Mr. Henri Dormoy purchased the property, rebuilt the distillery, and in certainly an unusual twist for a rum distillery, started producing alcohol to be used for making explosives during World War I. By 1920, Mr. Dormoy progressed from making alcohol for explosives, built Château La Favorite and launched his Martinique rum in France.

When Mr. Henri Dormoy died in 1938, Mr. André Dormoy took over the family business. Today, Mr. Paul Dormoy, Mr. Henri Dormoy's grandson, is the Master Distiller and runs La Favorite Distillery. Despite its auspicious start, La Favorite continues to thrive and is one of the few remaining family-owned distilleries in Martinique. We do love a good story with a happy ending!

Rhum Agricole Blanc

Our tasting notes for La Favorite Rhum Agricole Blanc - Coeur de Canne, 50% alcohol by volume: it is a clear white rum, made from sugar cane juice, with a sweet vegetal nose, with fresh sugar cane and floral notes on the palate. We enjoyed La Favorite Rhum Agricole Blanc in a traditional Martinique Ti-Punch (sugar or cane syrup, rum and a small squeeze of lime), as well as in fruit-juice based cocktails.

La Favorite Rhum Agricole Vieux - Coeur de Rhum, 40% alcohol by volume, is a deep, rich amber color with wood, spice, orange essence, and toffee on the nose, with lingering butterscotch, tobacco, and a touch of honey on the palate. Although we did sample La Favorite Rhum Agricole Vieux in a Martinique Vieux Punch, this long lasting beauty can also be enjoyed as a sipping rum, and cries out to be savored with a cigar.

The Recipes    

Luxury Experience's La Favorite Tropical Flower   

Martinique is called the "island of flowers," which was the inspiration behind Luxury Experience's La Favorite Tropical Flower.

Add 4 ice cubes to a shaker and add all of the ingredients. Shake hard until the metal shaker is frosty, and the ice is incorporated into the drink. Strain cocktail into a chilled martini glass. Garnish with an edible flower.  

Luxury Experience's Raisin' Cane    

There is a growing trend for classic cocktails, which provided the inspiration for Luxury Experience's Raisin' Cane, based on the classic cocktail, Cuba Libre (rum, coke, and lime juice).

In a rocks glass, place three rum soaked raisins, add ice, pour La Favorite Rhum Agricole Blanc, La Favorite Rhum Agricole Vieux, Crème soda and 1 tablespoon of raisin infused rum over the ice and stir. Garnish with three rum soaked raisins on a skewer. Why so many raisins? Be generous and share these tempting raisins!

* One of the easiest ways to create new cocktails is to create your own infusions. We created raisin infused rum by soaking raisins in La Favorite Rhum Agricole Blanc for several weeks. Fill a glass jar with golden raisins, cover with La Favorite Rhum Agricole Blanc, and let them rest for several weeks. The result is plump, juicy raisins and a delicious raisin infused rum. Use the flavored rum in cocktails and enjoy the raisins in ice cream or baking recipes.

Luxury Experience's Decadent La Favorite Rhum-Raisin Ice Cream   

Edward F. Nesta is a master when it comes to making ice cream, however his recipes should carry the label "for Adults only." The raisins were so plump and juicy after resting for several weeks in the rum, that he decided to create a smooth, and decadently rich rum-raisin ice cream with some of the raisins.

Beat eggs and milk together in a large saucepan. Add sugar and cook over low heat, stirring constantly until the mixture is thickened. Just before the mixture comes to a boil (when you see the first bubbles), remove the saucepan from heat, pour the mixture into a bowl and let it cool. Add the cream and vanilla and refrigerate overnight.

Pour the mixture into an ice cream maker, and as the mixture begins to freeze, add the alcohol and the rum raisins and keep processing until frozen.

If you are traveling to Martinique, you might like visiting the La Favorite Distillery, but in the meantime, contact Edward Hamilton, known as the Ambassador of Rum, of Caribbean Spirits, Inc., who imports La Favorite Rhum Agricole Blanc - Coeur de Canne, La Favorite Rhum Agricole Ambré - Coeur de Ambré, and La Favorite Rhum Agricole Vieux - Coeur de Rhum.

Imported by Edward Hamilton
Caribbean Spirits
833 W. Jackson Blvd (Suite 700)
Chicago, IL 60607
United States
Telephone:      +1-312-288-7034
Mobile:            +1-312-286-1995
Email:             This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
www.caribbean-spirits.com     

La Favorite Distillery
5,5 km Route du Lamentin
97232 Le Lamentin
Martinique, FWI
Telephone:      +05-96-50-47-32
Fax:                 +05-96-50-49-84
Email:             This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it  
Website:              www.rhum-lafavorite.com  

Read other articles on Martinique in Destination: Martinique - The Caribbean Side, Destination: Martinique - The Atlantic Side, and in the Hotels and Resorts, Restaurants, Spas, Chefs' Recipes, Fashion, Gastronomy, Events: Martinique Gardens, Events: Martinique Adventures, and Liquor Cabinet sections.

For more information on Martinique, please contact the Martinque Promotion Bureau at www.martinique.org.

© October 2006. Luxury Experience. www.LuxuryExperience.com. All rights reserved.