This will be one of the events of the Vinocité show, beginning of November : cane plantation, Bel Air sugar factory and distillery, known for having revived the galabé, traditional cane sugar, launches its first two proprietary rums.
The Reunion sugar factory-distillery will present a preview at the Vinocité trade fair, the 9, November 10 and 11, its very first white rums. Called “Fields of Exploration”, this range begins its journey with a traditional syrup rum and a pure cane juice agricultural rum, made exclusively from raw materials from the Bel Air plantation, located in the north of the island. These new spirits are the first in Reunion to be included in the premium pure single category. To accompany him in this new adventure, Alexis Rivière, the founder, called on the expertise of oenologist and cellar master Benjamin Galais. “The idea is to be creative, to bring new things”, warned Alexis Rivière last year when announcing the project. It’s done with these first proprietary rums, that is to say produced from the canes of the plantation. Creations made possible by the presence of the grinding mill on the estate and by the installation last May, in the heart of the candy, of a distillation unit. The company chose a iron still (two-stage distillation) de 30 hL, supplied by the French manufacturer Honoré.
On our Tracks and In Amplitudes
The names of the first two Payet rums & Rivière give the contemporary tone of the brand. “Sur nos Pistes” is an agricultural rum (50,3 %) whose juice is extracted directly from the property's mill. “En Amplitudes” is a traditional rum (43,6 %) whose particularity is to be produced from cane syrup from the sugar factory and not from molasses. A unique technical approach in French production.
The rebirth of the galabé
Candy factory before becoming a distillery, Payet & Rivière first became known for the rediscovery and promotion of galabé. Agricultural delicacy obtained by cooking cane juice, the galabé had gradually disappeared from the stalls before the company revived this product of Reunionese history and sugar cane. A technical challenge that required several years of research from Alexis Rivière and his team. After several trips to South America to study artisanal sugar installations, the Reunion sugar factory came out of the ground in 2021. A first event : the island had not seen the rebirth of sugar mills since the 19th century.
Bel Air : a historic area
Founded in 1815, Bel-Air fits into the landscape of the large estates in the north-east of Reunion. Taken over a century ago by the family, the property extends over 150 hectares, ten of which are reserved for the direct valorization of products resulting from the processing of sugar cane. The construction of the sugar factory was entrusted to Ateliers Prévost, heritage architects, in order to bring the memory of the places to life with their new destination. The sugar factory is installed in a new building with contemporary lines. The packaging tools are housed in old farmhouses (we will talk, dormitories from the time of the enlisted) rehabilitated. A memory that the company strives to preserve and share by recently opening the production site to visits, the estate and its remains, including the memorial to the freed and enlisted men of Bel Air.
