Rhumerie de Chamarel

The Rhumerie de Chamarel was founded in 2008 under the motto “A dream is not a place but a journey…”.

You will find this distillery in the south west of Mauritius, in the middle of the beautiful landscape of Chamarel. Chamarel is famous not only for its coloured earth and waterfalls but also for its many different tropical fruits and big plots of pineapple and sugar cane. The distillery stands on the Domaine de l’Exil, a sugar estate that the Couacaud family bought in 1996 and on which they decided in 2008 to build a distillery from scratch, with the sole purpose of producing pure sugar cane juice rum from the estate’s own plantations.

For many years it was not possible to produce this special kind of rum in Mauritius, but then the rules were loosened and the distillery was born.

The special thing about the rum from Chamarel is that it is made only from sugar cane that grows on the estate itself. The cane is cut by hand and never burned, and it reaches the distillery within four hours so that the juice stays fresh. The harvest runs from July to December.

The tour and tasting

As a visitor you are guided through the distillery by experienced guides, who explain every step of the rum-making process. You will see the copper stills and the cellars where the oak barrels in which the rum ages are standing. At the end of the tour you can taste all the rums of the house free of charge: white rums, rums aged in wood, old rum, rums with fruit and spices, and rum-based liqueurs.

The range includes white rum distilled in a copper column still, rums matured in oak barrels, a double-distilled rum from small copper pot stills (the same method that is used for cognac) and liqueurs made from rum and roasted coffee beans.

The distillery building matches the high quality of the rum and is very modern and elegant. It was designed by the Mauritian architect Maurice Giraud, who used wood, natural stone and water so that it blends into the spectacular landscape.

If you want to take the rum with you as a present or for your own consumption, you can buy it in the distillery’s shop.

Restaurant L’Alchimiste

Next to the distillery, the restaurant “L’Alchimiste” prepares fine food, mainly from the district of Chamarel and from the estate itself. Typical dishes are made with palm heart, local deer or wild boar and are served with a suitable wine. The restaurant is open for lunch from Monday to Saturday, 11:30 am to 3:30 pm, and you should book a table. The distillery visit and rum tasting are included in the lunch price. On the terrace you can also have an afternoon tea with crepes and other pastries.

Visiting the Rhumerie

Opening times

Visit and tasting: Monday to Saturday 9:30 am – 4:30 pm, closed on Sundays. You do not need to book, but you may have to wait about 20 minutes at the reception.

Private tour: Monday to Saturday 9:30 am – 3:30 pm, by reservation only (limited to 15 people per time slot).

Entrance

Visit and tasting: Rs 800 per person, teenagers (16–17 years) Rs 400.

Private tour: Rs 1,500 per person.

Contact

La Rhumerie de Chamarel
Royal Road, Chamarel, Mauritius
Tel: +230 483 4980 (mobile/WhatsApp: +230 5 988 4199)
Website: www.rhumeriedechamarel.com