For a long time Mauritius turned all its cane into sugar — local rum remained a molasses « traditional rum » drunk in the villages. Everything changed in the 2000s when agricultural rum, distilled from pure cane juice, was authorised: twenty years on, Mauritian rums dominate international competitions. Two families to know: agricole, grassy and powerful, and traditional molasses rum, rounder, often aged in oak casks or infused with fruit.
The Chamarel Rum Distillery is the flagship visit: a jewel of a distillery set in a mountain amphitheatre, amid its own cane fields. Guided tours roughly every 30 minutes (9:30 am – 4:30 pm, daily except Sunday, about Rs 450 with a six-rum tasting). Stay for lunch at L'Alchimiste, the estate's restaurant — and try the aged VSOP, the house pride. Combine with the Seven Coloured Earths five minutes down the road.
In the north, the Château de Labourdonnais (Mapou) pairs an 1859 Creole mansion, orchards and a modern distillery: the tour + tasting formula runs around Rs 500, and its Rhumerie des Mascareignes signs delightful Victoria pineapple infused rums. In the south, the Saint-Aubin estate (1819) distils in plantation atmosphere, to combine with the neighbouring tea route. Finally, the New Grove and Gray's brands — made at the Grays distillery near Beau Plan — can be tasted at L'Aventure du Sucre, where the museum tells precisely the island's sugar-and-rum epic.
Shopping-wise: expect Rs 700 – 1,500 for a bottle of aged rum at a distillery shop, often less at the supermarket for the same references (impressive shelves at Winner's and Intermart). The homemade infused rums of the tables d'hôtes are not for sale — they are given. European customs lets you bring back 1 litre of spirits per adult duty-free; beyond that, declare. Local tip: the « rum-coconut-lime » is mixed to order at beach bar counters — ask for a Mauritian ti punch and toast with « santé, korek! ».