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Vieques.- Every week, dozens of gallons of rum are crafted artisanally on Vieques as part of the operation of Crab Island distillery, which was founded a decade ago on Isla Nena and has since become the local rum brand.

“Crab Island Rum Distillery was born in Vieques and in the mind of Iván Torres. It all began 10 years ago in a small wooden house where he started making and distilling rum. Like many businesses, it started off on the streets, selling coquito and rum for Christmas, and that’s where the idea of distilling took root. Iván was motivated to start distilling because Puerto Rico is the rum capital of the world, and he realized that artisanal rum wasn’t being promoted enough and there were few distilleries in Puerto Rico. That’s what motivated him to create the first still,” explained Eira Rodríguez, an employee who welcomes visitors and shares the business’ story with them.

With the aim of giving the product an identity that truly reflected its roots, Torres—a native of Vieques—set out to find a name for his business. Thus, Crab Island was born. But why Crab Island? What is the connection to Vieques?

“Even though Iván wanted the name to reflect something from Vieques for Vieques, he didn’t want put Vieques on the product’s label. Then, someone gave him a painting with a map of the Caribbean, and as he looked at it, he noticed ‘Bieque’ was written on it, but under that was ‘Crab Island.’ So, Iván told his friend: ‘I have the idea for the product, I’m going to trademark it, and that’s the one.’ That’s where the idea of Crab Island comes from. And that’s how we started distilling the product,” the assistant recounted.

The distillery started operating in 2020. However, the COVID-19 pandemic caught them in the process. They took advantage of that time to construct their still, and by late 2021, they returned with renewed vigor, expanding their facilities to include an outdoor bar alongside the distillery and gift shop. Visitors can now witness the distillation process from the bar while enjoying private events. Additionally, they offer rum tastings and even have a food truck on-site.

“It was a pretty challenging at the start. So, we dedicated ourselves to distilling and aging rum, which prepared us for the reopening. On December 4, 2021, we reopened and introduced a bar along with the food truck named ‘La Tabla del Chef.’ Before that, we only had the distilling area and the gift shop. We’re open to the public from Thursday to Saturday; we do tours and tastings,” shared Rodríguez.

Crab Island distills approximately 50 to 60 gallons daily. Due to the limited number of fermentation tanks—just two—they conduct distillation on two specific days, namely Monday and Wednesday. Alfonso Vázquez and Roberto Bermúdez, both employees, oversee the distillation process, and they are both very aware of its significance.

“We start the process in these tanks that we call fermenters. We add molasses, because our rum is molasses-based, with yeast and other key ingredients. After a six-day resting period in these tanks, the mixture moves to the still for distillation. This stage involves the evaporation of alcohol molecules, which is what we want to capture. Then, it passes through the flute, allowing us to collect the pure alcohol. There, we have a product comprising approximately 85 to 88% alcohol by volume,” elucidated Vázquez.

After the alcohol is collected, it is transferred to another rectification tank, where—through the activated carbon filter—the alcohol by volume percentage is reduced. “Once we’ve reached our target alcohol concentration, we divide the batch, reserving a portion for barrel aging and another for crafting our distinctive orange and coffee infusions,” said the distiller about the defining flavors of their product.

In fact, he underscored the importance of allowing the coffee infusion to mature for eight to nine months, while the orange infusion requires 10 to 11 months in the tank. “For the infusions, we use orange peels and coffee grounds. We pack baskets with the orange peel (three baskets per tank) and let them steep for the necessary duration. Every month or so, we stir them to release the essences from the baskets, but without letting the larger particles escape,” detailed the process overseer, noting that the orange flavor is the most commonly produced and favored among customers.

One of Crab Island’s goals is to expand its brand recognition to new heights. They plan on retailing the product at the Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport and to venture into exporting the rum to other countries.

“We’re making waves in the business world, thank God. All the businesses in Vieques support Crab Island. We’re also affiliated with Ballester, so we’re available at Walmart, Econo, Amigo, and some liquor stores. We’re looking for distributors to take it abroad. The next step would be to get to the airport and beyond. We want to impact all of Puerto Rico and for the whole world to recognize the product, for it to have international reach and for Vieques to continue shining,” said, Rodríguez.

“History tells us that pirates sailed to the Caribbean for rum, and that tradition should continue. Many islands, such as Santa Cruz, have their own rum, and Puerto Rico and Vieques should be no exception,” she concluded.