The distillery route in Martinique: a one-day itinerary by car

Martinique has a handful of distilleries still in operation, and it is the only place in the world where rum holds an appellation d'origine contrôlée. Granted in 1996, it governs the cane varieties, the yields and the distillation. Rhum agricole is made here from pure freshly pressed cane juice — no molasses, unlike the vast majority of the world's rums. It is a difference you grasp better by smelling it than by reading about it.

The problem is geography. The distilleries are scattered across the countryside of the north and the east, well away from everything. Without a car you visit one, with difficulty. With a car you do three in a day without rushing.

The itinerary: a loop through the north and the east

The most logical route from Fort-de-France heads up into the interior, comes back down the Atlantic coast and returns via Le Lamentin. Allow a full day: about 2hr30 of driving in total, three visits of an hour to an hour and a half each, and lunch.

First stop — Habitation Saint-Étienne, Gros-Morne

About 35 minutes from Fort-de-France. HSE sits in a valley, at the end of a small climbing road. It is the opposite of an industrial tour: an estate, a garden, contemporary art exhibitions hung in the old buildings. You quickly grasp that rum here is as much a matter of culture as of agriculture.

Set off early. This is the visit that gains most from the morning light, and the road suits it better before the heat builds.

Second stop — Saint James, Sainte-Marie

About 30 minutes from Gros-Morne, on the road that joins the Atlantic coast. Saint James is home to Martinique's rum museum, housed in a 19th-century Creole house. It is the most instructive of the three visits: you follow the whole chain, from the cane to the bottle, and come out able to read a label.

The Atlantic coast changes mood entirely after the softness of Gros-Morne: more wind, a rough sea, harsher landscapes. Take ten minutes to stop along the way.

Third stop — Habitation Clément, Le François

About 40 minutes from Sainte-Marie, heading down the east coast. Clément is the largest of the three and the most complete: the Creole house, the botanical park, the art foundation, the cellars. If you were only to do one, it would be this one — but keep it for the end, because two hours there go by easily.

Back to Fort-de-France in about 40 minutes via the Le Lamentin road. Avoid setting off again between 4pm and 6pm, when the ring road is busy.

The rule that counts: whoever drives does not taste

It needs saying plainly, because it is the real trap of this day out. Rhum agricole is bottled at between 40 and 55 degrees. A single tasting, however modest, is enough to put you over the legal limit — and the roads in the north, narrow and winding, do not forgive approximation.

Two solutions, and only one of them is good: appoint a driver who tastes nothing all day, or buy the bottles on site and open them in the evening. All three distilleries sell what they make, often with bottlings you will not find elsewhere. It is the best way to take something home anyway.

Practical tips

• Three at most. Beyond that the day turns into a race and the visits start to blur into one another.
• Check the opening days before you set off. Hours vary with the season, and some distilleries close on Sundays or during the harvest.
• Good shoes. The visits are outdoors, on ground that is sometimes uneven and often wet.
• Room in the boot. People rarely leave empty-handed, and bottles travel badly on a back seat.
• Mind the customs allowances if you are flying home, and remember to put it in the hold.

If you have a second day

The Caribbean coast, to the north-west, deserves a day of its own. It leads to Saint-Pierre, the old capital destroyed in 1902, with its ruins and its black-sand beaches — and you can combine it with the climb up Montagne Pelée, which towers over the whole area.