VIDEO: Burdekin Rum use portable crush, process sugarcane on-farm

Burdekin Rum have started work on their latest special edition spirit. See how they turn Giru sugarcane into a bottle of 45 per cent alcohol in just six weeks. WATCH THE VIDEO.

The annual crush of Burdekin Rum's limited 'JP' edition was completed last week on the property it was grown on, thanks to a portable crush operated by the distillery.

Out in a cane field somewhere behind Giru, a portable crush has whirled into action as Burdekin Rum begins work on their limited ‘JP’ edition.

Named after Giru cane farmer John Pierotti who grew the crop, Burdekin Rum are able to turn his sugarcane into a bottle of 45 per cent strength alcohol in just six weeks by fermenting pure cane juice and skipping the normally lengthy molasses process.

Head distiller Jason Chan was part of the four-man team doing the hard yakka job of feeding cane through the small crush.

“The harvesters put these four bins aside for us, each one is about two tonnes of cane,” Mr Chan said.

“We’ve come out to the farm today to crush it ourselves.”

As the cane is fed between steel rollers, pure juice is squeezed out and captured in tubs.

By late afternoon the bins were empty and the boys set off for Burdekin Rum distillery located just 13km down the road.

The juice’s sugar content is measured, and yeast is added immediately and the raw product goes into vats to ferment.

Within 24 hours, it is bubbling and becoming alcoholic.

As the cane is fed between steel rollers, pure juice is squeezed out and captured in tubs.

Mr Chan says 4000L of sugarcane juice will break down to become roughly 320L of pure alcohol.

“This edition is all about province, province, province. The land, who we are, and where we’re from,” he said.

“We drive past these fields on our way to the distillery every day. I think about them a lot.”

All of this year’s JP edition will be made from these four bins crushed by the team. All the sugarcane is from the same paddock, and important fact for head distiller Jason Chan (pictured).

Mr Chan spends a lot of time thinking about rum. He knows how the English made it (rum: from molasses), how the French made it (rhum: from fresh juice) and even how the Spanish made it (ron: buying other people’s rum and blending it).

The New Zealander — who also owns bars, a WA gin project and several high-profile Melbourne restaurants when he’s not busy in the Burdekin — said he feels lucky to be working alongside people who are OK with going outside the limits of the English rum style and distilling the French way.

Jason Chan with one of the last unopened bottles from 2023’s JP edition. Behind him is part of Burdekin Rum’s new Italian-made copper distillery plant.

“This sugarcane juice can be fermented, distilled and bottled in just six weeks,” he said.

“Whereas rum, in order for us to be able to call something rum according to the Australian regulations, it needs to be turned into molasses and aged for a minimum of two years.”

Established in 2022, Burdekin Rum have been leaning into French-style ‘cane spirits’ as a way to produce a range of award-winning editions while their molasses ages.

One of the last unopened bottles from 2023’s JP edition. The final product is a 45 per cent alcoholic ‘cane spirit’ which is crystal clear and has a ‘tropical’ lychee, lemon drop taste.

“We have our core range, which is virgin cane spirits, premium cane spirits and now our premium rum,” Mr Chan said.

“And last year we released three distiller’s editions: the Wild Child, the Lost One and our first ever JP edition.”

Just 500 bottles of the JP edition are made every year from the specially-crushed cane juice.

The annual crush of Burdekin Rum's limited 'JP edition' was completed last week on the property it was grown on, thanks to a portable crush operated by the distillery. Pictured: Oded Gendelman.

Cane juice and molasses for the rest of Burdekin Rum’s range is sourced from local sugar mills.

“We’ve been in a mad rush to do the crush for our spirits this season,” Mr Chan said.

“Wet weather and industrial disputes have impacted the harvest a lot.”

So what’s the next big passion project after this?

Burdekin Rum distillery’s range of products on display in Townsville. The distillery won a number of international awards for its premium aged rum at the American Distilling Institute International Spirits Competition 2024. Picture: Doug Simpson Media

Mr Chan points to his favourite barrel currently ageing at the top of a towering storage row.

Two years ago at the Sweet Days, Hot Nights Festival, Burdekin Rum collected the burnt, chopped cane left over after the cane cutter competitions and turned them into juice.

The barrel has been ageing patiently, and Mr Chan plans to release the rum at the 2025 Sweet Days, Hot Nights Festivals for attendees to feast upon in May.

“We will be lucky to get about 300 bottles from it,” he said of the barrel.

“I wouldn’t mind calling it something like ‘Burdekin Spirit’, because it’s from here and it’ll mostly be enjoyed by people from here.”

Originally published as VIDEO: Burdekin Rum use portable crush, process sugarcane on-farm