Mount Gay was founded in 1703, making it the oldest rum producer in the world. John Sober inherited a small distillery at the top of Mount Gilboa, in the parish of Saint Lucy, Barbados. In 1947, he put Sir John Gay Alleyne in charge of the distillery. Sober was so impressed by Sir John’s work that he renamed the distillery after him in 1801. The estate was then taken over by Aubrey Fitz-Osbert Ward in 1918 and remained in the family until his son’s death in 1989. The French group Rémy Cointreau became the majority shareholder and bought the remain shares from Ward’s heirs in 2014. The rums produced are normally a combination of spirit distilled in column and pot stills, but the brand is also known for its single pot stills and triple distillations.