Three Roll Estate is creating new brands and launching new products in hopes of teaching palates nationwide what high-quality rum is all about.
Oxbow Rum Distillery will be the new name of the parent company, which will be reflected on the signage at the downtown Baton Rouge facility. The company plans to maintain the Three Roll Estate brand at a lower alcohol level and price point to sell in Louisiana exclusively.
Meanwhile, under the new Oxbow and False River Spiced Rum brands, the company will sell high-end products that demonstrate rum can be just as elegant and well-aged as a nice bourbon, and not just something you put in a fruity beachside drink.
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“What we’re doing is premium-izing our products,” says Olivia Stewart, the family-owned company’s president and COO. “We want to change the image of rum.”
Three Roll, established in 2017 with a 2019 name change, had begun selling outside of Louisiana but scaled back when the pandemic hit, Stewart says. With the rebranding, Oxbow will sell premium lines of its single-estate rum made with sugar cane from the family’s farm in Pointe Coupee Parish. “Oxbow” in this context refers to a stream, river or creek that has become separated from the flow of water, such as False River in Pointe Coupee.
Premium rum without added colors and sweeteners can be hard to find, Stewart says. Oxbow wants to plant a flag for craft rum, which she hopes helps other Louisiana distilleries to grow.
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She envisions a day when rum is just as much of a draw for Louisiana as bourbon is for Kentucky, attracting tourists and creating jobs.
“Oxbow can be a pioneer,” she says.
The rebranding will be official Sept. 1, when Stewart also hopes to launch the new products.