Welcome to
Pepe Margo
Our distillery is made for adults of legal drinking age. Please confirm you are of the legal drinking age in your country before entering.
By entering, you agree to our terms. Drink responsibly. Do not share with minors.
© 2026 Pepe Margo Distillery.
Five deliberate stages transform the finest ingredients into expressions of Aruban character.
At Pepe Margo, every decision in the production process is made with one guiding principle: quality over convenience. We source the finest raw materials, carefully select our yeast, and operate our still at a production scale that allows us to maintain complete control over every run. This is not industrial production. It is craftsmanship.
Aruba's climate is not just a backdrop to our process — it is an active participant in it. The island's consistent warm temperature shapes our fermentation timeline, accelerates our ageing, and increases the intensity of every barrel we lay down. We do not fight the environment. We work with it.
Every spirit begins with its raw material, and at Pepe Margo, our rum begins with our carefully selected molasses — the thick, dark syrup drawn from sugarcane. We select our molasses based on a strict set of criteria: sugar content, aromatic profile, and origin. We take great care in finding the right fit for us. The refusal to compromise on raw materials sets the quality ceiling for everything that follows. You cannot make a premium spirit from average ingredients.
For our gin, we draw on botanicals grown on the distillery grounds to introduce true local flavor. Locally harvested lemongrass and fresh citrus peel sit alongside traditionally sourced juniper, coriander seeds & more. The result is a gin that smells and tastes unmistakably of this island.
Caribbean sugarcane · First-extraction molasses · Selective sourcingThe journey begins with premium-grade, carefully sourced molasses — the richest, most molasses available, containing the perfect combination of residual sugars and aromatic compounds ready to be unlocked and released. This is not a commodity ingredient; it is the foundation of everything we make, selected for both its chemical composition and its flavor potential.
Combined with our carefully selected yeast — developed specifically for Aruba's climate over multiple generations of cultivation — the fermentation is instigated by a controlled mixing of water, molasses and yeast at a controlled 32°C for 7 days. We believe in slower, longer fermentations, producing a ferment rich in fruity esters and aromatic congeners that define the Pepe Margo character. We do not rush this process. We observe it, adjust it, and let the island's conditions shape each batch from the very first stage.
7 days · Carefully sourced molasses · Selected yeast
At the centre of the house stands our custom-built copper pot still — the architectural soul of Pepe Margo. Copper was chosen deliberately. During distillation, copper actively reacts with the rising vapour, bonding with and removing unwanted sulphur compounds that would otherwise produce harsh, unpleasant notes in the finished spirit. The result is a smoothness and clarity that stainless steel simply cannot achieve.
Our still is sized for boutique, small-batch production. Every single run is overseen by hand. The distiller monitors temperature, flow rate, and aroma continuously, making precise cuts at exactly the right moment — discarding the heads (the first volatile fraction) and the tails (the heavier, oilier final fraction), retaining only the heart: the purest, most flavorful component of the distillate. For our gin, the still is charged with a carefully composed basket of botanicals, including locally sourced Aruban lemongrass, which imparts a bright, tropical brightness that could only come from this island.
Custom copper pot still · Hand-cut hearts · On-site botanicalsOur aged rums rest in American Oak ex-Bourbon barrels — casks that have previously held American Bourbon whiskey, their interiors deeply charred, their staves saturated with vanillin, caramel compounds, and dried fruit esters absorbed over years of previous ageing. In Aruba's consistent tropical heat, the maturation process accelerates dramatically. The spirit expands deep into the wood fibers during the heat of the day, then contracts overnight as temperatures fall — a daily pumping action that extracts flavor compounds at two to three times the rate of a temperate climate cellar.
Equally significant is the 'angel's share': Aruba's heat causes a higher rate of evaporation than cooler climates, concentrating the remaining spirit and intensifying its character with each passing month. Every barrel is hand-selected, marked, and monitored individually throughout its ageing period. Our Single Barrel expression is the pinnacle of this process — a single cask chosen for its exceptional character at peak maturity, bottled without blending, offering an unfiltered window into the intimate relationship between our spirit and Aruba's own extraordinary environment.
American Oak Bourbon barrels · Tropical ageing · Single barrel selections
Bottling at Pepe Margo is not an afterthought. It is the final act of craftsmanship — the moment the spirit transitions from production to permanence. Every bottle is filled by hand on our bottling line, checked individually for fill level and clarity, and closed with a cork before it is sealed by what has become one of our most recognized visual signatures. The label is then applied by hand, and each bottle is boxed and carefully stored.
Our Single Barrel releases are unique to the barrel number, the distillation date, and the bottling date, making every bottle a traceable, time-specific document of our craft. Before leaving the house, every batch passes our internal quality review: a blind tasting panel conducted by the distillery team. If a batch does not meet the standard set by the previous release, it does not go into bottles. It returns to the barrel. This is the commitment behind every bottle of Pepe Margo — not as a marketing claim, but as the operational reality that governs our production.
Hand-filled · Individually numberedEvery stage of the Pepe Margo process can be witnessed in person. Our Master Distiller's Session gives you a front-row seat to active fermentation, a live distillation run, and the rare experience of tasting rum straight from the barrel.
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