SPENCE
JOY SPENCE has the distinction of being the first woman to hold the position of Master Blender in the rum industry. Joy joined Appleton Jamaica Rum as Chief Chemist in 1981, and was appointed general manager, Technical and Quality Services in 1996, a position she still holds.
Joy was instrumental in steering Appleton's parent company through the ISO 9002 accreditation process, which the Company received in 1996 in a record time of six months, as well as the ISO 9001:2000, which the Company received in 2002.
EDUCATION
Joy fell in love with chemistry at 13 and at that time she set her mind on a career as a scientist. After high school she attended the University of the West Indies and graduated in 1972 with a Bachelor of Science Degree, First Class Honours.
After teaching Chemistry at Holy Childhood High and at the College of Arts, Science and Technology (now University of Technology) she went to England to pursue a master of science degree in Analytical Chemistry at the University of Loughborough. Joy graduated with Honours, and in fact her final exam scores were the highest ever achieved by a student at Loughborough - a record that still stands today.
In 1979 she accepted the position of Research and Development Chemist at Estate Industries Limited, the producers of the world-famous Tia Maria Liqueur.
THE CREATOR OF FINE RUMS AND SPIRITS
Joy has created many rums, spirits and liqueurs for the company, including Appleton Estate Extra Jamaica Rum - Appleton's super-premium blend and Appleton Estate Reserve Jamaica Rum - the newest addition to the Appleton Jamaica Rum family.
WHAT IT TAKES
According to Joy, to be a good blender you must be a sensory expert, have an artistic and creative flair, have a good understanding of the chemistry of the process, pay attention to detail and have a passion for the art.
HONOURED BY THE GOVERNMENT OF JAMAICA
In 2005 Joy was honoured by the Government of Jamaica who awarded her the Order of Distinction in the rank of Officer, (OD) for her service to Industry.
When Joy is not hard at work creating new rums she enjoys gardening and doing technical research, and she is also a director of the Jamaica Bureau of Standards Foundation. Joy is married and has two children.
