Looking through some of the information that I gathered while wandering around Havana about a month or so ago I found a picture of a rum that really caught my attention. Ron Santiago de Cuba Anejo, this nice little rum was enjoyed by the group of us one evening in the Telegrafo Hotel. It was one of the more enjoyable evenings there in Havana chatting among the guys and sipping a fine Cuban rum. The really interesting part of the rum is that is is produced in the historic old Bacardi Distillery in Santiago de Cuba. After the revolution in 1959, the distillery was nationalized and the Bacardi family left the island. This is not the high tech factory that the Bacardi Rum is mad in now in Puerto Rico, but the original distillery opened in 1868 by Don Facundo Bacardi Masso, and is steeped with all of the history of the Bacardi years in Cuba. The family left the island after the Revolution, the Cuban government has continued to make traditional rum in the distillery. Ron Caney brand coupled with smaller amounts of Ron Santiago and Ron Varadero are what is produced by at the historical distillery. The factory knocks out nine million liters a year, of which the majority is exported. There are no factory tours, but the Barrita de Ron Caney, a bar for tourists attached to the factory, offers rum sales, cocktails, and tastings.
 |
| Bacardi Distillery Circa 1940 in Santiago de Cuba |
The rum itself is quite tasty, a deep copper colored aged rum with a delicate feel on the palate is underpinned by sweet almond and chocolate and a long finish. Although this is a rich, full bodied oakey aged rum, it is still a great mixer. Serve it on the rocks with a squeeze of fresh lime or used for your favorite cocktails. I know that I enjoyed it in Havana with a couple of cubes of ice. ;o)
