Oh Yeah...Cuban Rum. I drank a lot of Havana Club and Barcardi (brought at the International PX on Campbell Barracks in Heidelberg), when I was stationed overseas and I personally think that the difference between both brands from Cuba and Puerto Rico is 'like night and day'. 
I can't quite 'pin-it-down' yet, but there's something about Cuban Rum...maybe it's the longer age, how it 'blooms' on the palate, how smooth and delicate is this Spirit and there's a certain kind of 'panache' in enjoying Cuban Rum (thoughts of being on the Island, 'chillin' with a
Montecristo and trying to look as cool as Hemingway), I can't wait until I'm allowed to go.
Esquire - Alyson Sheppard - 12 Jan 17
"For Cubans, rum is personal. The spirit is a core part of Cuba's national identity and has, along with cigars, fueled the country's economy for decades. And as diplomatic relations and travel regulations thaw between the U.S. and Cuba, more Americans are becoming interested in all things Cuba, with certain illicit agricultural products at the top of their minds.
Americans have been fascinated with Cuban rum for centuries. Soldiers first got a taste of it while fighting the Spanish-American War on Cuban soil. During Prohibition, wealthy Americans chartered private flights to wet Havana to sip rum on the weekends. And of course, there's the mythical lure of Ernest Hemingway, who spent the mid-20th century drinking daiquiris in Cuba's cocktail mecca.
But for the past 50 years, the U.S. has enforced import restrictions on the communist nation. Cuban-made rum and cigars became contraband, which only increased their desirability to Americans that much more. (Elsewhere in the world, Cuban rum is readily available.) The goods were not illegal in the U.S. per se, but Americans traveling abroad were only allowed to bring in $100 worth of it at a time.
"Cuban rum is forbidden fruit, so everyone wants it," says Martin Cate, owner of Smuggler's Cove, a rum bar in San Francisco. "And most Americans are only ever exposed to it when on vacation, where everything tastes better. So the desirability plus fond memories means that expectations are high."
Then the Obama Administration relaxed some economic regulations with Cuba. The $100 personal import limit was lifted, meaning Americans carrying back Cuban cigars or bottles of rum are now subject to the same duties as alcohol and tobacco from other countries. But commercial importation and distribution in the U.S. is still illegal. American liquor stores cannot sell Cuban rum, and bars cannot sell drinks made from it, even if the bar owners obtain the bottles legally, as private citizens. In order for that to happen, Congress would need to vote to lift the embargo.
This has created a whole lot of confusion on the part of consumers.
Anthony Schmidt, beverage director of False Idol tiki bar in San Diego, says people ask him about it constantly given his proximity to the border. "In Mexico the product is not only readily available, it's oftentimes the first choice in most bars," he says. "I respond with a nod and wink and maybe an anecdote about a bottle or two that's lingering in my home bar."
Nick Detrich, proprietor of Cane & Table rum bar in New Orleans, says customers come in and try to buy Cuban rum off of him all the time, often assuming if he doesn't have the bottles displayed they are hidden. (He does not sell it at the bar.) "I explain to them what's going on with the law right now," he says. "And then if they want to listen to me drone on for a while, I'll tell them about its deep ramifications."
Rum is made from sugarcane, a crop that Christopher Columbus introduced to the Americas in the 1400s. It is produced in more than 80 countries, but the finest is considered to come from the Caribbean, where the climate is best for growing sugarcane. The taste of sugarcane, like that of wine grapes, is affected by the atmospheric conditionsthe soil and weather, or terroirwhere it grows. (Other factors that determine a rum's flavor include the yeast used in fermentation, the material of the stills used during distillation, the type and age of the barrels that it's aged in, and any colorings or flavorings added in after-the-fact.)
Cuba's fertile soil and sticky climate, is particularly ideal for growing agricultural products such as sugarcane and tobacco, which is why those Cuban crops are historically so revered around the world. And Cuba produces a lighter, crisper rum than elsewhere in the Caribbean thanks to a request from the Spanish Crown, which preferred its spirits delicate in flavor".
Read More: http://www.esquire.com/food-drink/drinks/a52223/cuban-rum-guide/
[FONT=&]"I [sympathize with you] greatly, but I must be mum, for how could we do without [cane] sugar and [rum]"? William Cowper[/FONT]
I can't quite 'pin-it-down' yet, but there's something about Cuban Rum...maybe it's the longer age, how it 'blooms' on the palate, how smooth and delicate is this Spirit and there's a certain kind of 'panache' in enjoying Cuban Rum (thoughts of being on the Island, 'chillin' with a
Montecristo and trying to look as cool as Hemingway), I can't wait until I'm allowed to go.
Esquire - Alyson Sheppard - 12 Jan 17
"For Cubans, rum is personal. The spirit is a core part of Cuba's national identity and has, along with cigars, fueled the country's economy for decades. And as diplomatic relations and travel regulations thaw between the U.S. and Cuba, more Americans are becoming interested in all things Cuba, with certain illicit agricultural products at the top of their minds.
Americans have been fascinated with Cuban rum for centuries. Soldiers first got a taste of it while fighting the Spanish-American War on Cuban soil. During Prohibition, wealthy Americans chartered private flights to wet Havana to sip rum on the weekends. And of course, there's the mythical lure of Ernest Hemingway, who spent the mid-20th century drinking daiquiris in Cuba's cocktail mecca.
But for the past 50 years, the U.S. has enforced import restrictions on the communist nation. Cuban-made rum and cigars became contraband, which only increased their desirability to Americans that much more. (Elsewhere in the world, Cuban rum is readily available.) The goods were not illegal in the U.S. per se, but Americans traveling abroad were only allowed to bring in $100 worth of it at a time.
"Cuban rum is forbidden fruit, so everyone wants it," says Martin Cate, owner of Smuggler's Cove, a rum bar in San Francisco. "And most Americans are only ever exposed to it when on vacation, where everything tastes better. So the desirability plus fond memories means that expectations are high."
Then the Obama Administration relaxed some economic regulations with Cuba. The $100 personal import limit was lifted, meaning Americans carrying back Cuban cigars or bottles of rum are now subject to the same duties as alcohol and tobacco from other countries. But commercial importation and distribution in the U.S. is still illegal. American liquor stores cannot sell Cuban rum, and bars cannot sell drinks made from it, even if the bar owners obtain the bottles legally, as private citizens. In order for that to happen, Congress would need to vote to lift the embargo.
This has created a whole lot of confusion on the part of consumers.
Anthony Schmidt, beverage director of False Idol tiki bar in San Diego, says people ask him about it constantly given his proximity to the border. "In Mexico the product is not only readily available, it's oftentimes the first choice in most bars," he says. "I respond with a nod and wink and maybe an anecdote about a bottle or two that's lingering in my home bar."
Nick Detrich, proprietor of Cane & Table rum bar in New Orleans, says customers come in and try to buy Cuban rum off of him all the time, often assuming if he doesn't have the bottles displayed they are hidden. (He does not sell it at the bar.) "I explain to them what's going on with the law right now," he says. "And then if they want to listen to me drone on for a while, I'll tell them about its deep ramifications."
Rum is made from sugarcane, a crop that Christopher Columbus introduced to the Americas in the 1400s. It is produced in more than 80 countries, but the finest is considered to come from the Caribbean, where the climate is best for growing sugarcane. The taste of sugarcane, like that of wine grapes, is affected by the atmospheric conditionsthe soil and weather, or terroirwhere it grows. (Other factors that determine a rum's flavor include the yeast used in fermentation, the material of the stills used during distillation, the type and age of the barrels that it's aged in, and any colorings or flavorings added in after-the-fact.)
Cuba's fertile soil and sticky climate, is particularly ideal for growing agricultural products such as sugarcane and tobacco, which is why those Cuban crops are historically so revered around the world. And Cuba produces a lighter, crisper rum than elsewhere in the Caribbean thanks to a request from the Spanish Crown, which preferred its spirits delicate in flavor".
Read More: http://www.esquire.com/food-drink/drinks/a52223/cuban-rum-guide/
[FONT=&]"I [sympathize with you] greatly, but I must be mum, for how could we do without [cane] sugar and [rum]"? William Cowper[/FONT]
