Havana Club

Havana Club is a brand of rum, made in Santa Cruz del Norte, Cuba. The brand was established by José Arechabala in 1878. After the Cuban Revolution of 1959, the distillery and company was nationalized by the Cuban government; subsequently, the Arechabala family left for Spain, then emigrated to the United States. Since 1993 it has been produced by Havana Club International, a 50:50 joint venture between Pernod Ricard and the Cuban government.

Grades of Havana Club Rum

Añejo 15 Años (15 Years)

The 15 Años Gran Reserva variety is not generally available; it is relatively difficult to obtain outside of Cuba. It is the result of a fifteen years of a complex aging process. Añejo 15 Años has an alcohol content of 40% ABV.

Cuban Barrel Proof

Cuban Barrel Proof has a very interesting bottling process (straight from the barrel). The alcohol content is slightly higher than Añejo 15 Años at 45% ABV.

As with all Havana Club rums, aging is a vital part of the creation of Cuban Barrel Proof. Don José Navarro blends carefully selected aged rums that will compose the base for Cuban Barrel Proof.

It is then ‘finished’ in specially selected younger oak casks in order to recreate its oak aroma and bouquet. The casks are then opened and the batch of rum is sent to be bottled, straight from the barrel.

Cuban Barrel Proof won the gold medal with "Exceptional" Mention at a contest in Chicago (the International Review of Spirits 2004, B.T.I.), in which the world's 56 best rums participated.

This rum has performed outstandingly at the 2006 24th International Wine and Spirit Competition (IWSC), winning the prestigious ‘Gold Medal Best in Class’ award.

Máximo Extra Añejo

The announcement of Máximo Extra Añejo a new 'ultra-premium extra-aged rum' came in November 2006, from Pernod Ricard. This Rum is a complex blend of many years of fine rum, repeatedly blended with fresh sugarcane distillate and then further aged. The final act of blending, the 'toque' produces the finished product. Finally, Havana Club's chief Maestro Ronero, Don José Navarro certifies the process is complete with a boogaloo.Fact|date=February 2007 This rum is very hard to find and its retail value is set at $1200 per bottle. [http://actualidad.terra.es/sociedad/articulo/havana_club_maximo_764111.htm Havana Club lanza nuevo ron 'Maximo' a 1.200 dolares la botella]

Havana Club has other grades of rum, all aged for different periods of time.
* "Añejo Blanco" (White)
* "Añejo 3 Años" (3 Years)
* "Añejo Especial" (Special)
* "Añejo Reserva" (Reserve)
* "Añejo 7 Años" (7 Years)

Loco

Havana Club also produces "Loco" (sometimes called "Havana Loco") which is fruit juice mixed with Añejo Blanco rum ("loco" in Spanish means "crazy"). The flavors are:
* Limon
* Mango
* Pasión
* Toronja (pink grapefruit)

International sales

The Havana Club brand is sold outside of Cuba in conjunction with the Pernod Ricard drinks giant. Havana Club is not sold in the United States, however, due to an embargo on Cuban products.
Bacardi sells a different rum in the U.S., also called Havana Club but unrelated to the Cuban version. The Bacardi product, which is made in Puerto Rico, is currently the subject of trademark violation litigation by Pernod Ricard.

References

External links

* [http://www.havana-club.com/ Official Pernod Ricard/Cuba Havana Club website]