Cuban Rum Brands You Should Try
With the easing of trade restrictions between Cuba and the US, cigar aficionados have begun in earnest to rev up the taste-buds with the anticipation of more widely available stock of the best Cuban cigars.
Cuban cigars, however, are not the only tasty Cuban exports to get excited about.
Rum has long been a cigar pairing choice for aficionados around the Globe and Cuba produces some of the best cigar worthy Rums.
Havana Club Maximo Extra Anejo
One of the most luxurious rums available today, the Havana Club Maximo Extra Anejo is a rum lover’s dream that offers a deeply complex and irresistibly delicious experience. With hints of wood, smoke, vanilla, spice, dark chocolate and dried fruit, this rum makes for a stunning pairing partner with the best Cuban cigars.
A Cuban Cohiba Behike BHK 52 and Havana Club Maximo Extra Anejo is a match made in heaven that will deliver one of the greatest guilty pleasures imaginable.
At an opulent price tag of over $1300.00 for one of 1,000 crystal decanters filled with beautifully aged rum, Havana Club Maximo Extra Anejo is by no means an everyday guzzler, but a sumptuous sipper that should be saved for those rare special occasions and savored with only the best of friends and cigars.
Santiago de Cuba 20 Year Extra Anejo
The mesmerizing Santiago de Cuba 20 Year Extra Anejo is a fantastic cigar pairing rum that will ignite the taste-buds like no other.
Originally created in 2000 to honor the 485th Anniversary of the city of Santiago, the rum’s namesake and hub for aged rum enthusiasts, the Santiago de Cuba 20 Year Extra Anejo offers a big and bold, yet smooth experience that has made it a cigar pairing favorite.
Every 5 years a new expression of the rum is released to coincide with the city’s anniversary, making it a rare and wonderful treat. Enjoy this rum with a Cuban Cohiba Maduro 5 Magicos for an amazing escape.
For those interested in tasting flights of rum, add the Santiago de Cuba’s 11 Year Anejo Superior to the list, another fantastically rich connoisseur favorite that will pair beautifully with a Partagas Presidentes.
Vigia Gran Reserva 18 Year
The Vigia Gran Reserva 18 Year is dark rum at its finest, aged in American oak whiskey barrels to great effect. Smooth, medium-bodied and beautifully balanced, the rum offers hints of wood, spice, tobacco, molasses and vanilla that makes it an ideal cigar pairing partner.
The $90+ per bottle Vigia Gran Reserva 18 Year will underscore any grand occasion and will deliver an immensely gratifying after dinner experience with a Cuban H. Upmann Magnum 50.
Havana Club Seleccion de Maestros
The Havana Club Seleccion de Maestros is a wonderful cigar worthy offering that proves a world class rum need not carry a top-dollar price tag. The triple barrel aged rum delivers a lively, yet beautifully composed experience loaded with notes of wood, spice, nuts, coffee, dried fruit, cocoa and tobacco.
Enjoy this fine rum with a Cuban Trinidad Robustos T for one thrilling sensory adventure.
Sancti Spiritus 17 year Cadenhead’s
This unique molasses rum is unlike any other on this list as it is distilled at the Sancti Spiritus distillery in Cuba using the column still method and then bottled by William Cadenhead, one of the oldest independent bottlers in Scotland.
The Sancti Spiritus 17 Year Cadenhead’s is a fantastic departure from the norm that will excite rum aficionados and those familiar with Cadenhead’s many whisky bottlings. This lighter in color, yet deeply flavorful rum has garnered a loyal fan base of connoisseurs as well as those not usually excited by rum.
A fantastic match for any Cuban Cohiba no matter the cigar sizes, this fine rum will also deliver a sensuous sensory experience with a Cuban Romeo y Julieta Wide Churchill.
Cubay Reserva Especial 10 Year
A popular choice in cigar lounges across the UK, the Cubay Reserva Especial 10 Year is another cigar worthy rum that will delight one and all with its sturdy, yet approachable character.
Aged in white oak, this rum offers up hints of vanilla, honey, pepper, sweet tobacco, wood and spices that will spark a delightful interplay of flavors with Cuban Montecristo cigars, especially a Montecristo Petit Edmundo.
A great all-around rum that balances a great experience with a moderate price, the Cubay Reserva Especial 10 year has become a featured member of many a cigar lover’s liquor cabinet and will always perform admirably.
Havana Club Anejo Especial
The Havana Club Anejo Especial is the everyday Cuban rum of choice for cigar aficionados around the World. Wondrously affordable and tasty too, this rum is double aged in white oak and unfurls hints of wood, tobacco, vanilla, spice, citrus and caramel which make it an ideal cigar-pairing rum.
Havana Club Anejo Especial is an amazing choice for concocting a Cuba Libre which will prove a perfect complement to a Cuban Vegas Robaina Famosos.
Whether for special occasions or for everyday enjoyment and no matter you taste or budget, there are a great many Cuban rums to match your favorite Cuban cigars.
Hopefully sooner rather than later we will all be able to ask “Which cigar lounges near me carry Cuban rum and cigars?” And then we can spark up, pour a glass of rum and savor the all of the delicious treasures that Cuba has to offer.