Light and Soft
Spanish Style: Ron from Cuba, Puerto Rico, Venezuela and Central America
Spanish style refers to Ron from formerly Spanish territories such as Cuba, Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic, Venezuela and Central America: made from molasses, distilled in columns, often filtered and blended over long aging. It's the lightest and softest of the major rum styles.
What Makes the Spanish Rum Style So Light?
In the 19th century, distillers in Cuba began favoring a lighter, more refined Ron. Their tool was the column still. It distills continuously and at high proof, causing the distillate to lose many heavier congeners. Bacardí, founded on February 4, 1862 in Santiago de Cuba, made this light, smooth rum famous worldwide. Its main distillery is now located in Cataño, Puerto Rico, since the company was nationalized in Cuba in October 1960.
A short fermentation also contributes to the lightness. The rules of the Cuban designation of origin specify 24 to 26 hours, whereas in Jamaica it historically lasted over a week. Filtration through activated carbon adds further refinement. What remains tastes clean, mild and not very fruity. In Spanish, the drink is called Ron. Ron ligero, or light rum, is the base form from which the darker Añejos are created through aging and blending.
Ron Cubano: Aguardiente, Filtering and Two Aging Stages
Cuba has codified the method most precisely. The Cuban designation of origin, nationally protected since 2010 and pending in the EU, requires molasses from Cuban cane and continuous columns. First, an aguardiente—a base distillate at 74 to 76% ABV—is aged. It's then blended with a filtered, nearly neutral distillate and water to create Ron Base, which ages a second time in used white oak barrels, usually 180 to 250 liters.
At least two aging stages are mandatory, three for Extra Añejo. Aging must take place entirely in Cuba, though bottling can occur abroad. The Maestros del Ron Cubano, the Cuban rum masters, oversee the stages and blending. Young bottlings appear bright and lemony, older ones dry, with tobacco, cocoa, vanilla and wood. The best-known brand is Havana Club. Behind the Cuban version has stood a joint venture between Cuba Ron and Pernod Ricard since 1993.
Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic, Venezuela: Aging by Law
Several countries mandate a minimum aging period, setting them apart from many other rum regions. Puerto Rico requires at least one year in white oak for all rum. The Dominican Republic has a designation of origin, Ron Dominicano, that requires fermentation, distillation and at least one year of oak barrel aging within the country. Brugal from Puerto Plata, Barceló and Bermúdez are among the major houses there. Their style ranges from dry to distinctly soft.
Venezuela goes further. The designation of origin Ron de Venezuela requires at least two years of oak barrel aging and Venezuelan raw material. Diplomático, sold as Botucal in Germany, and Santa Teresa show how round and rich the Spanish style can become. Some brands of this style add noticeable sweetening. In the EU, up to 20 grams per liter is permitted, and the amount doesn't need to appear on the label. How to detect sugar in rum is explained in the topic Sugar and Additives.
Guatemala, Panama, Nicaragua: Solera and Cane Syrup
In Central America, the solera method, originating from Spanish sherry production, has become widespread. The barrels are arranged in tiers, and young rum is gradually added to barrels containing older rum. The number on such bottles refers to the oldest component, not the average. At Zacapa from Guatemala, the blend ranges from roughly 6 to 23 years, which is why the label reads Sistema Solera 23. Under EU law, this is not considered an age statement.
Guatemala holds a geographical indication registered in the EU register, Ron de Guatemala. Zacapa is distilled from sugarcane syrup, meaning thickened juice, and according to the producer ages at 2,300 meters altitude near Quetzaltenango. Panama, with Varela Hermanos in Pesé, and Nicaragua, with Flor de Caña in Chichigalpa, round out the picture: light column distillates, long barrel aging, plenty of vanilla and caramel. Tasted alongside a Jamaican rum, such a Ron can feel almost velvety.