Flor de Caña
The history of Flor de Caña rum
The origins of Flor de Caña lie in a huge sugarcane plantation founded in 1890 by Alfredo Francisco Pellas, near Chichigalpa in Nicaragua. It was the same Pellas family who set up the distillery (Compania Licorera de Nicaragua) in 1937, and who still run what is the country's only rum distillery.
That same year, 1937, saw the birth of the first Flor de Caña bottlings: Etiquette Jaune (amarilla) and Etiquette Rouge (roja). At the time, they were reserved exclusively for the Nicaraguan market. The first rum with an age count (5 years) appeared in 1959, followed by Etiquette noire (negra) and Etiquette Superior, which also began to be exported to neighboring Latin American countries.
After a first major modernization phase in 1963, a second distillery was opened in Honduras in 1973, a sign of abundant demand and excellent financial health.
In 1980, after the political revolution of 1979 and the hyperinflation that caused sales to plummet, Flor de Caña built up a huge stock of aged rums, which even today makes it one of the world's largest reserves.
A second major modernization took place in 1996, before Flor de Caña decided to export worldwide in 1999, launching the Centenario 21 vintage for the occasion.
The distillery continued to expand and make a name for itself, and in 2005 launched the 18-year-old, which won acclaim in several international competitions.
In 2013, the brand got a makeover, with a new image and above all new, more modern bottles. The 25-Year-Old was launched in 2014, and has also won numerous awards.
Flor de Caña rums
The distillery that produces Flor de Caña rum lies at the foot of the San Cristobal volcano, one of Nicaragua's most active. This location is beneficial in more ways than one: for example, the cane that grows at its feet feeds on the minerals deposited by the volcano's ash, and the water that irrigates the soil is enriched and filtered by the lava rock.
Flor de Caña rums are very light molasses rums, distilled 5 times on a continuous column system. They are aged in American white oak barrels that have previously contained Bourbon, and contain no added sugar.
The distillery is also 100% powered by renewable energy.
Flor de Caña offers a wide range of rums, both for mixology and tasting.
Extra-dry is a crystal-clear 4-year-old rum. How is this possible? Aged in oak barrels, this rum has colored on contact with wood, but has been charcoal-filtered to remove all coloring particles. This technique is much appreciated by bartenders and mixologists, as it allows them to introduce an aged rum into a recipe that will not color the cocktail.
The same technique was used for the Blanco Reserva 7 yo, which offers even more character.
The range of tasting rums starts with the 12-year-old, continues with the 18-year-old, and finally you can discover the 25-year-old, the pride of the Nicaraguan brand. Wood and spice are the main hallmarks of these old rums, which share a certain sweetness that becomes more pronounced with age. Read less
