Havana Club Rum

[amaxp81]

So.. I dove into Cuban cigars and am in love.. Have purchased 5 or 6 boxes in just the first 2 months of my explorations...  Now my wife and I are thinking "wouldn't it be fun to get some Cuban rum to go with these cigars?" 

Tell me - in the US it looks like you CAN order Havana Club Rum.... What's your take on the line - what are good bottles to try and what are ones to avoid?  Trying to navigate the maze online and see what I should start with for a first order of a few bottles....

[dangolf18]

29 minutes ago, amaxp81 said:

So.. I dove into Cuban cigars and am in love.. Have purchased 5 or 6 boxes in just the first 2 months of my explorations...  Now my wife and I are thinking "wouldn't it be fun to get some Cuban rum to go with these cigars?" 

Tell me - in the US it looks like you CAN order Havana Club Rum.... What's your take on the line - what are good bottles to try and what are ones to avoid?  Trying to navigate the maze online and see what I should start with for a first order of a few bottles....

Cuban rum is still illegal. I've had Havana Club 3 Anos, 7 Year, and 15 year. The 3 is great for mixing. The 7 is average. The 15 is extremely good but fairly pricey. IMO there are much better rums out there. I thought I was going to be blown away by Havana Club because it's cuban and because of it's notoriety, but if you want a better rum, just go with Zaya 12, Ron Zacapa, or Ron Abuelo. Just my 2 cents.

[Lotusguy]

My favorite Havana Club is the Selecion De Maestros. So much better than the Anejo 7 which is a bit rough.

[Ken Gargett]

5 hours ago, amaxp81 said:

So.. I dove into Cuban cigars and am in love.. Have purchased 5 or 6 boxes in just the first 2 months of my explorations...  Now my wife and I are thinking "wouldn't it be fun to get some Cuban rum to go with these cigars?" 

Tell me - in the US it looks like you CAN order Havana Club Rum.... What's your take on the line - what are good bottles to try and what are ones to avoid?  Trying to navigate the maze online and see what I should start with for a first order of a few bottles....

you might be looking at a "different" havana club.

the basic story is that havana club was a fairly small cuban brand and pernod ricard decided they wanted a product to challenge bacardi and so invested heavily in this small cuban rum brand and now distribute it worldwide(ish). it went from a small rum to one of the world's leading spirits. this was early 90s, i think - previously, i gather it was a local rum and also exported to the USSR, though who knows how much or if even true. bacardi was pissed and set up their own havana club rum around the same time. it is the one sold in the states. i've never tried it so no idea of quality.

needless to say, the two companies have been involved in extensive litigation and this is likely to go on for years yet.

[mi000ke]

I currently have the Zacapa 23, El Dorado 12, and Havana Club 7 on my shelf, and the HC is my preferred go-to. especially with a cigar.  I find the El Dorado too sweet, and the Zacapa too spicy for my cigar pairing, but the HC seems just right.   But to each his/her own.  We bring the HC back from the Caribbean where we get it duty free for less than $20/bottle, so it's a pretty good deal all around.  And the US HC (made in Puerto Rico by Bacardi) is not the same as the Cuban HC.