3/2/2023 0 Comments Bacardi eximoHis outlawing of Christmas became a symbol of all the young Carlos had lost. So is Christmas and Castro’s decision to ban religion and the celebrations that went with it. The Cuban Revolution is at the core of Carlos Eire‘s memoir. Fortunately for Bacardi, some years earlier it had established itself in Porto Rico and Mexico, as well as the Bahamas, where it had moved some assets and the ownership of its trademarks. The company’s exit from Cuba followed Castro’s rise to power and the Cuban Revolution of 1959, after which all private property was banned and bank accounts confiscated without compensation. Neither location is one the Cuban founder would have expected of a Bacardi. It is made up of rums blended together in the Bahamas, where it is aged for 10 years in ex-bourbon American oak barrels, before being shipped to Mexico, where it is reduced to 40% abv and bottled. Like the other three premium sipping rums of the Facundo Rum Collection, Eximo honours the legacy of Facundo Bacardi Masso. Today Bacardi is the largest privately owned spirits company in the world, with over 200 brands in its portfolio. The history of Bacardi goes back to Facundo Bacardi Masso, who emigrated from Spain to Cuba and in 1862 founded the company, which, through innovative distilling processes, was able to produce a distinctively smooth, light-bodied rum. Exudes a warm spicy richness, perfect complement to Christmas cake before an open fire. Semi-sweet dark chocolate, with a smooth oak-cut of fire. On the nose is vanilla, caramel, cinnamon - spice-rich fare that continues on the taste buds. It pours dark walnut from its heavy glass decanter. But finding a reading counterpart was challenging, not unlike waiting for snow in Havana. The premium rum proved to be a perfect accompaniment to a snowy Christmas season. As with NEO, Eximo helps solidify the emerging premium rum categories with an entry well worth every penny of its $60 price.The Book: Waiting for Snow in Havana by Carlos Eire Eximo takes everything that Bacardi has accomplished with their 8 year rum and cranks it up to 11 (excuse the pun) in one of the most enchanting and alluring expressions of this style of rum we’ve had. The finish for the Facundo Eximo Rum is fantastic, slightly dry and incredibly long with bitter dark chocolate, vanilla, raisin, oak, and tobacco, flavors that continue to dance on the palate long after Eximo has come and gone. The midpalate is a sheer love letter to oak and presents a strong oak flavor in one of the most pleasant and satisfying ways we’ve seen. The midpalate of Eximo is all about oak, with the sweet vanilla and caramel notes from the entry combining with tobacco and slightly bitter dried raisin, interweaving with the oak notes with tight and impeccable integration. The journey isn’t nearly as dramatic with Eximo, but the shift is quite pleasant. As with NEO, Eximo goes on a journey from sweet and round towards dry. What’s interesting about Eximo is that it presents more oak than spice, with flavors that can be described more as deep oak, dry oak, or smokey oak than oak spice. Although the nose suggests bourbon, the entry proclaims RUM with vanilla, caramel, and toffee right there with the oak. The nose on Eximo also has a wonderful old bourbon-like quality to it, reminiscent of the character we’ve seen in 20 year old bourbons. The aromas in Eximo’s nose integrate amazingly with the sweeter notes layered in between varying levels of oak. The nose on Eximo is strong oak backed by vanilla, caramel, bananas foster, and bitter dark chocolate. In the mix are a few rums older than 10 years old (and were 1-2 years at the time of original blending), giving Eximo a total age range of 10 – 12 years. Eximo is a 10 year old rum which was blended before it was put into the barrel 10 years ago. It takes a tremendous amount of skill to do this blending BEFORE a rum is aged, and that’s what Bacardi has done with Eximo. That product must state the youngest rum in the mix, but often there are small amounts of older rums to help add dimensionality and depth. Blending after aging gives a blender a great amount of ability to balance and shape the character of a rum. Facundo Eximo Rum (40% ABV / 80 proof, $60) – a lot of aged rums are a result of blending a number of different rums together after aging into a single, unified product.
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