Flor de Caña Rum

by Brian Donnelly

Location: Chinandega, Nicaragua, 81mile (130km) North of Managua ( 2.5 Hours by Car)

Master Blender: Pedro Uriarte

Established: 1937

Fun Fact: Flor de Caña is Sugar-Free, Gluten Free, and Kosher, and has one of the largest stocks of aged rum in the world, due to the lack of exports during the political turbulence of the 1970’s and 1980s in Nicaragua.

History

In 1875, Alfredo Francisco Pellas Canessa immigrated from Genoa, Italy to Nicaragua, and founded the San Antonio Mill in 1890, one of the oldest and largest sugar mills in the country. Younger rums were produced here to celebrate the sugarcane harvest, and a small quantity of aged rums were produced for the mill proprietors. Compañia Licorera de Nicaragua (CLN) was founded in 1937 in Chichigalpa, Nicaragua, and became the distilling operation for San Antonio, producing aged rum on a large scale. The distillery Chichigalpa has been independently owned and operated by the Pellas Family for five generations. The company is currently run by Carlos Pellas, President and CEO of Compañia Licorera de Nicaragua. 

Single Estate Volcanic Rum

Flor de Caña, which means Cane Flower in Spanish, is a Single Estate Spanish Style rum, with all stages of the production process done at Compañia Licorera de Nicaragua, including raw material sourcing, maturation, and bottling. The Flor de Caña distillery is located only 5 miles from the San Cristobal volcano, the tallest and most active volcano in Nicaragua, with an elevation of 5,725 ft (1,745 m). The surrounding land and water has been enriched by the unique volcanic climate. The San Cristobal volcano has had around 30 eruptions dating back to the 16th century, and volcanic ash has fertilized the soil, and the water is enriched by minerals that has infiltrated the underground reservoirs. In addition to soil and water, the hot volcanic climate generates a deep degree of interaction with the aging rum and the barrel. 

Production

The sugarcane is grown and processed into molasses at the company owned sugar plantation,  Ingenio San Antonio, in Chichigalpa, and is brought to the distillery by tankers. The molasses is cut with water to the desired sweetness before a 36 fermentation. During the fermentation process, excess carbon-dioxide from the fermentation process is collected and sold to the Coca-Cola bottling plant. 

Distillation

Flor de Caña is distilled 5x in a five-column still, which is powered by steam generated from burning biogas at the sugar mill. Depending on the combination of columns used in the distillation process, each expression is distilled to different specification, depending if it will end up as a lighter or heavy mark of final rum. Rum produced in a column still, means almost all the flavor will come from the barrel during maturation. 

Maturation

Master Blender Pedro Uriarte knows exactly which final expression all new make rum will become, even before it enters the barrel. Each expression is designated with a number (4, 7, 12, 18, 25), but these are not age statements. Rum has absolutely no regulations when it comes to labeling, and age designation. Flor de Caña is aged in Ex-Bourbon barrels, with no additional artificial additives or flavors used in the maturation process. The on-site original aging warehouses are not climate controlled, and contain no electricity, ventilation, or humidifiers. The rum ages naturally with the tropical climate of Nicaragua. This leads to a very high proportion being lost to the angels share. This natural and traditional aging process has been termed “Slow-Aged,™” by the brands parent company, William Grant & Sons. The more mature marks from Flor de Caña are referred to as The Centenario Collection.

Environmental Sustainability

The Flor de Caña distillery is one of the most environmentally friendly facilities in Latin America, if not the world. They were the first rum distillery to earn a ISO900 and ISO14000 certifications, which are both internationally recognized environmental management systems given to companies that minimize their carbon footprint, and do not negatively affect their environmental surroundings during production, including air, water, and land. The distillery uses all bi-products and waste are recycled back into energy to power the plant, and almost 100% of all water used is recycled. During the fermentation process, 120,000 tons of CO² are recaptured, purified, and used in the manufacturing of soft drinks. 

Social Responsibility 

Flor de Caña became Fair Trade Certified™ on February 8th, 2018, and all new bottles will carry the iconic Fair Trade Certified™ logo.  The brand earned this certification by using 100% renewable energy, sustainably sourcing all raw materials, and by planting 50,000 trees annually (twice the size of Central Park in New York City). 

Since 1913, the school run by the company, offers free education to the children of its employees (600 children enrolled today from elementary through high school) and since 1958 the company hospital offers free medical attention to its employees and their families (over 2,500 births to date). In addition, for over 25 years, the brand has been the main donor of APROQUEN, a Nicaraguan non-profit founded in 1992 that has provided over 500,000 free medical services to child burn victims and children with cleft lip or palate. 

Please Drink Responsibly.

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