Today marks the 150th anniversary since the foundation of one of the most famous brands in the drinks industry and who better than Bacardi to throw a party or two in celebration. For those of you not able to attend any of the official Bacardi parties around the world, why not throw your own impromptu party or even just make a Bacardi cocktail and toast Bacardi’s birthday…

For more information on Bacardi’s celebration of “150 years of bringing people together”, check out Celebrating 150 Years of the Bat. Also keep an eye on the Bacardi Facebook page for your chance to get involved with events, recipes, promotions and competitions.

Salute Bacardi and here’s to another 150 years…

In 2012, Bacardi will celebrate their 150th birthday and by the looks of things, everyone’s invited.

When Don Facundo Bacardí Massó purchased a small distillery in Santiago de Cuba on the 4th February 1862, little did he realise that he would be laying the foundations for a business that would go on to become the world’s largest privately-owned spirits company and that Bacardi would one day be the number one selling rum in the world and that it would be sold in over 150 countries worldwide, having won over 400 awards in its lifetime.

Bacardi quickly become known for its quality rum and would go on to be appointed the “Purveyors to the Royal Spanish Household”, as well as being used as the base spirit in both the original Daiquiri and Cuba Libre. It is even named in the first known recorded recipe of the centuries old Cuban Mojito. Even the American Prohibition of the early 20th century couldn’t rain on Bacardi’s parade, when instead of simply shutting up shop and calling it a day for their American interests, they simply invited those alcohol deprived Americans to fiesta in the Caribbean. Rather than hindering Bacardi’s fortunes, Prohibition actually improved them along with a number of other companies such as the airline who for a while promoted their flights with the slogan “Fly to Cuba and Bathe in BACARDI rum.”

While there have been many positives over the years there’s also been the odd bump in the road. The biggest of these was the confiscation of Bacardi’s Cuban interests in 1960. Fortunately for the Bacardi family, they had already long since opened additional distilleries and production facilities in Mexico and Puerto Rico. Fortunately for Bacardi it was a decision taken over 20 years earlier that would ensure the company’s survival beyond their forced departure from Cuba.

Despite this, Bacardi is very proud of its Cuban heritage, as well as its importance and impact on the rum industry and the somewhat impressive numbers that they’ve stacked up over the years. And proving that statistics don’t always have to be boring, take a look at the following quirky Bacardi “Fun Facts” video.

So here we are in 2012 and Bacardi is ready to celebrate 150 years of “bringing people together” and who better to throw a party than someone who’s been helping others do it for 150 years. Throughout the year, Bacardi will host one-of-a-kind birthday parties, launch special promotions featuring 100 years of ground-breaking advertising, introduce a $2,000 limited-edition decanter of rare BACARDI rum, offer travel retail exclusives and commemorative gifts, and much more for consumers to come together and share in the excitement.

Highlights of the year will include:

• Celebrate with BACARDI® at exclusive parties around the world in Berlin, Miami, London, Indianapolis, Madrid, Shanghai, Sao Paulo and cities in between bringing people together to create lasting memories
• Global Cocktail Competition: BACARDI will shake things up this year with a special edition of its Legacy Cocktail Competition, drawing mixologists from more than 25 countries to the finals in Puerto Rico on February 20.
• Enjoy the rare $2,000 Ron BACARDÍ de Maestros de Ron, Vintage, MMXII®. Created especially for the 150th anniversary, it is a blend of the finest rums laid to rest in oak barrels over the last 20 years and finished in 60-year old Cognac barrels, this vintage blend is presented in a hand-blown 500ml crystal decanter housed in a leather case.
• Birthday Cruise: Celebrity Cruises® will mark the occasion with a February 4 party aboard the Celebrity Summit® as it departs from San Juan, Puerto Rico.
• Join the party: Host your own with BACARDI party packs and share the fun on Facebook
• Win BACARDI–branded apparel in social media promotions
• Tour with National Geographic Channel where tradition and technology create BACARDI rum on “Ultimate Factories”

For more details on what’s happening and how you can celebrate Bacardi’s 150th Birthday, keep an eye on www.facebook.com/BACARDI and www.BacardiLimited.com/150.

All that remain for me to say is Happy 150th Birthday Bacardi. Here’s to the next 150 – Salute…

What better way to finish the year than with a bang and with no bigger brand in Rum, it’s fair to say that the Notting Hill Rum Club is ending 2011 in style. Monday 5th December will find Trailer Happiness playing host to Bacardi and the UK Bacardi Brand Ambassador, Shervene Shahbazkhani.

Starting at 7pm, the evening will be a mix of Cuban history, rum production and the role of Bacardi in both, along with the opportunity to try some of the best that Bacardi has to offer.

From the available everywhere Bacardi Superior and its older sibling, the Bacardi 8 Year Old to the limited production Bacardi 1909 Superior Heritage Edition. In addition, Shervene will also be bringing along several Bacardi rums that aren’t easily available in the UK, including Bacardi Solera, Bacardi Reserva Limitada and the Havana Club Brand by Bacardi, which you’ll generally only find in Miami.

Those lucky enough to attend will also get the chance to explore the process of making Bacardi Superior, with samples from 8 different stages of production, from distillation to bottling.

All in all, I think that this is going to be a great night and I’m just disappointed that I won’t be able to be there. However, anyone with an interest in good rum and its heritage really should attend and if you’ve never been along before, I can’t think of a better evening to start with.

Further details on next month’s tasting can be found on the Bacardi @ The Rum Club Facebook page. For those interested in learning more about the London Rum Club, please either visit the Rum Club website or pop into Trailer Happiness and speak to the bar staff.

With less than a week to go, the UKRumFest 2011 promises to be bigger and better than ever. Back for its 5th year and with over 400 rums to see and sample, RumFest is the biggest rum festival on the UK drinks scene, if not the world. In the words of the Global Rum Ambassador and founder of the UK RumFest, Ian Burrell, it’s “Probably the greatest rum festival and selection of rum, rhums & rons under one roof..”

Organised by The Rum Experience, ‘UK RumFest is an international celebration of rum & cane spirit’. Headed by Ian Burrell, The Rum Experience aims to promote rum & cane spirits in both the UK and around the world. And if the continued penetration of premium rum and Cachaça in the UK is anything to go by, I’d personally say that they’re succeeding in that aim.

Still misunderstood by many, rum and cachaça continue to enjoy a rise in popularity both in the trade and retail sectors and show’s like RumFest continue to promote the positive range and versatility of cane spirits.

So over the weekend of the 15th to 16th October 2011, between the hours of 12pm and 6pm, Kensington’s Olympia 2 will be transformed into a tropical island paradise. Along with the rum tastings; rum masterclasses; live cocktails demonstrations; live Caribbean music; competitions and the opportunity to be among the first to try new rums to the UK market, several new additions this year include a new Tropical Food Market, the Tiki Bar Tender of the Year competition, as well as the trade-only Boutique Rumfest.

This year’s exhibitors include: Angostura, Appleton Estate, Atlantico, Bacardi, Banks, Ron Barceló, Ron Botran, Bristol Classic Rum, Ron Brugal, Bundaberg, Captain Morgan, Chairman’s Reserve, Rhum Clement, Cruzan, Doorly’s, Ron Diplomático, Don Q, El Dorado, Flor de Caña, Germana Cachaça, Green Island Rum, Havana Club, La Mauny, Lamb’s, Leblon Cachaça, Koko Kanu, Mahiki, Mount Gay, Mount Gilboa, Myers’s, Pink Pigeon, Plantation, Pusser’s, Pyrat, Rhum J.M, Ron de Jeremy, Ron Santa Fe, St Barth, Rum Fire, Sailor Jerry, Santa Teresa, St Aubin, St Nicholas Abbey, Toz, Trois Rivieres, Wray & Nephew, XM Royal, Ypioca Cachaça and Ron Zacapa. This isn’t an exhaustive list and I’d certainly expect to see many other brands on show between the Boutique RumFest and RumFest itself.

With RumFest being such an important event on the rum calendar, you can expect to find many of the top people in the rum industry attending, including many of the rum brand ambassador’s, distributors, a number of master distillers and of course several of my fellow rum bloggers. With many of the brands showcasing their latest bottling’s at RumFest along with the many rum tastings and seminars, the Tiki Bar Tender of the Year competition live on stage and the results of the Golden Rum Barrel awards, it really is the place for any rum-lover to be.

Of course, tropical culture isn’t just about drinking rum and in true Caribbean style, the weekend will also feature live bands, playing a mixture of reggae, salsa, samba and zouk. For those who find the tropical beats and rhythms too much, relax with Bacardi at the Dominoes and Daiquiri Zone and try your hand at one of the tropics most relaxing pastimes. To complete the party why not head to the new Tropical Food Market, featuring some of the finest delicacies and cuisine from the tropics. Here you’ll find chef’s competing in the Rum Experience Chef of the Year competition, hoping to win an all expenses trip to Barbados, as well as demonstrations and seminars from the highly acclaimed rum chef Paul Yellin. Having travelled the Caribbean discovering many tropical dishes, let Paul show you how to use rum in your cooking.

Tickets are available in advance online at £22 per day or for a weekend pass at £32 per person. Tickets purchased on the day will cost £25 on the door. For your money you will recieve “Access to the world’s biggest Rum Festival, with over 400 rums to sample, 5 Rum sampling vouchers, Live musical entertainment, cocktail master-classes and demonstrations, Free rum master-classes &  rum seminars*, salsa lessons and your exclusive goody bag with branded tasting glass and show guide. *subject to availability.”

For those new to RumFest, the sampling voucher is the show’s currency and will need to be handed over for each sample. 1 voucher = 1 sample. Additional vouchers can be bought from the front desk for £1 each.

There’s also a limited number of VIP tickets for both days, priced at £40 per day, giving: fast track entry into the show; entry into the V.I.P Aged Rum Experience room; an exclusive Rum tasting masterclass; an exclusive rum & chocolate master class; a V.I.P goody bag, including a world exclusive new ‘Burrell Rum Glass’; Caribbean Canapes from Cottons Camden Restaurant and Cocktails from Appleton Jamaica Rum.

Those in the drinks trade can also attend The Boutique Rumfest, where you will have the chance to explore a range of new and boutique distillery rum, as well as attend seminars and tastings such as: Santa Teresa Tasting; Let’s Talk Rum; Diplomatico Tasting; Don’t Fear the Blender; The Art of Distillation; The Grand Tasting; El Dorado Tasting and the Bacardi Legacy Seminar. So make sure you register for the show and head down to the Hilton Olympia between 12pm and 9pm, on Friday 14th October.

So for more rum than any one man or woman could handle, live Caribbean music, great food and a totally tropical weekend, make sure you finish the London Cocktail Week by heading to the UK RumFest 2011.