Bacardi Reserva....?

[blil]

A friend of mine just got back from Puerto Rico and she brought me back a bottle of "Bacardi Reserva Ron Añejo Especial." She told me the lady she bought it from said it was not available in the states. Can anyone confirm/dispell that rumor?

It's a medium golden color. Quite dry, yet rich, with warm buttery/spicy/vanilla tones. Quite nice with an ice cube or two.

[beans]

As with many wordly liquors, you may be very hard pressed to find it in the States and may quite possibly depend upon the State wherein you reside.

I found listings of it for sale listed for £29.99.

Enjoy it.

[John von Pey]

This one is available everywhere in The Netherlands. It's a nice one.

[Ed Hamilton]

Bacardi Reserva isn't sold in the states and I've yet to hear any solid reasons from the Bacardi marketing people. My guess is that they have other products that they want to sell in the states and don't want to dilute their sales of other products. As you can imagine stocking and marketing a broad product line is expensive, especially in a place with a three tier system of spirits distribution.

[Libationgoddess]

Bacardi Riserva was discontinued a couple of years back here in New York. Ed is right....the folks at Bacardi told me that they were looking to focus on promoting their 8 Year, and that keeping both products on the market here would confuse the issue for consumers.

Audrey

[PR Rum Time]

During the Bacardi tour at the distillery in Catano Puerto Rico there is a section where a bartender introduces the tour group to the line of rums. He explains that the white is aged 1 year, the gold is aged 2 years, and the select is aged 3 years. He then moves on to the Reserva which he says is aged 4 years, the 8, and then Bacardi Reserva Limitada which is said to be aged 12 years. He does advertise to tourists that the Bacardi Reserva is only available in the Caribbean and that the Reserva Limitada is only available at the “Casa Bacardi” gift shop at the end of the tour. The Reserva Limitada sells for $49.95. The label and bottle is similar to Reserva and 8. Each bottle is individually numbered. I was there last week and the bottle numbers were in the 42,000’s. The back label says “Founders blend with aged rums up to 12 years old.” For all I know It could just be Reserva(4 y/o) with a little 12 y/o dropped in and sold to tourists for $50 a pop. $50 in Puerto Rico for a bottle of Bacardi rum is very high. I can pick up 1 liter of Bacardi 8 in PR for $17.

Has anyone ever heard of Bacardi Reserva Limitada? I can’t find any information about it online. I’ve never seen it mentioned in Got Rum or by Ed. Peter doesn’t even have a label (www.rum.cz) I’m new to this forum and if I can figure out how to post a picture of the bottle I will if asked. On another note; I found it misleading that the tour guide, when asked why the Select at 3 years was darker than Reserva at 4, said “it’s not filtered as much as the other aged rums.” Any thoughts?

David

[Ed Hamilton]

Bacardi Select replaced the old Bacardi Black which is no longer bottled. As for the color it is darkened with caramel.

The Reserva is more than Black with a little 12 yo dropped in.

Bacardi Reserve used to be a blend of rums up to 6 years old, but now it is a blend of rums up to 12 years old.

Bacardi has dropped their Bacardi Spice, so if you liked that one, you should look for it now, as it will be disappearing from shelves if it hasn't already.

I can pick up 1 liter of Bacardi 8 in PR for $17.

I buy it in the BVI's for $13 and about the same in St Maarten.

The Federal tax is about $3.00 on that bottle of rum, so you might find it cheaper in St Thomas as well, though don't make a trip just for that rum.

[PR Rum Time]

Bacardi Reserve used to be a blend of rums up to 6 years old, but now it is a blend of rums up to 12 years old.

If Bacardi Reserva is a blend of rums up to 12 years old then what is the difference between it and Reserva Limitada? The Reserva Limitada states on the back label "Founders blend with aged rums up to 12 years old" and is sold for much more than Reserva.

David

[Ed Hamilton]

I can't say with authority but my guess is that the Reserva Limitada is a slightly better blend of rums sold only in select markets or given to industry friends - distributors, etc.