New York, NY – The 86 Company is proud to release Caña Brava 7-Year-Old Reserva Añeja Rum, the first dark aged spirit in their portfolio. Staying true to the company’s ethos, it has been made by a veteran master distiller with the input from the professional bartending community on how it works in classic and contemporary cocktails.
Caña Brava 7YO begins with a selection of young and fresh rums handpicked by legendary Master Distiller Francisco ‘Don Pancho’ J. Fernandez. The rums are blended to create an age base which is then further aged in used bourbon casks for over seven years before being bottled. Caña Brava 7YO is a true aged expression of its lighter and younger sibling, Caña Brava 3-Year-Old. After creating the Caña Brava 3-Year-Old Carta Blanca Rum, a small amount stayed
in casks for further aging. After seven years of total aging this rum is now ready for a one-time release. Caña Brava 7YO’s character emphasizes the fresh cut sugarcane flavors associated with their style while the aging has added depth and richness you would expect from a rum with this age. Its surprisingly dry finish and higher than normal proof (90 proof/45% ABV) give this rum additional body and flavor, making it very suitable for mixing in cocktails such as the El Presidente, Old Cuban and Rum Old Fashioned.
“We wanted to introduce a rum that would work like a rye whiskey in cocktails,” says Dushan Zaric, co-founder of The 86 Company.
The rum-making process begins with the sugarcane, which is harvested by hand. The resulting fresh sugarcane molasses is rushed to fermentation and kick-started using Don Pancho’s distinct pineapple yeast. The molasses wash ferments for approximately 24 hours before being distilled in a vintage copper & brass still built in 1922. The result is fresh aguardiente that is then aged in used American whiskey barrels for 2-3 years to become rum. This aged rum is gently filtered through charcoal before blending with fresh aguardiente to make the age base for Caña Brava rums. This blend is then further aged for seven years in used bourbon casks before being cut to 45% ABV (90 proof ) and bottled.