Fact vs. Fiction: Bacardi Rum Isn’t from Puerto Rico

Though most people associate a glug of Bacardi with a tropical cocktail, sipped while strolling the grounds of El Morro or lying on a white sandy beach… Bacardi isn’t actually Puerto Rican. Yes, you can visit Bacardi while on the island and you’ll find bars readily stock bottle upon bottle Bacardi on the shelves. But the truth is Bacardi got its start on another Caribbean island before making its way to el Boriquen.

The History of Bacardi

Here are the facts: Bacardi was founded by Don Facundo Bacardi Masso in Santiago de Cuba in 1862. The rum took off, known for being a smooth and light bodied spirit, and quickly became a hit. After 50 years of growth and being appointed “purveyors to the Royal Spanish Household”, Bacardi became Cuba’s first mult-national company, opening operations in Spain, and marking the first time the rum is bottled outside of Cuba.

Twenty years later and looking to expand once again, Bacardi opened facilities in Mexico and Puerto Rico in 1930, still two of the largest production facilities the company operates. One, in Catano, Puerto Rico, becomes home of the largest premium rum distillery in the world and in 1958, the governor names the distillery the “Cathedral of Rum”. [pagebreak]

There were some dark times though. In the tumultuous 60s, Bacardi was confiscated by the government without compensation; and forced to relocate and open production facilities abroad in Brazil, the Bahamas, and ultimately Bermuda. But the company rebounded. 

And for the next 30 years, Bacardi enjoyed unprecedented growth: acquiring General Beverage (owners of the iconic Martini & Rossi Group), Dewar’s Scotch whisky, St. Germain, Leblon Cachaca, Bombay and Bombay Sapphire gin, Cazadores tequila, and Grey Goose; and acquiring stakes in Patron.

Then in 2003, the company opened Casa Bacardi, a “multimillion dollar, state-of-the-art tourist experience” in Catano, cementing the Puerto Rico’s ties with the distillery.

Today, Bacardi is the largest privately held spirits company in the world, selling in 160 countries, with 30 production facilities around the world. And though it got its start in Cuba and made its mark in Puerto Rico, it’s headquartered in… Hamilton, Bermuda.