Cubaney Rum Tasting with the Sydney Rum Club

On the top floor of Cruise Bar overlooking Sydney Harbour, Justin Boseley, rum connoisseur, collector and importer of Cubaney Rum speaks to a captive audience.

“What defines rum for me is that I can identify each bottle with a time, place, location and party. That’s the best thing for me. I look at a bottle at the bar and it reminds me of that time, that carnival, that cocktail…”

Justin Boseley with Sydney Rum Club

Justin Boseley knows his rum as much as he knows his way around the Caribbean. He has worked on some of the most luxurious yachts of the rich and famous, following the sun and dividing his time between the Caribbean and Mediterranean.

Not bad for a man who began his career fifteen years earlier in the mining sector, digging and filling holes before he was exiled to Woomera in the ‘outback’ desert area of South Australia, a town with a population of 400.

The lure of the seas and a better lifestyle had him swap his job for a one way ticket to Nice in the south of France. There, he landed a job as a deckhand on a boat then worked his way high up the ranks, including a long stint as chief officer on Roman Abramovich’s Pelorus, a 120m-long luxury boat complete with helipads.

Always humble in his stories, he declares that he was originally a devout Bundy drinker. During his first Caribbean season, he discovered new rums which led to an appreciation of all brands, and in turn, into a hobby of collecting various rums from his travels. Later, he gave up a lifestyle many would dream of, turned his passion into his profession, and set up La Rumbla Imports importing Cubaney Rum.

Cubaney Rum

Cubaney Rum (pronounced cuba – neh) comes from the Dominican Republic, one of the largest islands in the Caribbean. Produced by Oliver y Oliver, one of the most renowned rum-making families, its production dates back to the 1868 in Cuba. During the Cuban revolution, the family fled to various parts of the world including the Dominican Republic and it was in 1980s that the grandson discovered the original recipe and the rum was produced.

Sydney Rum Club Tasting at Cruise Bar

Cubaney Rum produce an impressive range of ten ages, from the 3 year Silver Blanco and 3 year Solera Añejo (all 38% ABV) to the award winning 30 year old Centennario (41% ABV). The rum is produced the same way but each is aged differently. They employ a combination of sherry, wine, bourbon and French oak with the barrels aged on their side which gives more exposure to air and results in various expressions and flavours.

Ron Cubaney 8 yo, 18 yo and 25 yo

Cubaney Rum 8 Years Solera Reserva is aged for over eight years in small oak casks in high temperatures of the Caribbean. The rum is sweet and smooth, not overly oaked with a good caramel flavour and some toasted aromas. This is a good entry point sipping rum which can also be used in cocktails.

Moving up in age, Cubaney Rum 18 Years is dark red in hue with a balance of fruit, caramel and oak with much less burn on the palate. The long ageing gives it smoothness and complexity and makes it enjoyable to sip on its own at the end of a meal.

Dark cherry in colour with strong fruity aromas as well as vanilla and old oak Cubaney Rum 25 Years is spicy on the nose and the palate with loads of caramel. Sophisticated rum, silky smooth with lingering finish, this is an excellent rum with a touch of more spice.

Justin Boseley with Cubaney Rum Centennario

With the official tasting over, Justin mingles with the guests and offers a taste of Cubaney Rum Centennario which comes in an elegant perfume-like bottle. Dark in colour, velvety in the mouth with almost no burn, the rum has a rich dark caramel flavour perfectly balanced with oak and sherry notes. This is a luxurious sipping rum, ultra-smooth, and one of the best.

L-R: Justin Boseley and Tom Bulmer (Sydney Rum Club)

The Cubaney Rum Tasting with the Sydney Rum Club was held at Cruise Bar on Monday 11 February 2013.

Photography by Kevin Burke for Gourmantic – (c) All rights reserved.

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Other Sydney Rum Club articles:

• Ron de Jeremy Rum at Assembly Bar
• Bundaberg and Australian Rum at the Imperial Hotel
• Gosling’s Rum and Pusser’s Rum at Cargo Bar
• Flor de Cana Rum at Mojo Bar