Ron Colon Salvadoreno - Coffee Infused Rum

The Story

During Spanish Colonial rule, a part of their Central American empire was carved out into a new province and named El Salvador after Jesus Christ “The Savior.” At that time, colonist used rum like a currency to trade with the Pipil and other Indigenous peoples of El Salvador. Because of its trade vale and its associated byproducts, molasses and rum, sugar cane quickly became one of the most valuable crops in the region and the cause of numerous conflicts.

As the economy of El Salvador progressed, rum was supplanted by the peso as the currency of choice. Then in 1892, President Carlos Ezeta and the government of El Salvador renamed the Salvadorian peso to the Colón in honor of the 400th anniversary of Spain’s “discovery” of the New World. And for the next 109 years the Colón remained the national currency until El Salvador replaced it with the U.S. Dollar in 2001.

Since the 1920s Ingenio La Cabana has been growing and processing sugar cane near the Mayan ruins of Cihuatán, north of San Salvador. In 2004, Cabana built the distillery Licorera Cihuatan, which is overseen by Master Distiller and Blender Gabriella Ayala, and is the source of the Salvadorian rum used in Ron Colón Salvadoreño products.

While wars may no longer be fought over rum and the colón is no longer in use, their powerful history remains with Ron Colón Salvadoreño, the currency of El Salvador

The Rum

Ron Colón Salvadoreño Rum blend creates an unusual flavor palate. The Salvadorian rum on its own brings a fruit-forward tropical nose with a light, dry finish. To create the perfect rum, they added a small amount of Jamaican rum to give it earthiness, creating the perfect balance.

The Beans

Jags Head Coffee has been grown by the same family for the past 150 years. Their coffee plantations sit on the side of the Santa Ana Volcano, in the Apaneca-Ilamatepecmountains, home to El Salvador’s first DOC for coffee. Jags Head grows the bourbon variety of coffee at their El Cipres farm 5,577 feet above sea level, surrounded by groves of cherry trees. Which the family believes adds a rich chocolate character with cherry and sweet honey flavors to the coffee as it ripens.