I realize that most here at Lem's are tee-totalers (for disparate reasons), but I am not one (yet).
I've been following the Bacardi Ltd. v. Pernot Ricard S.A. "Havana Club"rum trademark war, and even posted on it back here.
I just found this video tonight which explains better what I can't seem to say. Watch for yourself and chose sides! (I love the surprise ending taste-test):
Unbeknownst to most Americans, there is an ongoing trademark battle between Big Spirits (Bacardi vs. Pernod and the Cuban government). Long ago, there was a brand of cuban rum called Havana Club. After the revolution, the distillery and brand were appropriated by the Cuban government. Bacardi also left Havana and set up business in Puerto Rico with corporate headquarters in Bermuda. The Cubans (with financial help from the Europeans, i.e., Pernod) built the international brand of Havana Club which was available everywhere but the US. I have a bottle, procured on my honeymoon in the Caymans, which I smuggled back to the US.
More recently, Barcardi started marketing their own version of Havana Club rum in the US. They claim to have gotten the rights and original formula from the family of the long-dead owner. They are currently engaged in high-stakes litigation over who has the legal right to sell rum in the US under that brand name. Curently, Bacardi does and wants to continue to do so. Bacardi is prohibited from marketing their Havana Club in the rest of the world.
As an aside, I should point out that rum used to be the most popular spirit in the US. Recall that Rhett Butler was rum runner, not a whiskey runner. Whiskey -- and related bourbon -- dominate the US spirits market, but only became more popular during and after prohibition. In George Washington's day, applejack was the most popular hard liquor. Whiskey is presently losing ground to tequila as the number one spirit in the US, just as Bud/Coors/Miller is losing market share in beer to Pacifico/Modelo/Corona.
