Ron Rumbero Cuban Rum Aged 7 Years. Sadly the review of this particular rum is not as a result of a trip to Cuba. Nor is it even the result of a brief sojourn to Europe. It is in fact due to a visit to the Lidl Supermarket on Roker Avenue……..

I appreciate that those of you familiar with this site will be surprised to see someone as sophisticated and refined as myself shopping in a discount German Supermarket. Especially those who have met me. This bottling was of course purchased for me by my domestic help on their weekly shop.

Ron Rumbero Cuban Rum Aged 7 Years comes with the familiar green “Republica de Cuba Garantia” which is the Cuban Governments Warranty for Cuban Rum. I’m not sure how far I would “trust” anything coming out of Cuba. That said, this green label is an indicator that the rum has been produced in Cuba, inline with the islands own “rules and regulations” on rum production.

So I know that this rum is produced in Cuba and is a true Cuban rum. So which distillery produces this? Well it is produced at the world famous Bimmerle Private Distillery which is in the Cuban city of Achern-Mösbach, Germany. Which of course also produces Cuban favourites such as Finton’s Pink Gin and Ignis Raspberry French Grain Vodka…..

Yes the Bimmerle Private Distillery is the “heart” of Lidl’s European distribution. From this operation they supply their supermarkets with a variety of wines, spirits and Ready to Drink options. Whether it does “distil” anything is questionable. For the purposes of this review Ron Rumbero Cuban Rum Aged 7 Years is imported to Germany for bottling/labelling having been distilled and aged in Cuba.

Unfortunately despite my best efforts (and ignoring some speculation I found online) I do not have any reliable information on which Cuban Rum Distillery produces this. Volume wise it must be one of the island’s bigger hitters. That doesn’t really cut things down that much though as the islands distilleries are all government controlled and capable of pumping out a fair amount of rum.

So what do I know about Ron Rumbero Cuban Rum Aged 7 Years? Well, I assume it is a rum made from a molasses base, which is column distilled (multi column) in the Cuban style and then aged in ex-bourbon barrels for 7 years in Cuba. It is then shipped to Germany for distribution in Lidl supermarkets in Europe (and possibly further afield).

Oh it is also bottled at a rather stingy 38% ABV. I don’t normally object to rum being bottled at 37.5/38% ABV as it is usually only the very bottom tier of supermarket spirits that get such treatment. Due to the cost and expectation of such spirits I can tolerate it. For a 7 year old rum to be bottled at 38% ABV I feel is a bit of a stretch.

Should you wish to purchase a 70cl bottle of this it will set you back £17.99. It is only available in Lidl, though oddly enough the odd bottle has come up on Rum Auction sites. Presumably by enthusiasts/scalpers of other spirits (Scotch Whisky) thinking they could make a quick buck on some Cuban Rum. Maybe in the US but not here lads and lasses……

Anyway I’m quite pleased to see I’ve got the word count up over 500 words before I’ve even started commenting on the actual rum! Not bad considering I know sweet FA about this rum!

Presentation wise as you can see it comes in a standard short necked bar style bottle with a good quality well threaded screw cap with Aged 7 Years written on the cap in similar style to Havana Club 7. As with a lot of Lidl’s offerings the presentation is a gentle reminder of other “Premium” brands it has in its sights. Hoping the penny pinching consumer will give their cheaper offering ago.

So enough of my prattling lets get on with the review.

In the glass Ron Rumbera Cuban Rum Aged 7 Years is a golden/dark brown coloured spirit. The “brown spirit” colour you will find in nearly all continuous aged releases. Nothing remarkable a little orange/yellow hue around the edges. I would suggest that there is a little caramel colouring (as there is in most continuous releases). However the German market usually notes when colouring has been added whether Lidl have opted to remove this from the UK release I’m not sure. The back label is a UK only label as it has the HMRC purple excise sticker.

Anyway its not really much of a point anyway. The colour isn’t the important thing. I’m already pretty low on information on this rum so ruminating over the addition of caramel or not seems a bit moot at this point. There are however around 8g/l of additives in this bottling.

On the nose its light and sweet. Quite tropical in fact. Getting some notes of Pineapple, Grapefruit and even some Passion Fruit! It has a little smoke and some more aged/oaked notes but not as much as I might have hoped for. The overall aroma on the sip is definitely at the sweeter end of the spectrum. Toffee and Caramel mingle with the fruitier notes.

All in all it feels a little muted and clipped. Homogenised as if the profile has been made to suit most people rather than really be enjoyed by a Cuban rum lover. The low ABV probably doesn’t help but its just a bit thin and to light on the nose for me. It is doesn’t smell old enough……..

On the sip it is a little punchier than the nose, which is not really saying much if I am being honest. There is an initial burst of spice and some fruity notes – note as fruity as the nose – we are talking more smoke and oakiness here so the fruitiness is more stoned fruits for me. A little bit of Peach but more overwhelming is the Dark Plum notes. Almost moving into the realms of Prunes and Dates.

It is for me like a sweeter Havana Club 7 at this point. Much less smoke, cigar and oak. So it feels less complex.

Even as a first drink this is overall very short. The initial entry is easy going, quite sweet and basically pretty agreeable. It’s not “bad” in anyway. At the same time its a bit meh. This probably wouldn’t be an issue if the mid palate and finish had something to say.

Sadly it all just kind of falls apart. The mid palate is a rather meek hint of oak and wood spice that just very quickly dries out. Into the finish……….

Which just doesn’t. There is virtually no finish. It just ends. No real flavour, no mouthfeel no nothing. I’m left with a flavourless buzz in my mouth.

Being fair though I am sipping an £18 38% ABV bottling of what is already a fairly light style of rum. Was I expecting anything else? The answer is no as a sipper probably not in all honesty.

It would only seem fair at this point to give this a go as a mixer as I’m pretty sure the rest of this bottle will end up in a few weekend rum and colas.

Ron Rumbero Cuban Rum Aged 7 Years is fine in a rum and cola. Better than average and certainly a step up from the usual supermarket rums. Yes the bar is being set low but it reflects the price.

It’s not an awful rum though. It is light as is its style. Its not the best example of Cuban rum around.

Ron Rumbera Cuban Rum Aged 7 Years is bang average overall but at the price point you won’t find a great deal better. Especially not in the Cuban category,.

That said Sainsburys have Ron de Santiago 8 Year Old in stock for £25 (sometimes cheaper for club card holders) and I’d go for that personally. Obviously you’ll have to get dressed to go to to Sainsbury’s though rather than wearing your Pyjama’s.