Two Sheffield bar owners have gone to extraordinary lengths to ensure their customers are some of the first in the world to sample one of the rarest and most expensive rums ever produced – The Havana Club 1519.
Adrian Bagnoli and Brad Charlesworth, owners of the city’s Cubana, did a 9,000 mile round trip to Havana to ensure they were the first bar outside of Cuba to purchase two bottles of the blend so old and rare that its original designers have now passed away. But at £250 a shot it definitely won’t suit every customers palate or pocket.
The Havana Club 1519, whose ageing process started in the early 1940s, has only just been launched in honour of the 500-year-old history of Havana and goes on sale at the renowned Sheffield bar this weekend.
Only 500 bottles exist in the world with only 250 of these available for sale. Collectors from around the globe are now queuing up to buy them at nearly £3,000 a bottle.
Adrian Bagnoli said, “The fact we were allowed to buy the very first two bottles to leave Cuba goes to show how far our status has grown in the rum world in recent years. It was an honour to be have been offered the opportunity to purchase this top quality rare rum at Havana Club HQ and, although not many people will be buying rum at such a hefty price tag it ensures we continue to develop our position as one of the country’s leading centres for rum.”