 | |
 Ron Zacapa Centenario 23 | |
| Type | Rum |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer | Industrias Licoreras de Guatemala |
| Distributor | Diageo |
| Origin | Guatemala |
| Website | Ron Zacapa website |
Ron Zacapa Centenario is apremium rum produced inGuatemala[1] by Rum Creation and Products, a subsidiary ofIndustrias Licoreras de Guatemala, and distributed and marketed byDiageo. Zacapa Centenario was created in 1976 to celebrate the hundredth anniversary of the foundation ofZacapa, a town in easternGuatemala. It was the result of the blending, stabilization and maturing processes of long-aged rums by doctor and chemist named Alejandro Burgaleta.[2] Ron Zacapa is distinctive in that it is aged in a facility at an altitude with natural coolness which avoids evaporation resulting in an unusually smooth product.
Zacapa is a small town in eastern Guatemala founded in 1876. The rum was named for its 100th anniversary in 1976; the name Zacapa means "on the river of grass" in the Aztec (Nahuatl) language.[3] Burgaleta also developed and created the rum Venado, another product of Industrias Licoreras de Guatemala. Early Zacapa bottles came in a bottle covered in apetate[4] – a handwoven matting made from palm leaves which dates from theMayan period made in Esquipulas, near the borders with Honduras and El Salvador, by traditional hat artisans. More recently they feature a band around the middle of the bottle of Zacapa No. 23 Rum.[5] Ron Zacapa Centenario 23 used to be known as Ron Zacapa Centenario 23 Años. Its name changed due to the confusion it caused, as people thought it was a 23-year-old rum instead of a blend of rums between 6 and 23 years old.[6]
The rum won first place in the premium rums category 4 years in a row at the International Rum Festival 1998, 1999, 2000 and 2001. It was the first rum to be included in the International Rum Festival's Hall of Fame.[7]