A Brugal Summer

Some years ago, in the middle of what seemed a brutal winter, we booked ourselves a week at a resort in Puerto Plata, where we rented a motor scooter - and promptly crashed along a dirt road, much to the amusement of the locals.

Fortunately, there was also a casino, where we assuaged our skinned knees, elbows, palms, and shins with copious amounts of the local elixir, Brugal rum.

The number one rum in the Caribbean, Brugal & Company was founded in 1888 by Andres Brugal Montaner, a Spaniard from Sitges who emigrated to Cuba and then to Puerto Plata, where he opened his distillery - which is still the production and aging plant for Brugal rum and one of the island's more popular attractions.

Part of our reason for booking that long-ago vacation was due to a couple of friends who had returned from Puerto Plata - with nearly a case of the local elixir, which they proceeded to share with us throughout the long, hot summer and which quickly became our favored libation.

Aged two to five years, Brugal Ron Anejo is a light amber rum with a smooth taste redolent of caramel, vanilla, banana, and brown sugar. You can sense the wood, the white oak barrels, in its well-balanced aroma. It's a smell that takes you back to islands you've known, idyllic locales where you've done nothing but bake in the sun and linger by the pool and dress for dinner, your amber skin glowing as brilliantly as Brugal rum.

By now, nearly everyone who cares about spirits recognizes the iconic red, white, and blue Brugal shield - and the yellow fishnet-wrapped bottle. There's something humbly democratic about the plastic screw top and the slightly cheesy bottle, something that takes you back to fish shacks on the beach where you grilled your supper and sipped rum from the bottle - and woke on the beach the next morning, your dignity barely intact.

In its home country, Brugal is such an institution - and its shield so beloved - that Brugal & Company has initiated a road signage improvement project, distributing more than 3,000 road markers across the country. Furthermore, the Brugal Foundation, founded in 1991, works to reduce poverty through childhood education - and with recognition of an annual "Anonymous Hero" award.

Years after our motor scooter crash, we're still drinking Brugal Ron Anejo - and not only because that night at the casino, we walked away with five Benjamins in our pockets. Good luck - or Brugal?

That's why, for us, it's always a Brugal summer.

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Golden Mojito

1. Gently mix Brugal Anejo Rum with sugar syrup, a few lime wedges, and a handful of mint leaves - all in a high glass.

2. Fill glass with crushed ice - and mix ingredients.

3. Top with ginger ale and a mint sprig.

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LINK: Brugal