Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/164544
"C ongratulations on crafting a Five Star rum." When most people deliver such praise, it's welcome, perhaps sincere, but mostly meaningless. When these words are spoken by Joseph Cinque, President and CEO of the American Academy of Hospitality Sciences, it's official: You're the best of the best. Since its founding in 1949, the Academy has been recognizing excellence in various fields of hospitality—primarily restaurants and hotels. Now, for the first time, a rum distiller has been honored with the Academy's prestigious Five Star Diamond Award. During a ceremony at the Museo del Arte de Puerto Rico in San Juan, Destilería Serrallés was honored for its Don Q Gran Añejo Rum. The rum and its distillery instantly join the ranks of Mercedes-Benz, Trump International and Chefs David Burke and Thomas Keller, among others, in being recognized for excellence. Destilería Serrallés has been family-owned since 1864. In addition to crafting fine rums, the company supports many social programs throughout Puerto Rico. Serrallés employs nearly 600 people and is environmentally sustainable, one of the very few distilleries in the world that can make that claim. The company's social consciousness and environmental record may have contributed to the award, but the quality in the bottle is what Joseph Cinque, President and CEO of the Academy, cites as the reason for the distinction. "Don Q is the finest premium rum I have ever experienced," says Cinque, "created by six generations of the Serrallés family. They have truly mastered the art of rum distillation." "It is remarkable that our handcrafted aged rum, produced in very small quantities, is the first ever in its class to receive this outstanding distinction," said Roberto Serrallés, Ph.D., Vice President of Business Development at Destilería Serrallés and a member of the sixth generation of the Serrallés family. In thanking the Academy for the honor, he said, "It means a great deal for a family-owned distillery to be honored by this internationally recognized award body. This reinforces our belief in the craft and dedication we put into every aspect of our rums." Don Q rums are distilled five times. The Don Q Gran Añejo is a blend of rums six to 12 years old. It is aged in Spanish solera sherry casks, which "gives it complexity and flavor unique to aged rums," says Serrallés. "This is our crown jewel of the portfolio." "We congratulate Don Q Gran Añejo for winning a Five Star Diamond Award from the Academy of Hospitality Sciences," says Nick Velic, Manager of Empire Steakhouse in New York City, which has also been honored by the Academy. "The excellence in the bottle is only matched by the distillery's social activism and environmental record. Having received a Five Star Diamond Award ourselves, and benefited greatly from the attention it receives and prestige it earns, we know that this honor instantly launches Don Q into the highest echelons of quality spirits." Roberto Serrallés is proud to share the award with Puerto Rico: "It is a huge honor to be the only country with a rum distillery recognized, since Puerto Rico is known as the 'rum capital' worldwide." Nic Velic, Manager of the Empire Steakhouse in NYC. september 2013 / the tasting panel / 71 TP0913_063-103.indd 71 8/22/13 9:23 PM