{"id":7809,"date":"2017-12-21T18:58:41","date_gmt":"2017-12-21T18:58:41","guid":{"rendered":"\/blog\/post\/santa-teresa-rum-turbulence-trust-and-transformation\/"},"modified":"2025-03-04T13:56:00","modified_gmt":"2025-03-04T13:56:00","slug":"santa-teresa-rum-turbulence-trust-and-transformation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.masterofmalt.com\/blog\/post\/santa-teresa-rum-turbulence-trust-and-transformation\/","title":{"rendered":"Santa Teresa Rum: Turbulence, trust and transformation"},"content":{"rendered":"

It was once the powerhouse of South America, but over the last 20 years, Venezuela has been subject to unrelenting economic and political crises. We discovered how its oldest rum<\/a> distillery, Santa Teresa<\/a>, became an engine of transformation for a country in chaos…<\/strong><\/p>\n

Venezuela is beleaguered and broken. The government has racked up gargantuan debts<\/a> that it cannot afford to pay. The value of the country\u2019s main commodity, oil, has nosedived. A national poll revealed<\/a> that food shortages are so severe that the average Venezuelan living in extreme poverty lost 19 pounds in weight during 2016.\u00a0 Those who can afford to leave are fleeing in their millions.<\/p>\n

But in the midst of the crime, the corruption, and the humanitarian crises, there are glimmers of change, led by trailblazers like Santa Teresa. Since we couldn\u2019t visit the Hacienda in person, the Hacienda came to us \u2013 well, to a beautiful house in the centre of Madrid \u2013 where Luis Viera Landaluce, Santa Teresa’s regional marketing manager, transported us through the estate\u2019s 221-year history…<\/p>\n

Santa Teresa Rum: The history<\/h3>\n

Located in El Consejo within the fertile valley of Aragua, Hacienda Santa Teresa started life as a sugar cane plantation when it was founded back in 1796. For context, says Viera Landaluce, the country\u2019s fight for independence started in 1811, which essentially means that Santa Teresa as an estate is older than Venezuela as a country. Its location \u2013 a key route in and out of the capital city of Caracas \u2013 has meant that the Hacienda has been a key participant in some of the country\u2019s milestones.<\/p>\n

Venezuela was the driving force behind Latin America’s independence revolution and the first of the South American Republics to officially break away from Spain. The movement was led by Sim\u00f3n Bol\u00edvar, also known as El Libertador<\/i> (The Liberator), who was key to the establishment of Venezuela, Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Panama as sovereign states. He also had relatives who lived in Aragua Valley named the Ribas family, one of whom \u2013 Jose Felix Ribas \u2013 was an important military figure.<\/p>\n

The family were targeted by the Spanish monarchy, and 35 members were murdered, with just one survivor: Panchita Ribas y Palacios, who was taken hostage by Spanish soldiers. She was later rescued by a former slave of the Ribas family \u2013 former, because Bol\u00edvar ratified the abolition of slavery in Venezuela at the Hacienda Santa Teresa in 1818 \u2013 and raised in safety.<\/p>\n

\"Santa

Every bottle of Santa Teresa Rum is waxed by hand<\/p><\/div>\n

The creation of Santa Teresa Rum<\/h3>\n

By around 1826, peace prevailed, and Venezuela transformed into a land of opportunity, attracting immigrants from across the globe. One such settler was Gustav Julius Vollmer from Hamburg, whose family owned a shipping company. \u201cAs well as opportunity, he also found love in the arms of Panchita,\u201d says Viera Landaluce.<\/p>\n

Sugarcane harvests ceased during the war, so the couple worked with other families to reinstate the historic crop and began producing aguardiente for locals. Panchita and Gustav became the first of five generations of the Vollmer family, who still own the Santa Teresa Hacienda to this day.<\/p>\n

In around 1885, the family began producing rum at a commercial level and registered the Santa Teresa brand in 1909 \u2013 making it the very first Venezuelan rum trademark and the third trademark in the country overall. In the decades that followed, Santa Teresa Rum became somewhat of a national treasure, synonymous with the drinking culture of the country.<\/p>\n

While the country has seen \u201cpeaks and valleys, figuratively speaking\u201d, observes Viera Landaluce, the last few decades have been particularly taxing. When fifth-generation family member Alberto Vollmer took the reins in 1997, it became his mission to guide the company through these turbulent times.<\/p>\n

\"Hacienda

Hacienda Santa Teresa, where all the magic happens.<\/p><\/div>\n

Santa Teresa Rum: welcoming the community<\/h3>\n

Two years later, in 1999, Venezuelan politician Hugo Ch\u00e1vez was elected as president, dubbing his socialist economic policies the \u2018Bolivarian Revolution\u2019. The years of political mismanagement that predated his presidency set him up as a hero of the people. \u201cPeople were fed up,\u201d says Viera Landaluce. \u201cThey really thought that his revolution was going to make the country move forward. He encouraged the poor to take what the rich had to spare.\u201d<\/p>\n

While Venezuela \u201cwas no paradise before Ch\u00e1vez\u201d, his \u201cpolitical and economical frame of mind led other issues to arise\u201d. Crime surged, and household goods became scarce. There were huge shortages of construction materials, which in turn led to huge shortages of housing.<\/p>\n

Tensions grew and formed a pinnacle moment in Santa Teresa\u2019s history in the early 2000s. The Hacienda was invaded by hundreds of families, who set up camp within its grounds. Vollmer met the head of the squatters and told him: \u2018If you invade my lands, I will invade your brain\u2019.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe meant that he would invade him with concepts and ideas and values,\u201d explains Viera Landaluce. \u201cIf the squatters were left, the Hacienda would\u2019ve become a rotten shanty town like many that we have throughout South America.\u201d As negotiations got underway, Vollmer recognised the legitimate need for housing. It was agreed that the squatters could stay in return for labour, and the government would provide infrastructure and financing.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis was a strong wake-up call that the country had changed, that the revolution had arrived, and that Santa Teresa could not remain an island in the middle of the ocean,\u201d Viera Landaluce continues. \u201cIf you want to earn the right to be there another 200 years, you have to earn it, you cannot take it for granted. And the way to earn that right is by not turning your back on the community.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Santa

The people that make Santa Teresa were given a second chance through Project Alcatraz<\/p><\/div>\n

Santa Teresa Rum: Project Alcatraz<\/h3>\n

This would be a valuable lesson to learn, and in 2003, Santa Teresa would put it into practice again. Three gang members broke into the Hacienda, violently beating a security guard to steal his gun. A chase ensued, and one of the culprits, 20-year-old Derjuis Rebolledo, known as Cara de Leon<\/i> (Lion Face), was caught. He was taken to Aragua police, who began to drive him out of town. They have been known to execute criminals.<\/p>\n

A negotiation process began with the police, and Rebolledo was brought back to the Hacienda, where Vollmer offered him two options: to return the gun and complete three month\u2019s unpaid work for Santa Teresa with food and shelter, or to be handed over to the police once more. Rebolledo asked whether he could complete the term with his mates, to which Vollmer agreed. One week later, he returned with 22 gang members. This was the beginning of Project Alcatraz.<\/p>\n

\u201cThese guys were rejected by society, and by offering them this deal, by giving them an opportunity, we proved that trust generates more trust,\u201d says Viera Landaluce. \u201cWe unarmed a very dangerous gang by giving them the opportunity to come and work for three months, and they took it.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut of course, working was just not enough. We started incorporating psychological treatment and academic education \u2013 some of these boys never finished primary school. What really made the difference was an education in human values. These include basic things like respect, discipline, teamwork, and more difficult things like resilience and the ability to fall, get up and carry on. Those values formed the cornerstone of Project Alcatraz.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"The

Rugby has had a positive effect through Project Alcatraz<\/p><\/div>\n

Santa Teresa Rum and rugby<\/h3>\n

The Hacienda also introduced rugby to the programme, largely because of the values it promotes, but also because the sport was almost unheard of in Venezuela \u2013 so each gang member would have the same starting point. \u201cNone of them had seen a rugby ball before,\u201d explains Viera Landaluce. \u201cThis helps to break up the hierarchy in the gang.\u201d<\/p>\n

As the three-month period drew to a close, gang leader Jos\u00e9 Gregorio Arrieta (known as El Gordo<\/i>) told Vollmer that the gang was planning on returning to the streets. A rival gang would come after them as soon as they leave, and since the Hacienda is now affiliated with Gregorio Arrieta and his cronies, Vollmer would also be at risk. Santa Teresa reached out to the rival gang with the same deal, and they accepted the offer. Eight other gangs have since participated in the programme; around 200 gang members in total.<\/p>\n

In 2003, before Project Alcatraz began, the official murder rate in El Conseco was 114 homicides per 100,000 inhabitants, Viera Landaluce tells me. By 2013, that rate was reduced to 12 per 100,000, which means a 90% reduction in violent-related deaths. El Gordo is now the head rugby coach at the Hacienda, where he oversees seven other coaches. Darwin Ospino, a former gang member known as Patapiche<\/i> (Smelly Feet), is the head of security for Vollmer\u2019s family and takes care of his wife and daughters.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe believe the enterprise has to be an engine of transformation in the community, and we want the Santa Teresa brand to become a source of inspiration for others,\u201d says Viera Landaluce. \u201cRum and rugby don’t seem to have much in common, but there are so many values that we share that we just cannot think of one without the other: Humility, discipline, teamwork, and resilience.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Nancy

Nancy Duarte, the first female master blender at Santa Teresa<\/p><\/div>\n

Santa Teresa Rum: The liquid<\/h3>\n

While Santa Teresa is beloved to Venezuelans, the rum has, for the most part, remained relatively untapped elsewhere. In December 2016, the brand penned a distribution deal with Bacardi Limited, making it the global importer for the brand outside of Venezuela. While the drive for premiumisation has gained traction in recent years, the super premium market is relatively small, with just a handful of distilleries producing truly high-end expressions. Santa Teresa 1796<\/a>, launched in 1996 to mark the 200-year anniversary of the estate, is one of them.<\/p>\n

So, what sets it apart? To set the scene: the sugarcane is taken to the sugar mills for grinding. Juice is extracted from the cane, leaving a byproduct \u2013 molasses. Yeast is added to the molasses, turning the sugar to alcohol in a process called continuous fermentation, which takes between 12 and 16 hours. The remaining \u2018must\u2019, which has an alcohol content of around 8% abv, is then distilled.<\/p>\n

There are two types of distillation at Santa Teresa: Continuous Column distillation and Pot Still distillation. From the former, two different cuts of alcohol are taken: a lighter, clearer spirit with an abv of 95% from the fourth column and a stickier, oilier spirit with an abv of 75% from the first column. The latter is \u201cdeep and fruity\u201d, and is described as the \u201chouse signature\u201d of Santa Teresa. These two ingredients form the base of every rum the distillery makes.<\/p>\n

To create Santa Teresa 1796, some of the original must is fermented for longer and then distilled in the Pot Still \u2013 resulting in an \u201ceven deeper and heavier and more profound\u201d spirit that has an abv of around 83%. Each individual rum style is aged separately in former American whiskey barrels made from American oak, and there are around 100,000 of these ageing at any given time. In Venezuela, the Angel\u2019s Share is around 10% in the first year. By the second year, one-fifth of the barrel is gone.<\/p>\n

\"Santa

The beautiful Santa Teresa Rum<\/p><\/div>\n

Santa Teresa 1796 Rum<\/h3>\n

According to the Ron de Venezuela Denominaci\u00f3n de Origen (DOC), the alcohol must rest in wood for at least two years \u2013 the longest rum ageing requirement in the world, according to Viera Landaluce. Among other rules, the rum must be a minimum of 40% abv, made with molasses from Venezuela, and cannot be made with alcohol sourced from other markets. Producers may add colourings and sweeteners, so long as they\u2019re derived from sugarcane.<\/p>\n

In the case of 1796, the barrels containing light, heavy and pot still rum are left to rest for between four and 35 years. When they\u2019re ready, they\u2019re combined in a blending tank and aged further using the rather complex Solera method. Four levels of ex-Scotch whisky American oak barrels are stacked vertically, with a maturation vat linked to the one at the bottom. When the vat is half empty, it will be topped up by barrel four, which sits directly above it. A portion of barrel three will then be decanted into barrel four, and so on, until the barrel at the top is half empty. This is refilled with rum from the blending tank.<\/p>\n

Since the Solera cellar was first filled in 1992, only half of the bottom vat has ever been emptied for bottling at any one time to preserve the \u2018mother rum\u2019: the original rum in the system. There are 12 such vats in total, each with a capacity of 18,000 litres. The process is a \u201ctaste and cascade\u201d operation, Viera Landaluce says. As such, there\u2019s no stopwatch on it \u2013 \u201cit\u2019s ready when the master blender says so\u201d.<\/p>\n

Much like Scotch whisky, to declare an age statement, Venezuelan rum brands must reference the youngest liquid in the bottle. Since this number would be wildly inaccurate due to the nature of the Solera method, 1976 is presented without.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor us, it\u2019s not so much about how old it is but how well we blend it,\u201d says Viera Landaluce. \u201cObviously, age is an important factor, but what really makes the rum quality is the balance.\u201d A sentiment that applies not only to the liquid but the entire Santa Teresa estate.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

It was once the powerhouse of South America, but over the last 20 years, Venezuela has been subject to unrelenting economic and political crises. 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