Nearly 400 years ago, rum was born almost by accident, on Caribbean islands, out of molasses nobody else wanted. Cuba gave the world its first rum cocktails. Puerto Rico became "the rum capital of the world." Two islands, one origin story, each writing their own chapter of it.
MOJITO
Rum, mint, lime, sugar, soda, bitters
$13
Before it had a name or a following, it was a 16th century sailor's fix for seasickness, mint and rum standing in for medicine. Centuries later, it's Havana's most famous export, and it's been ours since day one.
COCONUT CANCHANCHARA
Coconut oil-washed Ron del Barrilito, lime, honey, bitters
$13
A riff on the Canchanchara, one of Cuba's oldest known rum drinks, born during the fight for independence. We're pouring our version through Ron del Barrilito, Puerto Rico's oldest rum, still made by the same family since 1880, two islands sharing one glass.
Rum didn't stay put. It crossed oceans and borders, and each stop changed it. Spain, specifically the Canary Islands, was distilling sugarcane rum before the Caribbean ever started. Venezuela turned the spirit into something slower and more patient, a rum you save for the celebrations that matter.
RUM SPICED SANGRIA
Red wine, sherry-aged dark rum, spiced pear, apricot, lime
$13
Sugar cane isn't native to the Caribbean at all, it crossed the Atlantic on Spanish ships long before it ever became rum. This is our rum-spiked twist on Spain's most iconic pour, a reminder of exactly where that journey started.
BANOFFEE OLD FASHIONED
Santa Teresa 1796 rum, banana, coffee, sugar, bitters
$13
Built on Santa Teresa 1796, a rum house run by the same Venezuelan family for over 200 years. We took the classic Old Fashioned and folded in banana and coffee, a playful nod to how patient, generational aging turns into something worth savoring slowly.
Somewhere along the way, rum learned to slow down. Across Central America, Nicaragua and Panamá quietly built some of the most decorated rum houses on earth, aged for years instead of rushed to market. Most people have never heard this stretch of the map mentioned in the same sentence as "world's best rum."
MACUÁ
Flor de Caña Nicaraguan white rum, guava, lemon, panela, soda
$13
Nicaragua's official national cocktail, chosen by a countrywide vote in 2006, not invented behind a bar. Bright, guava-forward, and proof that a country's favorite drink doesn't always come from a mixologist.
DARK PASSION
Ron Abuelo Panamanian dark rum, passion fruit, lime, cinnamon simple, chocolate bitters
$13
Built on Ron Abuelo, a rum tradition running since 1908. Our own creation, layering passion fruit and chocolate bitters over that aged, unhurried base, the same patience this theme is named for, poured into something new.
ONLY AVAILABLE FROM SEPT 29 – OCT 5
The story doesn't end in the Caribbean. Colombia and Perú are rum's newest chapter, still being written, still mostly under the radar. Colombia ages its rum in the Andes instead of the tropics. Further south, that same warming, spiced rum tradition shows up again under a different name. Proof the story keeps moving.
SABAJÓN
Ron Viejo de Caldas Colombian dark rum, coconut milk, condensed milk, baking spice, vanilla
$13
Built on Ron Viejo de Caldas, aged over 2,000 meters up in the Andes, about as far from a tropical rum house as you can get. Rich, creamy, and closer to eggnog than any cocktail, it's Colombia's answer to a season most people don't associate with rum.
ONLY AVAILABLE FROM OCT 6 – 15
CANELAZO
Ron Cartavio Peruvian rum, cinnamon, grapefruit, lime, panela
$13
Traditionally made with aguardiente and sold hot by street vendors from Quito to northern Perú, our version swaps in Ron Cartavio, Perú's own aged rum, for a warmer, rounder take on a drink that's crossed borders for generations.
September 15 to October 15.
RESERVE A TABLE 1121 New Hampshire Ave NW, Washington, DC 20037 202-804-0073- Mon – Thu5PM – 12AM
- Friday5PM – 12:30AM
- Saturday12PM – 12:30AM
- Sunday12PM – 6PM
CASTA'S RUM BAR · HISPANIC HERITAGE MONTH 2026