Cuba

For Cubans, rum is personal. The spirit is a core part of Cuba's national identity and has, along with cigars, fueled the country's economy for decades. Rum is made from sugarcane, a crop that Christopher Columbus introduced to the Americas in the 1400s. It is produced in more than 80 countries, but the finest is considered to come from the Caribbean, where the climate is best for growing sugarcane. The taste of sugarcane, like that of wine grapes, is affected by the atmospheric conditions—the soil and weather, or terroir—where it grows. Cuba's terroir, fertile soil and sticky climate, is particularly ideal for growing agricultural products such as sugarcane and tobacco, which is why those Cuban crops are historically so revered around the world.