Post #534687 by Brandomoai on Mon, Jun 7, 2010 9:31 AM

I can't find a lot of info on it, but it seems that Caribbean countries who, like Canada, are part of the Commonwealth have the right to ship their rums in bulk to Canada to bottle and distribute them here. At that time, they may blend their rums with 1-1.5% Canadian rum. This would certainly make distribution in Canada less expensive. I can't find a specific reason for the blending or anything that states all rums bottled in Canada must be blended. At some point, legislation was passed that stated only rum from Commonwealth Caribbean countries and Cuba (not part of the Commonwealth, but a good trade partner of ours) could be labeled "Caribbean Rum". I don't think all rums from these countries are blended and bottled in Canada, but most of the big ones are: Bacardi, Capt Morgan, Malibu, Lambs, Myers, etc. I read something about Lemon Hart being produced in Windsor, Ontario, so I think the LH we've been getting here is blended as well. Maybe that's why I don't think it's anything special. I'm not likely to change my mind after NLC takes over, either. LH151 has never been available here, so I doubt very much that NLC will produce it.
As for other rums, we get lots of pure, unblended rums from South and Central America and the Caribbean, Commonwealth or otherwise. It's probably a regulation for distributors who want to do their bottling in Canada. Cuban rums aren't allowed to do the bulk ship, bottle, and blend in Canada thing, luckily! Here are some links for more info about our strange rum laws, not specifically pertaining to Lemon Hart.
http://www.legalalcohol.com/?p=5
http://www.rumproject.com/WIRSPA.html
The fact that so-called authentic, Caribbean rum in Canada could be something distilled from molasses from anywhere in the world and be blended with 1-1.5% Canadian rum is a joke. But that's a topic for another thread.