Ron Centenario Global Brand Ambassador: MIGUEL SEQUEIRA TORRES
Ron Centenario is a renowned brand of rum from Costa Rica, known for its quality and attention to detail throughout the production process. Their rums are characterized by a smooth and complex flavor, with notes of caramel, vanilla, tropical fruits, and spices. Miguel Sequeira Torres is the Global Brand Ambassador of Ron Centenario. Let’s learn more about him in this interview:
TRL: Who is Miguel Sequeira Torres?
My name is Miguel Angel Sequeira Torres, Global Brand Ambassador of Ron Centenario. I studied International Relations at the National University of Costa Rica. After working in the OAS at the Department of International Affairs in Washington DC, and realizing that politics and diplomacy were not my passion, I entered the hospitality industry in 2011, in a tourism project in Costa Rica, which led me to start my work behind bars.
By the year 2017, I had my bar in San José Costa Rica in which the star product was of course, Ron Centenario. In 2020, I founded Maceramos Bartender School, which has trained more than 100 people in the art of creating cocktails. Through said school, I provided many services to various hotels, restaurants and bars in the training of talents, creation of cocktail menus and development of specialized activities.
I have worked with Ron Centenario for the last 4 years, firstly as an external consultant and since the last 18 months directly as a Brand Ambassador, first at the National level and since January 2023 at the Global level.
TRL: What does the rum mean to you? What made you fall in love with rum and when did it happen?
For me, Rum means the ability to transform what Mother Nature provides us into a liquid that envelops us in a unique world of sensations, aromas, and flavors. It is so sublime that rum is produced all over the world and in every corner, it is always the life of the party.
I specifically fell in love with Ron Centenario from the first time I saw the famous television commercial in which the Great Pure Blood Spirit appeared, an emblem of the brand for many years.
TRL: Three essential characteristics that define the rum according to your perspective.
– It has its own character depending on the place where it is produced.
– It has the ability to unite people in a state of joy.
– Rum is flavor, it is culture; it is diversity and it is magic.
TRL: What is the most important contribution you have made in the rum industry?
Having the possibility of bringing the magic and spirit of Pura Vida through the bottles of Ron Centenario that I have opened in bars, restaurants, and festivals around the world.
TRL: Benefits that the rum industry has given you.
It has allowed me to meet great friends around the world. Know their cultures, their stories, their desires, their challenges and their motivations.
TRL: What’s another thing you are passionate about besides rum? Why?
There are two things that I am passionate about besides rum, one is my family whom I love with all my heart and the other is my country, my motherland which I love and defend above all things and of which I feel very proud because my family and Ron Centenario also originate from it.
In a distant second place, there is also Formula 1, a sport that I have followed since I was a child and that I am very passionate about due to the level of precision, rigor and discipline that it requires.
TRL: What is your favorite place for drinking rum?
In all places I love to enjoy rum, from a Speakeasy bar in a big city, to the bar in my town in San Isidro, Costa Rica, however, where I most enjoy drinking rum is my house in the mountains, accompanied by a good cigar and with my family.
TRL: Favorite drink + Recipe
My favorite drink is one of my own creations, it’s called Espresso Centini and I invented it during the last Bar Convent Berlin in 2022.
Recipe:
1 ½ oz of Ron Centenario 9
1 oz fresh espresso
¾ oz of Centenario Coffee Liquor
½ oz Agave Honey
TRL: Why is it important to educate the rum consumer?
It is very important to educate when consuming rum, because on some occasions the rum category is often compared with other categories such as Scotch Whisky or Bourbon, and it is of great importance to differentiate these products so that there is a better understanding of how Rum is produced and what is the origin of rum, so that the consumer can enjoy said drink from a more informed perspective.
TRL: Any tips to train the palate and taste a good premium rum?
The tastings exercise memory, so I always recommend consuming not only the rum but also other drinks and foods, from a more experiential perspective, to identify the wide range of flavors and aromas, and then better understand the sensations that the Rum gives us to our nose and palate.
TRL: How can the rum contribute to improving the crisis in some countries?
It is always complicated to relate crises to alcoholic beverages, however, there is a lot of room to improve in our industry, some problems that most affect the various countries of the world.
In our specific case in Costa Rica, Ron Centenario is a pioneering and very active company in this field, since we are a company that produces donations of drinking water for the most needy communities. During the closure period due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the company provided relief packages not only for bars and restaurants but also for their workers.
That is why there is always room for the rum industry to contribute to the improvement of life in any part of the world, as long as there is a will to do so.
TRL: Is the commitment to sustainable development the key of success for the permanence of the rum industry in the world? Why?
From my point of view, the commitment to sustainability is key to the survival of our industry. This is because the world has limited resources and it is extremely important to manage these resources responsibly. This is not only key for the rum industry but also for the future of humanity.
All the Rum producers, who manage to understand that the future depends on sustainability, are working not only for their survival but also for the survival of the world’s natural resources that are vital for a peaceful and dignified existence. of humanity.
However, it is also very important to understand that these issues have a very direct relationship with the legislation of each of the sugarcane and rum-producing countries.
TRL: Who would like to meet in the rum industry? What would you say to him/her?
I would not say that I want to meet a specific person, but all the people that it is possible to meet. Throughout the history of humanity, the development of civilization has depended on the interaction between different cultures and people, who in their respective encounters have found the wisdom to share their knowledge and experiences.
I want to meet all the people I can meet, because I want to understand their backgrounds, their stories and customs, everything that makes them passionate and to know the reasons for their passions. In the same way, I also want them to know me, not to obtain some kind of social status, but to be able to share my own experiences and that others can also grow and learn from them.
TRL: What are your next goals in the rum industry?
I want to be a decision-maker. I would like to influence the type of decisions that help benefit the new generations entering the rum industry and the hospitality industry.
I would like to project the limits that the rum industry itself has established in relation to the scope that can be affected at a social level, so that our industry is one that every day helps create a better future, with more opportunities for all.
TRL: Plans you have when you leave the rum industry.
I have always said that my retirement will be somewhere on the coast. My restaurant will serve Rum to my guests and which, besides offering food and drinks, will offer the experience of sharing stories worthy of being remembered for generations.
TRL: Why is the role of the bartender important in the rum industry?
Probably the role of bartenders is one of the most important, and I say this knowingly, since I was a bartender myself for many years, and I understand the type of influence that we can pull behind the bar when we are serving a drink.
When we are at the bar, we are best friends; we are therapists, doctors and confidants. Somehow we always find the right words that can improve our clients’ day, and we always have the ability to make our clients fall in love with whatever it is that we are passionate about, that is why I say that there is nothing better for a rum producer than a bartender in love with his brand, rest assured that those are guaranteed sales.
TRL: What is your advice for new generations in the rum industry?
For the new generations entering the rum industry, my main advice is to be sure that this is your passion. Whether in accounting, marketing, or production, you must always be clear about your passion. That way, you will never see your profession as a job, but as an activity in your life that you enjoy to the fullest.
And in this situation, I would like to place myself as a clear example of that. I studied International Relations because I liked diplomacy, and I had the dream of becoming a diplomat, interacting with people from other countries, and that is exactly what I am today. Maybe not in the political area, but that is not the important thing. The important thing is that within the discipline of study, I found a career in something that I am passionate about.
TRL: How can people learn more about you? Website? Social media page?
