When the founder of Bacardi, Don Facundo Bacardí Massó, purchased the company’s first distillery in Cuba, he found a colony of fruit bats hanging from the rafters. Although others might not have relished the sight of these inhabitants, Facundo saw them as a sign of good fortune, family unity and health — a belief he shared with his homeland, Spain, and the native people of Cuba.
The distillery was founded in 1862, during a time when most people could not read. In order to brand and differentiate the rum, his wife Doña Amalia suggested placing a bat logo on every barrel and bottle. As a result, the product was easily identifiable and became known as “the rum of the bat.”