Rum master expresses, creates Cuban culture

VILLA CLARA, Cuba - Cesar Augusto Marti, 43, is a rum master, whose job is to ensure the quality of the nation's rum and create new products.

Marti, a chemical engineer by training, works at the Agustin Rodriguez Mena Central Rum Factory in Santo Domingo, a small town of more than 50,000 inhabitants in central Cuba's Villa Clara Province.

Like premium cigars, Cuba's rum industry forms a core part of Cuba's national identity and is an essential engine of the country's economy.