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Rafael Anson: Our Gastronomic Man in Havana
14May
News

Rafael Anson: Our Gastronomic Man in Havana

Rafael Anson, President of the Iberian-American Gastronomy Academy and a member of the International Gastronomy Academy (AIG is the French acronym), arrived in Havana Sunday night to preside the ceremony that will turn Cuba’s top city into the Cocktail Capital of Hispanic America.

Mr. Anson was welcomed at Havana’s Jose Marti International Airport by Mr. Jose Carlos de Santiago, president and editor-in-chief of the Excelencias Group and ambassador of the Iberian-American Gastronomy Academy, and by Jorge Méndez, chairman of the Cuban Gastronomy Academy.

During his brief two-day stay in the Cuba capital, Mr. Anson will deliver Monday morning a master lecture at the main hall of the Havana University on the eve of presenting Havana authorities, on that same day, with the abovementioned distinction in a ceremony slated for the famous Tropicana Cabaret at 5:00 pm.

In the same breath, Mr. Anson will meet with local authorities related to travel, tourism and gastronomy, and will also make a grand tour around some of Havana’s most iconic bars and restaurants.

The Iberian-American Gastronomy Academy decided a few months ago to grant Havana the title of Cocktail Capital of Hispanic America in recognition to the city’s longstanding tradition in the making of cocktails.

As a matter of fact, many of today’s most emblematic, bestselling and increasingly sought-after cocktails around the world –such as daiquiri, mojito and Cuba Libre- were born in Havana, a city that’s also home to some of the best-known bars on the face of the planet.