Flor de Caña 18-Year

For an 18 year old rum, I was expecting more. I like my rum neat, and well... although I have just got into my first bottle... it is not something I'm going goo goo for. It's is ok out of the gate... goes down with a bit too much burn for it's age and doesn't finish all that well... for my liking. Don't get me wrong, I'm not going to give it away... but when it's done, I won't be rushing out to get stocked up. I'll be fair, give it time and change my review if it grows on me. For now, a solid 6.

Make no mistake, this is an excellent rum but rarely do I find an 18 year old rum that I don't prefer as a sipper or just with an ice cube. Flor de Cana 18 year old rum is not a solera method and that makes it distinctive. It's a beautiful golden color. It is dry and not sweet. It leans a little toward the bourbon side, just a little. For this reason and a very strong alcohol aroma I couldn't enjoy this as a sipper. I mixed it with a bit of seltzer water and a couple of ice cubes. Then I found it delicious. The oak is the distinctive taste with vanilla also present. The flavors are not strong. It has very subtle flavors. This maybe because I mixed it but drinking it neat all I could taste was oak and smell strong alcohol. I did try letting it sit and breath. To be clear, I really did enjoy drinking this but only after watering it down a bit. I think there are better rums for $50 BUT if somebody gave me a bottle of Flor de Cana as a gift, I would receive it enthusiastically.

Very nice color. Mild nose with sweet essence. Very smooth taste with very little burn and nice soft finish. Very enjoyable - I would definitely buy this again.

En helt okej rom som är ganska stark om man inte har i en isbit

Un bon rhum sur glace. Je l'essayerais peut-être avec du Perrier

Well, it's been left too long to mature in the barrel shifting the whole balance of flavour to a disappointing level.
It's interesting, a complex dry flavors and a very interesting length.

Tasted side by side with an independent release of a single-cask from the same distillery bottled cask-strength with no additives. 18 year distillery release is watered back to 40% abv, obviously colored with caramel and likely sweetened. Juice is disjointed with the alcohol not well-integrated and a linear, slightly spicy profile with a short finish. You get what you pay for I guess. Blackadder bottling by contrast was complex and well integrated despite its 60+% abv. Shows that the distillery can make good rum, but the 18 year old I can barely give away.

A great rum has a flavour that A: agrees with your palate and B: isn't found in any other rum. FdC 18 (and it's little brother the FdC 7) has that quintessential delicate warm nutty-butterscotch-caramel FdC undertone which I've always loved. I could easily pick it out of any line up while blindfolded. If you are a fan of the FdC 7, you'll definitely like this one (The FdC 12 is a different beast with a different flavour profile). It's dissapointing to me how many reviewers here favour some heavily sugared rums over a more honest, more adult drink like FdC 18, but to each his own, I guess. A final note: yes, the FdC 25 is slightly better but it is also almost 3x (!) as expensive. So this is the one that's always on my shelve.

Flor de Cana are interesting rums in the fact they get worse the older they are. The extra dry is amazing for a white rum being super smooth and well bodied. Now something interesting happens as flor ages. It becomes harsher and more abusive to your pallet. Why or how I don't know but this rum isn't that good. There is nothing really eventful about it. Straight it shows to be just another one of those super dry oakey earthy rums that scolds your tongue with heat. In diet coke it is pretty good, it's not a bad rum per say it's just well not worth the price. If you enjoy this taste try Kirk and Sweeney, Mount Gay or any of the Ron Abuelo's. Those share similar tastes but exceed fdc-18. So final verdict is flor de Cana bad? No not really, but it's kind of generic earthy taste with a high price tag so if you're in the market for something exotic and different tasting this isn't your bottle.

Beaucoup d'arôme, très bon rhum à boire sur glace. :)