Ron Zacapa 23 Solera

I was also swayed by the reviews here, so I bought a bottle. In my opinion, this rum is not that good. Too sweet and it lacks a pleasing finish. It packs an alcohol punch. If you can legally buy Cuban Rum, similarly priced Ron Santiago de Cuba 12 years is superior. If you cannot buy Cuban rum and you want the solera process, Santa Teresa 1796 Solera is legal in the U.S. and is far superior.

Lo probe y para mi era demasiado dulce. No me gusto

Smooth pleasant taste. Suits most people, but also lacks character

Sweet and smooth. Easy to drink. Reminds me of diplomatico but not as good

First foray into sipping rum. I like sweet, and to me this was not sweet enough. Was fine to use in making an old fashioned as the bitters reduced some of the harshness.

A great "tourist-rum", for those who like sweets. Deep colour and long aftertaste

Handsome bottle, may be sweeter than a whisky aficionado prefers, but I did enjoy the sweet, smooth flavor myself, I like a sweet rum sipper after dinner. Not "true" 23 year old rum, (solera process), but enjoyable for most, nonetheless.

This is a nice drop. Understanding that this has a little added sugars but I take annoyance from the bold 23 on the bottle when clearly most of the spirit is probably 6-8 years old. There is a little bit of astringency hanging around suggestive of a much younger blend. Now I prefer to mix my drinks and this works really well, but for the price, I can do better. Bottle presents really well and the woven straw makes it easy to grip. Advertising blurb sounds really good. Deserves an 8 but I felt like marking it down for self aggrandisement and dishonesty

Bottle:
Very attractive packaging with a hand-woven band around the bottle. Looks great on a shelf and is very easy to pour from.

Glass:
The rum has a pleasing dark reddish amber color, with slow,syrupy legs dripping down the sides of the glass.

Nose:
Very sweet, almost cloying. Reminiscent of creme brulee, but with smoky, caramel-like undertones. The standard vanilla and brown sugar scents are also evident.

Mouth:
Very similar to nose, which is not necessarily a bad thing other than the rather overpowering brown sugary sweetness. A strong charred oak flavor is there as well, but this mostly comes through the nose while drinking. The mouthfeel is not oily, which works well for this rum.

Finish:
There is a significant burn which verges on wiping out the taste. This is more burn than I would prefer for a rum marketed at this level. Oddly, there is a slightly bitter aftertaste which ends the taste rather poorly.

This is a rum I would recommend as a gateway rum for getting friends who don't drink rum into rum-tasting. It's a decent offering, but a bit too artificially sweet. Clever marketing has done a lot for this rum, which doesn't quite live up to the hype. Along with Zaya, this is a good intro rum, but there are much better sippers to be had out there, especially for the price.

Note: I tried this rum for the first time a couple years ago, and it was in my opinion much better than the bottle I just opened. Noticeably younger/harsher flavor profile this time around, I suspect they might be mixing in a higher percentage of younger rums to increase yields and profits and trying to compensate by adding in more sugars. At the current price (in my area) of $50, I cannot recommend it. I wouldn't pay more than $35-40 in the future if the quality continues to degrade.

Very easy rum to drink.. Bit sweeter then the Flor de Cana.. not as sweet as the Diplomatico..