I've not been a fan of Zacapa in the past, but this one really impressed me.

This is one of my favorite rums to sit and sip. It's definitely one of my go-tos. Very flavorful without being overly sweet.

Definitely a change from the sweeter rums I normally drink. This rum has bold flavors of oak, molasses,and pear.

At 96 proof, this rum is exceptionally smooth. It is dry compared to most and the sweetness is not viscous. I’d highly recommend this for the collection of a rum enthusiast when the opportunity to grab a bottle comes.

Certainly smoother than the canne Bleu I just had. Dark copper pour. Rose water, dried apricot. Burns a little on the finish. Ok.

Plenty of coconut, some icing sugar. A little perfume, potpourri. Clear white. Not super smooth, burn on the finish.

Honey and a little coffee, like some others have said. A hint of peat, maybe some smoke. Apricot. Like this a lot.

In the bottle tasted on 8-3-24. Gifted bottle thanks to Jeff K. Pours a light brown golden color. Aroma of a malted milk chocolate milkshake. Big chocolate taste. Maple syrup and hazelnuts. Mild tingle to the finish. Thin in body for so much sweetness.

Nutty on the nose like clement rhum, putrid chemical flavor like if prunes made soda syrup, overly sweet finish and weird burn.

Mildew port on the nose, watered down bitter taste with a hint of port on the finish that is overpowered by bitterness and final touch if sweetness

Wood on the nose, bourbon on taste but lack of flavor kinda flat, peppery burn on finish. Like if you watered down foursquare

Barely any nose, flat taste barely any flavor, smooth with a small bit of vanilla on the finish a slight burn. Boring

Citrus burn on the nose, bitter wood notes on taste, still getting some citrus throughout with some bite, finish is slight burn with butter finish

Good rum. Little burny, little grassy, little greasy, little dull.

Not hugely impressed but it’s ok.

Cacao on nose thin viscosity, taste is flat, notes of wood medium burn on finish, not that pleasant

Caramel and chocolate on nose sugar bomb on taste, with slight burn on finish, cacao or chocolate as well on finish.

Vanilla on the nose smooth but has a hint of a bitter burn and slight vanilla finish, better rums out there but this is sippable and likely a good mixer

Package : moyen
Odeur : fruité, canne à sucre.
Dégustation : attaque fruitée, canne puis brûlure de l'alcool, on sent passer les 59° !
Finale : longue, canne à sucre
Goûté pur et en ti punch.
Bon mais vraiment costaud.

This rum (mostly) is a hit like a tame Clairin. It’s different enough to make you sit up and take notice, but not quite intense enough to form a very strong opinion about. All of that said, it is a very solid mixer that carries a lot of character into a Daiquiri or a Ti Punch

Od 5yo velky posun.
Farba svetlo jantarova.
V arome cokolada, vanilka, trochu karamelu.
Krasne vykreslene sudy, jemne whiskoidny, karamel, trstina a trstinovy cukor. Na chvoste sa na chvilu ukaze alkoholovost, korenie a dymovost.

On the nose: sweet fruit with an alcohol under tone.

Taste: fruity um with a strong alcohol under tone but little to no burn which is surprising.

After taste: non existent. It goes down smooth and then the taste fades away, so you have to take another sip! Truly diabolical haha.

An interesting sipper, a fun edition to my collection.

One the nose: I smell alcohol with a hint of sweetness but mostly alcohol.

Taste: Dry and smooth. I don't get much taste other than dried alcohol.

After taste: it goes down smooth and has a bit of a burn to it like a cognac.

Overal this is a nice rum that leans towards cognac in my opinion. If I close my eyes I am drinking dry cognac.

8,5: On the nose, the first notes we get are yellow fruits with tobacco, leather, nicely roasted with caramelized burnt sugar, some solvents and woody. Fruits are now red with cherry, prunes and becoming dry and the wood is toasted.
Aeration brings some herbal notes with cereal, darker side of this rum as charred wood, roasted nuts, licorice, chocolate, cocoa, walnut some confectionery and candied fruit and finally becomes just a bit metallic and smoky.
8,6:On the palate, the first impression is a syrupy, very fruity and spicy rum with yellow, red and then dried fruits. I reminds us on bourbon.The spices are sweet and warm. The wood is toasted and rum becomes more roasted, burnt with caramelized burnt sugar and some metallic notes. It is round and balanced. Chocolate, cocoa, nuts and some orange peel emerge.
8,8:The finish is very long, balanced, elegant with dried fruits, red fruits, caramelized nuts, chocolate, toasted wood and roastedness.

Tonight’s Rum, Havana Club Seleccion de Maestros. This special treat for me and comes via my excellent friend Al who picked this bottle up for me during the BC Liquor Specialty Spirit Sale in June while I was vacationing. Thanks Al! “Seleccion de Maestros” technically means Teacher Selection, but in reality it means Master Blender.

In my Rum Club Canada glass, this is a lovely copper coloured rum; it’s remarkably inviting. And while it’s 45%, and it could be be a bit sharp, I’m still optimistic as I’ve always been fond of older Havana Club rums, and like the Cubans I never add anything to the rum when drinking it. The nose hits me with vanilla, walnuts, nuts, orange ,and light caramel. It’s a great nose and has a minimal alcohol presence, but is fully a rum bouquet.

The first hit is delicate on the lips, it’s near water-like in the mouth. Only when you push the sip down do you get any sense that it’s a spirit at all, or even a higher ABV spirit. I’m drinking this rum at near room temperature and that might have something to do with it. Flavours in the mouth are mild. There’s little in there that stands out and I have to pick through it to let you know what flavours it presents. But the flavours do include, bitter pineapple, roasted nuts, and slight tobacco with a hint of molasses. It’s a pleasant blend, but I find it a bit lacking. In the throat, it’s diffused but does build sip over sip, unlike a number of other rums I’ve had that soften over time. The finish has a bit of a burn to it due to that 45% and holds a bit of a soapiness to it. It reminds me of a coriander over-biased Gin. The finish is also long with pepper lingering for a few minutes.

This is a fair rum, but not the great, special rum the name implies. I rate it 8/10 and this is due to the undefined, weaker flavours and the long bitter finish. I think this rum would be best mixed with some fruit juices and a hint of orgeat syrup to soften the bitterness, but neat works too. This is the 413th rum I’ve tasted. So Far! Cheers everyone.

This is not a sipping rum. Use it I. A mix and you will not be disappointed.

I've not been a fan of Zacapa in the past, but this one really impressed me.

This is one of my favorite rums to sit and sip. It's definitely one of my go-tos. Very flavorful without being overly sweet.

Definitely a change from the sweeter rums I normally drink. This rum has bold flavors of oak, molasses,and pear.

At 96 proof, this rum is exceptionally smooth. It is dry compared to most and the sweetness is not viscous. I’d highly recommend this for the collection of a rum enthusiast when the opportunity to grab a bottle comes.

Certainly smoother than the canne Bleu I just had. Dark copper pour. Rose water, dried apricot. Burns a little on the finish. Ok.

Plenty of coconut, some icing sugar. A little perfume, potpourri. Clear white. Not super smooth, burn on the finish.

Honey and a little coffee, like some others have said. A hint of peat, maybe some smoke. Apricot. Like this a lot.

In the bottle tasted on 8-3-24. Gifted bottle thanks to Jeff K. Pours a light brown golden color. Aroma of a malted milk chocolate milkshake. Big chocolate taste. Maple syrup and hazelnuts. Mild tingle to the finish. Thin in body for so much sweetness.

Nutty on the nose like clement rhum, putrid chemical flavor like if prunes made soda syrup, overly sweet finish and weird burn.

Mildew port on the nose, watered down bitter taste with a hint of port on the finish that is overpowered by bitterness and final touch if sweetness

Wood on the nose, bourbon on taste but lack of flavor kinda flat, peppery burn on finish. Like if you watered down foursquare

Barely any nose, flat taste barely any flavor, smooth with a small bit of vanilla on the finish a slight burn. Boring

Citrus burn on the nose, bitter wood notes on taste, still getting some citrus throughout with some bite, finish is slight burn with butter finish

Good rum. Little burny, little grassy, little greasy, little dull.

Not hugely impressed but it’s ok.

Cacao on nose thin viscosity, taste is flat, notes of wood medium burn on finish, not that pleasant

Caramel and chocolate on nose sugar bomb on taste, with slight burn on finish, cacao or chocolate as well on finish.

Vanilla on the nose smooth but has a hint of a bitter burn and slight vanilla finish, better rums out there but this is sippable and likely a good mixer

Package : moyen
Odeur : fruité, canne à sucre.
Dégustation : attaque fruitée, canne puis brûlure de l'alcool, on sent passer les 59° !
Finale : longue, canne à sucre
Goûté pur et en ti punch.
Bon mais vraiment costaud.

This rum (mostly) is a hit like a tame Clairin. It’s different enough to make you sit up and take notice, but not quite intense enough to form a very strong opinion about. All of that said, it is a very solid mixer that carries a lot of character into a Daiquiri or a Ti Punch

Od 5yo velky posun.
Farba svetlo jantarova.
V arome cokolada, vanilka, trochu karamelu.
Krasne vykreslene sudy, jemne whiskoidny, karamel, trstina a trstinovy cukor. Na chvoste sa na chvilu ukaze alkoholovost, korenie a dymovost.

On the nose: sweet fruit with an alcohol under tone.

Taste: fruity um with a strong alcohol under tone but little to no burn which is surprising.

After taste: non existent. It goes down smooth and then the taste fades away, so you have to take another sip! Truly diabolical haha.

An interesting sipper, a fun edition to my collection.

One the nose: I smell alcohol with a hint of sweetness but mostly alcohol.

Taste: Dry and smooth. I don't get much taste other than dried alcohol.

After taste: it goes down smooth and has a bit of a burn to it like a cognac.

Overal this is a nice rum that leans towards cognac in my opinion. If I close my eyes I am drinking dry cognac.

8,5: On the nose, the first notes we get are yellow fruits with tobacco, leather, nicely roasted with caramelized burnt sugar, some solvents and woody. Fruits are now red with cherry, prunes and becoming dry and the wood is toasted.
Aeration brings some herbal notes with cereal, darker side of this rum as charred wood, roasted nuts, licorice, chocolate, cocoa, walnut some confectionery and candied fruit and finally becomes just a bit metallic and smoky.
8,6:On the palate, the first impression is a syrupy, very fruity and spicy rum with yellow, red and then dried fruits. I reminds us on bourbon.The spices are sweet and warm. The wood is toasted and rum becomes more roasted, burnt with caramelized burnt sugar and some metallic notes. It is round and balanced. Chocolate, cocoa, nuts and some orange peel emerge.
8,8:The finish is very long, balanced, elegant with dried fruits, red fruits, caramelized nuts, chocolate, toasted wood and roastedness.

Tonight’s Rum, Havana Club Seleccion de Maestros. This special treat for me and comes via my excellent friend Al who picked this bottle up for me during the BC Liquor Specialty Spirit Sale in June while I was vacationing. Thanks Al! “Seleccion de Maestros” technically means Teacher Selection, but in reality it means Master Blender.

In my Rum Club Canada glass, this is a lovely copper coloured rum; it’s remarkably inviting. And while it’s 45%, and it could be be a bit sharp, I’m still optimistic as I’ve always been fond of older Havana Club rums, and like the Cubans I never add anything to the rum when drinking it. The nose hits me with vanilla, walnuts, nuts, orange ,and light caramel. It’s a great nose and has a minimal alcohol presence, but is fully a rum bouquet.

The first hit is delicate on the lips, it’s near water-like in the mouth. Only when you push the sip down do you get any sense that it’s a spirit at all, or even a higher ABV spirit. I’m drinking this rum at near room temperature and that might have something to do with it. Flavours in the mouth are mild. There’s little in there that stands out and I have to pick through it to let you know what flavours it presents. But the flavours do include, bitter pineapple, roasted nuts, and slight tobacco with a hint of molasses. It’s a pleasant blend, but I find it a bit lacking. In the throat, it’s diffused but does build sip over sip, unlike a number of other rums I’ve had that soften over time. The finish has a bit of a burn to it due to that 45% and holds a bit of a soapiness to it. It reminds me of a coriander over-biased Gin. The finish is also long with pepper lingering for a few minutes.

This is a fair rum, but not the great, special rum the name implies. I rate it 8/10 and this is due to the undefined, weaker flavours and the long bitter finish. I think this rum would be best mixed with some fruit juices and a hint of orgeat syrup to soften the bitterness, but neat works too. This is the 413th rum I’ve tasted. So Far! Cheers everyone.

This is not a sipping rum. Use it I. A mix and you will not be disappointed.