Just a PSA, Kirk and Sweeney has been a little hard to find. Total Wine baybrook has been out for a while. Finally saw one last week and bought it. It was the only one on the shelf.

Picked up a Santa Teresa 1796 today. Bourbon drinkers will like it. It's earthy and spicy, and needs a splash of water to round it out. Sweeter than Flor de Cana 18, but not as sweet as Diplomatico or El Dorado 15.

HTownAg98 said:

---

Picked up a Santa Teresa 1796 today. Bourbon drinkers will like it. It's earthy and spicy, and needs a splash of water to round it out. Sweeter than Flor de Cana 18, but not as sweet as Diplomatico or El Dorado 15.

---

Diplomatico is my current jam. Before that it was El Dorado 15. What else do you like sipping that's nice and sweet?

Edit: Can't believe I'm just discovering this thread after many years on TexAgs. You guys speak my language! Mark me down as another one who mourns the lost greatness of Zaya - my first favorite sipping rum. I'm gonna try that Vizcaya Black someone mentioned - I've enjoyed using the blanco Vizcaya as a mixer.

Bryan98 said:

---

HTownAg98 said:

---

Picked up a Santa Teresa 1796 today. Bourbon drinkers will like it. It's earthy and spicy, and needs a splash of water to round it out. Sweeter than Flor de Cana 18, but not as sweet as Diplomatico or El Dorado 15.

---

Diplomatico is my current jam. Before that it was El Dorado 15. What else do you like sipping that's nice and sweet?

Edit: Can't believe I'm just discovering this thread after many years on TexAgs. You guys speak my language! Mark me down as another one who mourns the lost greatness of Zaya - my first favorite sipping rum. I'm gonna try that Vizcaya Black someone mentioned - I've enjoyed using the blanco Vizcaya as a mixer.

---

Ron Zacapa 23 has a lot of residual sugar in it.

Was tasting Four Square 2005. Pretty close to an aged Bourbon in character and high proof at 110+ I think.

Had a Clement barrel pick, lots of esters and funk. The rhums from Martinique are very complex.

Zaya was bought out and trashed because it competes with Zacapa in that profile and price range. So they dumbed it down but the same quality rum can be found in Zacapa.

Just grabbed the Vizcaya Black, which my rum guy at Specs agreed was a decent substitute for old Zaya. Only $23, too, which would be very cheap for a sipper if I like it.

Bryan98 said:

---

Just grabbed the Vizcaya Black, which my rum guy at Specs agreed was a decent substitute for old Zaya. Only $23, too, which would be very cheap for a sipper if I like it.

---

Update: This bottle is absolutely fantastic, and definitely is great for fans of the old, superior Zaya. It's shocking that it's available cheaper than any Zaya bottle I can recall buying. Beyond sippable, but cheap enough to mix with, which I may try this weekend (it will be hard, I feel the need to ration a sipper as good as this one).

I'd like to try that Zacapa 23 that has been recommended as well, and today a friend at work told me that he was gifted a bottle of RL Seale 10 Year Old Rum and thought of me because of its initial sweetness. I see it has great reviews online, and appears to be about $25 at a Total Wine store (doesn't seem to be available at Specs). Might be grabbing that on the way home today.

Thanks so much to the folks who recommended Vizcaya Black! Ignore what I consider a poorly-chosen label design, it sips so well!

Bought a bottle of four square 2004 today and currently enjoying a pour

Waited way too long to jump into rums

Keeper of The Spirits said:

---

Ron Zacapa 23 year is about 38 bucks at total wine/specs. It's awesome in the rocks

---

After reading through this I bought a bottle. Looking forward to making a Rum Fashioned with it.

Grabbed a Zaya 16 and an OFTD today

The OFTD is really awesome especially for the like 30 dollars I paid for a liter

The zaya 16 is alright, little plain. But it was 20 or so for a fifth. Will probably make drinks with it

Zaya 16 is good for mixing only. Really disappointed in that one.

Anyone seen Foursquare 2007 on the shelf? Total Wine didn't have it nor did it appear they were going to get it as i looked at the inventory with a manager.

Midtown Specs had a bunch on the shelf yesterday.

It definitely makes a better dark and stormy than it does a neat pour

Drinking Goslings Black Seal right now. Good mixer; not a sipper. Ron Zapaca 23 is a good neat.

Like others have said, the old Zaya was really good. Trash now. I have 2 bottles of Admiral Rodneys from St. Lucia. Great neat, but can't get it stateside.

I also like Appleton 21 as sipping rum. Harder to find and about $100/bottle.

I just cracked open my last bottle of Zacapa XO. I bought 3 a couple years ago at the twin liquors sale for 70 a piece

Is there a consensus on Pusser's Rum? Should I consider trying that, or sticking to the El Dorado 5/8yrs?

I like the gunpowder proof, it seems to be pretty popular in the rum nerd world as well.

I believe Kirk and Sweeney changed their recipe, or cut their quality control. The last two bottles have had a terrible plastic taste to them. I don't remember that from previous bottles. I am gonna give them a rest for a bit and continue exploring.

Reading through this thread reminds me to get back on the Rum train. I had a co-worker who went to Trinidad 2-3X a year and would always bring me back whatever the locals and expats were into at the time. Don't work with him anymore so I'm missing out.

Been sipping on a 121 proof Four Square private pick that's been pretty tasty and has me on a rum kick lately. Wish I could snag another one of these.

Have any of y'all tried Balcones Rum? I've seen it at specs and am tempted, but it's 50 or 60 bucks a bottle.

Picked this up at a local liquor store tasting. Very smooth sipping rum. Price point (on sale) was a little over $40.

https://www.rumratings.com/brands/654-plantation-xo-20th-anniversary

Tried a double of Starr rum at the bar recently. Was not impressed. It was like a cheezy club version of good rum. Would not recommend.

Grabbed a bottle of Vizcaya Black after all the recommendations on this thread. This is not good. It tasted like they put in some artificial syrup or something to make it dark. I have also been drinking FDC 12 year. That is good stuff. FDC doesn't seem to get much love on here, I guess it is too mainstream or something. They know what they are doing. Polished off the last of my Kirk and Sweeney. The plastic taste is still there. Not going to buy another bottle of that for a while.

FDC Devotee here. From the top to the bottom I don't think there is a better rum line around. The 12 is a great rum, as is the 7 yo as well. I have several bottles of the 18 and it is good too, but I like the 12 better.

The 25 yo is exceptional stuff as well. I drank way too much FDC when I lived in Nicaragua, and it was cheap. Their distillary is really cool and they take a lot of pride I'm their product.

I dont think people hate it, but from what I can tell flor de cana is available at most liquor stores and at a resonable price for what you're buying. It's one of the more mainstream rums. I think people like it, but just not something special and I don't mean that in a bad way. For example, I have probably 8 different bottles of bourbon because I enjoy trying different bourbons. I'm not going on the bourbon thread to post about makers mark even though I enjoy it. Everyone knows about it already.

I have really enjoyed this thread. I've tried several of the ones that were highly recommended. My favorites so far are ron zavala and diplomatic reserva.

If you ever get a chance, try the FDC 25 YO, it is a very good rum. Really good. I am sure they sell it in the states, I just have never seen it for sale. But then again I am in a Specks maybe 4 times a year. And don't frequent many liquor stores at all.

I got to know one of the ladies that worked in the FDC gift shop in the Managua airport, and would bring her kids clothes from the states. In turn she would get the duty free shops to give me 25% off on all my FDC purchases. On my last flight out before I moved in 2017 she gave me a bottle of the 25.

I also really like Botran rum, although it isn't seen much in the US. Very good rum for the price.

FDC has the cheap Extra Light 4 YO white rum that I drink with tonic and lime and prefer to gin. Makes a very good rum screwdriver too.

Made a Jet Pilot using the Smugglers Cove recipe last night.

Really excellent stuff, glad I tracked down a bottle of Lemon Hart 151 while I was back in Texas over Christmas

RGV AG said:

---

If you ever get a chance, try the FDC 25 YO, it is a very good rum. Really good. I am sure they sell it in the states, I just have never seen it for sale. But then again I am in a Specks maybe 4 times a year. And don't frequent many liquor stores at all.

I got to know one of the ladies that worked in the FDC gift shop in the Managua airport, and would bring her kids clothes from the states. In turn she would get the duty free shops to give me 25% off on all my FDC purchases. On my last flight out before I moved in 2017 she gave me a bottle of the 25.

I also really like Botran rum, although it isn't seen much in the US. Very good rum for the price.

FDC has the cheap Extra Light 4 YO white rum that I drink with tonic and lime and prefer to gin. Makes a very good rum screwdriver too.

---

I've seen the 25 YO at several stores in Texas.

I worked through a bottle of La Hachicera 21 Solera this fall and winter. It's a quite tasty Columbian rum, and supposedly is unpolished, meaning they didn't add water, sugar, or coloring to it. It's not as rich as Diplomatico or El Dorado, but it's got a cleaner rum profile with some grass notes. Really good for $45.

Is there anything out there that compares to Foursquare 2005 or 2007 that doesn't come with the price tag? I love them both and would love to find something similar but less expensive if it exists.

HTownAg98 said:

---

I worked through a bottle of La Hachicera 21 Solera this fall and winter. It's a quite tasty Columbian rum, and supposedly is unpolished, meaning they didn't add water, sugar, or coloring to it. It's not as rich as Diplomatico or El Dorado, but it's got a cleaner rum profile with some grass notes. Really good for $45.

---

Great great rum! Beautiful bottle too.

Lower proof but doorlys 12, usually in stock at total, is foursquare.

Also plantation OFTD if you're looking for the high proof part.

Doorlys will be less than 30 for a fifth and OFTD should be 35ish for a liter.