...
Trinidad and Tobago | Aged | 40% ABV | Column Still (5+) Distilled
Zaya Gran Reserva Rum is a blend of molasses-based rums distilled in a five-column still and aged in white oak barrels for up to 12 years.
Zaya rum was initially distilled by Industrias Licoreras de Guatemala in Guatemala. The brand was acquired in 2008 by Infinium Spirits and is now produced in Trinidad and distilled by Angostura.
Sort by: Popularity | Newest | Oldest | Rating
Posted
almost 5 years ago
A very good rum but almost too sweet and spicy. A must have for the cabinet but no longer my first choice.
Posted
almost 5 years ago
The sugar cane in this is gorgeously developed, I love every sip of this. I prefer this rum neat most often than not, it is so smooth and bold with age that it should really be meant with nothing added to it.
Posted
5 years ago
Ratings are all over the board on this one. It really depends on your taste. Sweet cane nose. Very sweet flavor with hints of caramel and vanilla. Not terribly complex but not at all as bad as some of the ratings make it out to be. I think this is more of a middle of the road rum. Not world class but definitely not swill. Warming approaching hot. Slightly bitter finish but not unpleasent. A decent sipper if you really like it sweet and simple but it would be much better served with cocktails wanting a fuller bodied sweet rum.
Edit 9/25/19 - rating above is for old Guatemala rum. Recently tried the new Trinidad version. Not at all the same. Over sweet and artificial. No depth just sweet vanilla. Sadly this is giving rum the wrong reputation. I lower my rating for the new formula from a 6 to a 4. If you like real rum do not spend $30 on this.
Posted
5 years ago
Too sweet and this for my taste. I had it to sip at a celebration but was not impressed.
Posted
5 years ago
If this is the same rum everyone else tried. I have a couple bottles from a few years old to a couple years old. I like this rum. It is sweet and flavorful but an enjoyable supper with a little burn. Rum forward. Sweet. Vanilla and spice in the middle. Not my favorite but an enjoyable sipper to Gabe in the mix.
Posted
5 years ago
Had a glass of this and I enjoyed it. One of the better glasses of rum I've been able to get at a restaurant or bar. Good flavor to it without the overpowering taste that you usually get from a bar/restaurant rum. Not up there with a Kirk and Sweeny, but definitely a good rum
Thought it lacked the depth of a truly great rum of a higher rating
Posted
5 years ago
Vona velmi prijemna, sladka, citit hrozienka, melasu, vanilku. Chut zodpoveda voni, je to sladsi rum, chut v celku plna a vyvazena, ale... s cenovkou okolo 50€ by sa urcite dali najst aj lepsie volby - El Dorado 15, Millonario 15, Centenario 20, Plantation XO - vsetky lacnejsie ako Zaya 12.
Posted
5 years ago
This is as slightly sophisticated, as the bottle is appealing. A reasonably priced rum for a pleasant mix. The vanilla and caramel notes finish well on the tongue. However, if you’re looking for “authentic” rum flavors, the artificial notes might turn your nose - personally, they don’t offend me. Bring on the flavor!
Posted
5 years ago
A very good rum for the price, but still prefer Diplomatico.
×
Quite flavorful, but heavily doctored
5
/10
out of 10
Update (3/2018):
Got to try one of the older bottles with grass around the neck and the script-style logo. Just how I remembered it—vanilla, coconut, banana, sweet. Even this version wasn't good, though it was an eye-oper to me as my first "sipping" spirit.
Update: (4/2017):
Wow, having been paying closer attention to retail prices for this bottle of late, they really seem to have plummeted. It's not unusual to see it going for $23USD. I think that's commensurate with what's inside the bottle—or, at least, what we know is inside the bottle, which is very little. This tells me that the makers are capitalizing on the brand reputation they've worked to establish over the year, have drastically reduced production costs (presumably with a blend of younger/inferior rums), and are now going after a (much) larger, lower-end market segment.
And it should do well there. I think for many this bottle would still be a huge step up for their rum game, but it's still just a rung on the ladder; a reference point; nothing to stick with. At the expense of exactly one "I'll drink to that!" I'm letting go of some of the sentimentality I have for this vanilla-banana liqueur and docking it one point.
Update (12/2016):
Yes, the packaging has changed, and not for the better. What's inside is still very good, but not quite as smooth or flavorful as the previous incarnation. I do think it's still a decent value, if you can find it in the USD $30–35 range (I've seen it online for much higher). If you're a fan of the "old" version, now's the time to track down the remaining bottles! And if you have your doubts about the new one, might be time to spring for something a little higher. Cheers!
Original (~2011):
This was the first sipping rum I ever tried, long before I was even a novitiate. I had no expectations. Imagine my surprise when I first smelled the banana, vanilla and caramel. The flavor profiles in this rum are very distinct, and can easily transport you to another place. (Perhaps this contributes—along with good old-fashioned marketing—to such a wide price range for this product, compared to other aged rums.) In the mouth, it's sweet, and oh-so-smooth.
The bottle is nice and heavy, with a straw lattice around the neck [edit: womp, womp...]. Looks good on the shelf (if the shelf is tall enough) and feels good in the hand.
I'd rate it higher if I were a bigger fan of vanilla and banana aromas (which I think most people are), but still, it's a solid bottle.