El Dorado 12-Year

Tasted only once, will revisit this review shortly.
(36.00 CAD in Feb 2017)

Since it needs to be distinguished by it's"older" brother, the 15 years old which IMO doesn't make it so high, so I will reserve the 7 rate for it ...
This one is a really smooth, aroma rich and sweet (not in the way Reserva Exclusiva is) Rum.
Vanilla, citrus, Cane sugar, all lightly spiced, firmly smoked with tobacco scent and perfectly blended together.
Another one that easily makes it to the "MUST TRY" category!

The sweetest I tasted with orange and other fruit flavours. More like a liqour and definitly better to mix. To sweet and dominant for my taste.

Very nice smooth sipping rum, especially considering its price compared with other aged rums

Sweet and warm, with good essences of smoked wood. It's a ron for "every day" drinking.

Niet 'bewust' gekocht, maar meer onder het motto 'doe er maar zo een flesje ook bij'.
Ooit stiefmoederlijk behandeld, maar nu een vaste waarde in mijn collectie.

Hij verliest enkele punten bij de neus. De nogal stevige alcoholgeur misleid je van wat er moet komen.
Eens in de mond zal je tong verrast worden van de subtiele zoete, licht rokerige smaak. Het gehemelte geniet nog stevig na van wat lijkt een hoog alcoholpercentage (maar wat niet is).

De prijs zou je doen denken aan een instaprum, maar ik zou dit niet als eerste kennismaking willen krijgen. Ik zou het niet waarderen en laten voor wat het is. Pas later na heel wat gerenommeerde en prijzige rums te hebben geproefd herken je het vakmanschap van deze masterblender!

I had some expectations of this rum. Unfortunately they didn't come true. The nose has quite some alcohol in it, but it's not bad. It smells sweet enough with caramel and vanilla. The taste is quite strong to my opinion. I like sweet rums, but this one didn't live up to that.
Today I tried a mix with coke zero and that works out quite well. A bit expensive for a mixing rum (over 30 euro). Better to get the El Dorado Dark (which is unfortunately not available anymore in The Netherlands) for mixing.

First impression in smell is a lot of oak. I have a small oak barell, used for wine and spirits. It is not burnt inside. In this rum I smell and taste a lot of this natural oaky taste, perhaps too much. After the glass is finished, I smell a very pleasant dose of honeycombs.

Very good value for money and a nice sweet taste. Perfect for mixing.

Great sipper and in cocktails. Sweet, spicy, and fruity. One of the best values available.