Zaya Gran Reserva 12-Year

Super couleur. Robe .excellent en bouche. Une belle surprise.

Aromas of banana bread and vanilla on the nose, with a fair amount of complexity led my maple and nutmeg up front. Bourbon barrel aging is somewhat softened by the blend. Medium finish, though it turns a little tinny on the end - side by side I think I prefer the Zacapa 23 Solera just slightly over this. I reserve this for sipping and am yet to try it in a mixed drink, though the way it drinks neat I think it would balance out nicely in a mai tai. A solid 8.5 IMO, but as I consider the Zacapa a solid 9, I have to score the Zaya one spot below.

UPDATED 5/17: New bottle design, minus the expensive palm weave, new label design, new screw cap in place of prior cork version and new recipe -- CHEAP, CHEAP CHEAP!!! And the prior blending of 3 to 5 rums aged atleast 12 years (meaning 12 years WAS the youngest rum in the blend) is now changed to 12 blended rums......AWFUL change in Quality and Flavor from the old recipe. TERRIBLE!!!! I have the previous 2015 version a 10, and this new 2017 version is somewhere between a 6 and a 7 at best. ZAYA went corporate cheap!!! And it shows. I need to now search out a new favorite!! Someone needs to interview the ZAYA folks and ask them why they destroyed a fantastic rum!!!! Also, my theory is that their higher end $$ baby Zacapa 23 was getting blown away by ZAYA, and they even changed the packaging to a cheaper version on the Zacapa 23 as well...so I am thinking GREED has taken over, and they want people to buy the more expensive Zacapa 23, and so they tanked the ZAYA recipe. Truly a tragedy!!!!! NOW, IF I buy ZAYA, it will only be a mixer, NOT a sipper. SAD!!!!

ORIGINAL REVIEW: I was turned onto Zaya from a store owner while I was actually shopping for Zacapa 23, which is a Solera blend. Mike, the owner, showed me the Zaya and told me that all of his serous rum customers loved Zaya, and this was their well kept little secret. I then discovered that the same company who owns Ron Zacapa and Ron Botran, also own Zaya, but just do not market it as heavily. Big mistake in my opinion, especially when you learn that the Zacapa is a blend (Solera) of younger rums that include the highest aged rum of 23 years (always remember Solara includes YOUNGER rums) whereas Zaya Gran Reserva is a 12 year old rum, meaning that the youngest rum in the blend is actually 12 years old, and the blend includes OLDER rums which could include 18 years, 20 years and even older rums.

And I love heavier, molasses based rums like Zaya, over lighter sugar cane juice based rums like Zacapa 23, which are more expensive and intensive to produce from the molasses, versus the lighter, more watery cane juice used in Zacapa and similar cane juice based rums. This process makes Zaya much smoother, richer and more refined in my opinion.

Vanilla, molasses, toffee, caramel and nutmeg are the tasting notes, and the scent is also dominated by vanilla and molasses. Simply amazing!!!!

I prefer sipping Zaya with 1 ice cube, and for my Wife, she loves Zaya with Diet Coke and a lime. Best Rum & Coke she has ever had!!! Zaya would probably work great with a splash over vanilla ice cream or Key Lime Pie as well, as a floater. I usually add Myers Dark or Kraken Spiced Dark over ice cream or Key Lime Pie, but Zaya could be my new Go To.

Beautiful bottle design, great price at around $ 29.99 and a definite must have in any collection. Try doing a blind taste test with several friends, with 2 or 3 of your other favorites and see how Zaya ranks. If it doesn't finish 1st, I would be surprised. Pick up a bottle today and try it. Trust me. My new.favorite, bar none. Enjoy!!!!! B

Really like the vanilla taste and the aromas! Color is excellent and if you like the sweeter side then this is for you!

Strolled into a Nashville Barbeque joint and saw it in the Rum Lineup. Not much of a smell, smooth start and finish with a good amount of barrel flavour. A bit dry, could be sweeter, aftertaste goes away quite quickly but over all quite nice. Drank it on the rocks with a side of Coke, "That's how I roll"

I am new to aged rums, so take my review as such. This was the first bottle I tried where I could appreciate rum's inherent sweetness while still appreciating it complexity. Given the price point not nearly as sweet as Pyrat but has a lot more going on.

I think that i have found my new favorite. Outstanding. So smooth and great flavor. I mix with Coke and it is outstanding.

Sweet and smooth with a taste of cocoa. Very tasty

I picked this up while on vacation in socal and I loved it. It reminds me very much of sailor Jerry's, only smoother. The vanilla was very present but not quite as harsh as Jerry's. I tried it on the rocks and discovered that it tastes best when left to breathe for a while.

Not sure if this rum is from 12 yr old whiskey cask or if it's really rum with sugar added, Carmel added, vanilla added and color added. Where is the spirit - hidden behind the blast of sugar, look out kids better than a trip to the sweet shop