Diplomatico Distillery Collection No2 Barbet

I had soured on all rums from this company and saw this one on clearance for only $60 US. It was too good to pass up. To my pleasant surprise, it wound up at the top of my list for this company. That was months ago and that bottle is long gone with no more on clearance. It was a pleasant dry rum. The fine print on the sides of the gift box states that a lot of the congeners have been removed. So for those of you that rave about congeners, stay away from this smooth rum.

Update April 16, 2023: I finally found another bottle on clearance for $60 US. Being that it is bottled at 94 proof, I now have it classified as over proof, even though my threshold for this classification usually starts at 100 proof. In my book, if one needs to add spring water or ice to make a rum drinkable, then I classify it as an over proof. Adding ice cubes to this dry rum is where it really shines! I originally had it ranked in my top 18% by taste of all rums that I have tried. This has not changed at all. For $60 US, this excellent dry rum is still a bargain. Even if you can find it for less than $100 US, it is still a good buy. The taste is memorable without being offensive. When the bottle is finally gone, you will be asking yourself why you cannot find another bottle on clearance.

This was a disappointing rum. Higher priced then the Reserva Exclusiva but nowhere as smooth or tasty. Overall it has too much of the alcohol and it burns the nose and your taste. It's not as sweet as the RE. It seems that it's been rushed to market and I think they should take it down to the normal 40% and let the base rums in this vintage age a bit more.
As it is now, it would be good for a mixer but as a sipper, it's not for me.

Aroma of this run is full of tropical fruits. Taste then offer sugar cane, wood and citrus fruits.

Hey Diplomatico, put it back into the system. Let it stand for extra decade and let this wonderful taste to grow up ).

Pretty exotic, fruty and organically dry at the same glass.

But, the cons:
-1 alien alcohol on the nose;
-1 too subtle notes; short after taste;
-90$.

Not sure whether I need consume episodes 1 and 3 of this serial or see something more classic.

Edit: don't let it stand and breathe, drink ASAP ). Aroma is the best at 47°.
Incrementing the score.

Really good, totally different taste to compare with No1.

Diplomatico Distillery Collection No 2. Barbet Rum !

Quick review:

On the nose- floral notes with vanilla, oak, toffee and bourbon.
First sip- a welcomed mellow burn right off the bat with rich dark flavors such as smoke, oak, tobacco and dark chocolate.
The finish has a sharp burn that only lasts for a moment or two but not at all over powering. Really reminds me a lot of a sweet bourbon.
When diplo made this rum it was a shot at all the sweet haters. They were going for much more of an unadulterated rum taste with less added sugar/color. Not the best rum I've ever had but not mad I made the purchase. Made from a continuous column copper still and aged in American oak barrels.
Na Zdrowie 😎🥃🤙

I had passed this rum over for years choosing single vintage Diplomatico offerings. Glad I circled back. It is a dry higher proof rum that is better with a tich of water or small cube. Oddly. I tasted this back to back with Doorly’s 14 year which has a similar taste profile for $30 less. This is a barbet style rum aged in oak casks. Caramel, brown sugar, dried fruit, chocolate. If you can get one of the remaining bottles on sale it’s worth the taste.

#2 of 3 in a Steph tasting flight 8/25/22 at Laka Lono
I taste cedar and vanilla, OH MY
(above is a direct quotation from my rum passport)

Nice balance, slightly dry with spice finish. This one makes me curious of the other two

Milk chocolate aroma with wooden barrel in the end, sweet start, cinnamon, long warming tail.