Review: Barcelo Imperial Rum
Barcelo Imperial Rum was launched in 1980. It is distilled from the finest selection of estate grown Caribbean sugar cane grown in the Dominican Republic. Ron Barcelo is the only rum produced in the Dominican Republic from fresh cut sugar cane. The other brands are all made from molasses. Imperial is one of eight rums currently produced at this distillery. Having arrived from Spain in 1929 Julian Barcelo founded Ron Barcelo in 1930 and by 1950 the Ron Barcelo Brand was launched with Barcelo Blanco and Dorado. In 1974 Don Julian Barcelo handed over the reins of the business to his nephew Miguel Barcelo. Barcelo Imperial is made from a blend of rums aged up to 10 years in American bourbon barrels. Ron Barcelo is sold in over 50 countries and it ranks as the 4th largest exporter of rum in the world. Read more 
Review: Bacoo 8 Year Old Rum
Two years ago I reviewed Bacoo 5 year old rum. It is one of the best tasting 5 year old rums I’ve tried. While I was anxious to find Bacoo 8 year old rum, distribution is limited and it took until now to get my hands on a bottle. Bacoo is named for a mischievous mythological spirit claimed to be found in empty corked rum bottles floating in the Caribbean. Once freed he lives on banana’s and milk. As long as you keep your Bacoo happy and well fed he will grant your wishes. Bacoo rum is made from estate grown cane sugar grown on the island of Dominican Republic. The fresh cane juice is fermented, then distilled in unique copper stills, and aged in ex-bourbon barrels for 8 years in before bottling at 80 proof. Read more
Review: Kirk and Sweeney 12 Year Old Rum
Kirk and Sweeney 12 Year Old Rum is produced by 3 Badge Beverage Company, a family owned company that also makes Uncle Val’s Gin, Pasote Tequila, and Bozal Mezcal. 3 Badge is run by 4th generation vintner August Sebastiani out of an old fire station in Sonoma California. This is the same fire station his grandfather helped build and also worked as a volunteer fireman. The original and namesake Kirk and Sweeney was a wooden schooner best known for smuggling rum from the Caribbean to the Northeast during the early years of prohibition. In 1924 it was seized off the coast of New York with a massive amount of rum aboard. The Kirk and Sweeney lineup includes a 12, 18, and 23 year old rum. Kirk and Sweeney 12 Year Old Rum is crafted from blackstrap molasses produced from sugarcane grown in grown in the Dominican Republic. The rum is fermented, distilled and aged for 12 years in oak barrels at Bermudez Distillery in Santiago de los Caballeros DR. Read more
Review: Bacoo 5 Year Old Rum
Bacoo 5 Year Old Rum is one of three rums crafted under the Bacoo label in The Dominican Republic. The others include an 8 Year Old and 12 Year Old Rum. A Bacoo is a mischievous mythological spirit claimed to be found in the Caribbean. Bacoo’s are told to be found in empty corked rum bottles floating in the Caribbean Sea and are said to have magical powers. A Bacoo is described as a short man with large eyes, long arms, and legs and lives on banana’s and milk. As long as you keep Bacoo happy and well fed, he will grant your wishes. Bacco Rum is made from estate grown fresh cane juice. The rum is distilled in a unique copper still and then aged for 5 years in oak barrels. Read more
Review: Atlantico Platino Rum
Atlantico Platino rum is one of three rums they craft in the Dominican Republic. Atlantico is yet another celebrity rum, as Enrique Iglesias is one of the partners. Platino is made with two rums. One is made with molasses, and the other is made with sugar cane juice. Both rums are aged separately in oak barrels before they are blended together and filtered to remove the color. Read more
Review: Ron Matusalem Platino Rum
Ron Matusalem Platino rum was re-launched in 2002. Their rum was first produced in Santiago de Cuba in 1872 by a family that brought from Spain a secret formula for distilling and blending rum. In the period from the 1930’s-1950’s Ron Matusalem had over a 50% market share in Cuba. Following the Cuban revolution in 1959 the government took over the distillery and the rum was not made until it was re-launched in 2002 in the Dominican Republic using the original recipe. Ron Matusalem rum is triple distilled and aged in oak barrels where they use a Solera 3 blending process, where their rum transitions from younger to older barrels in a three step aging process. Read more
Review: Brugal Especial Extra Dry Rum
Brugal Especial Extra Dry rum is made with 100% Dominican Republic grown sugar cane molasses. It is distilled twice using their proprietary methods to remove some of the sweetness from the alcohol. They age the rum in American white oak barrels for 2-5 years. The barrels are blended and then triple charcoal filtered to remove impurities and color. Pure spring water from Puerto Plata is added to reduce to 80 proof before bottling. Read more