Carupano Reserva Exclusiva 12-Year

I really like Venezuelan Rums. This is no exception.

I found this at BevMo for only $29.99, so I thought I'd give it a try. First, I compared it to the $400 Carupano Legendario 25-Year, and I ever so slightly prefer this! The Carupano Legendario is more of rum purists' rum, while this has a little more flavor to it. I find it odd when I read reviews like "this tastes like a 10, but minus 3 for added spice (or sugar)". I only care about the taste, not whether they added anything, and I find this to be slightly better tasting, with a bit more spice. The Legendario does taste more premium though.

Smells and tastes of spice, molasses, and oak. Relatively simple, but a very pleasant rum to me.

Great rum, love the smooth taste and coconut on nose.

Nice smell, and sweet tasting. No added sugar, so simply just perfect

Raz som to kupil ked to bolo v mojom oblubenom bottle shope v akcii na radu od predavajuceho ked som chcel skusit nieco nove. Zobral som to ku kamosovi a tento rum dostal hodnotenie "toto sa normalne pije same od seba".

Velmi jemna aroma, jemna ale sladka rumova chut s trochou dymu a sudu. Za mna dost vyvazeny drink. Pri debate sme ani nevim jak vycedili celu flasu a odvtedy to musim nosit po dvoch flaskach aby aj zostalo :D

Great rum for cocktails, outstanding base for cuba libre!

The Carupano Reserva Exclusiva should be a blend of Venezuelan rums that have aged for up to 12 years, after which they have been filled into white American oak barrels, where they've spent another few weeks.
Aroma: Raisins, egg liquer, hazelnut. Also notes of coconut. I haven't smelled a rum like this before, so definitely a nice suprise!
Taste: In taste, the rum is somewhat funky, and tastes "stronger" than it is. Warm, oily and high viscosity is what first came to my mind when I tried this blend. It generally tastes of nuts and wood, more specifically pecans. The rum is not sweet, although it seemed like it would be from the aroma. Quite refined and complex.
Aftertaste: Extremely interesting aftertaste that is slightly bitter and woody in a very good way. Persisting taste of pecans with their slight oiliness and bitterness.
Summary: While some people rate this rum as bland, and "not great, not terrible", I really like this one. I'm not sure if anything artificial is helping the taste but for me the taste of nuts, together with the bitter aftertaste made this a welcome experience.

Lovely sweet caramel aroma. Super smooth caramel flavour with notes and nuts and wood. Finish is short but overall a very tasty rum

Mixes great and makes an awesome Cuba Libre!! Great rum for the price!

Menos presencia alcoholica que el solera 21, un ron ligeramente dulce, muy agradable para degustar puro.

Beau rhum avec un beau nez, de belle saveur en bouche et une belle longue finale.