Barbancourt Estate Reserve 15-Year

Ordered this neat at a casino bar in Las Vegas.

Nose is quite pleasant, the wood from the aging comes through and there’s a hint of caramel.

Sips very smooth. Clean finish, a little bitter.

Good choice if you want to sip on a cane rum.

($63CAD) 43%ABV - I don’t usually use the box in the picture but this box is too great to exclude.
Color is acorn brown, quite a bit darker than the 8 year. Smells intensely of brown sugar and a little bit of that grassy goodness. The flavour is very similar but opens up into a much more complex party of toasted vanilla, rich nutty flavours, and just a hint of a floral note at the end. The finish is long and detailed, I really like it.
I would say this is much smoother than the 8 year. Without comparing directly, I still think $23 more for the 15 year is worth it. It is a solid rum, with enough complexity to keep you thinking. For those curious minds out there, I suggest you try it once you’ve had the 8 year. If you liked the 8 year, you’ll love this.

I'm having trouble finding much complexity in this one, and was honestly hoping for more from it. It's all wood.

Served neat, the nose is interesting but a bit sharp. Something semi-sweet but not directly like caramel / molasses. Bit of earthiness, maybe faint hint of clove or star anise. However that sharpness is nowhere to be found in the rum until the after taste, and it's a pleasant kick. This is quite dry and much smoother than the nose would indicate. Not juicy, sweet, or rich, but definitely packing good flavor. Does not lean too heavily in any direction between spice/sweetness/bitterness. This may be a solid benchmark to judge dry rums upon.

Served with ice/water, the nose loses most of the sharpness but unfortunately also seems to mute many of the other notes. The same follows for tasting: it tends to mellow out a bit too much for my preference. Although the flavor is still quite good, it's just a muted, shackled version of itself at that point.

Stick to this neat and you have a winner for dry rum. I would give this about an 8.5/10, anything noticeably better than this will tend to eat your wallet up real quick. If dry rum is not your thing, then I would point you to maybe El Dorado 15, or some offerings from Ron Diplomatico.

Nice mahogany color. Nose is butterscotch. Palate is zesty yet sweet. Finish is cinnamon. This Rhum Agricole is a winner.

The Barbancourt Estate 15 year has a heavy palate of molasses and brown sugar. It is great for sipping or mixed in drinks.

Easy smooth drinking rum. Used in Haitian rituals. I'd awaken to it. 💀

This 43% ABV rum is bringing some gin-like vibes to the scene. It's quite tasty and pretty unique so far amongst the rum I've tried.

On the nose there is juniper, grass, pepper, light caramel, alcohol, licorice, grapefruit, wood and orange zest.

The palate is ginger, cream, vanilla, oak and clove.

The finish is pepper, mint, light caramel and dry.

As smooth and wonderful a 15 year agricole as you can get for under $50 a bottle. Magnificent!

...this is absolutely delicious. I wasn’t sure how I felt about it on my first few sips, but I quickly appreciated its vanilla, earthy, vegetal notes that make this rhum something worthwhile. Will definitely buy again.