Ron Zacapa Edicion Negra

Ron Zacapa have managed to create a rum that does taste different to any other rum. That's not so easy to do. It's not that it has any one particular element that makes this happen. More it is the combination of the elements. So what you get is a strong mix of leather, smoke, charring, chocolate, oak and vanilla - with none of them pushing out the others. There is also a bit of burn in there which I like.
It's a very good sipping rum - much more bitter than the 23, whilst retaining some sweetness.
I like it very much and managed to pick up a bottle in Gibraltar for about 60% of the UK retail price.

As a part of my degustation in Antigua, Guatemala this rum initially did not impress me but I've bought the whole bottle in Flores, Peten, GT anyways as very affordable here (400 GTQ). I think they later pimped the drink with a little bit of chocolate on my palate later on in the degu and explained they intentially keep the smoke inside (instead of pulling it out - El Alma edition) the barrells and let the wood do a lot of its work here. Hence the rum has strong smokey and wooden tones, along with some cocoa and/or nuts... But it still resembles other Zacapas (same happens to me with Cihuatans from the neighboring Salvador) and is really not that dark; keeps a certain sweet-ness and is still very smooth, even ladies did like to sip it with me;)

Vanilla and cocoa aroma, sweet start, caramel and cinnamon in body, barrel aftertastr.

This one is smooth and finishes nicely! What a pleasure!

This is a great sipping rum. It's very smooth, with a husky dark flavor.

Slightly sweet and more than a little spicy (with a hint of smoke), like the Zacapa Solera, this is good but a little over rated...still prefer the Santa Theresa to this

Similar to 23, but with a bigger kick. Good sipper, nice color.

Maybe I won’t drink it everyday, but lots of smoky flavor and a smooth finish. Has the Zacapa flavor of caramel. Strong flavors and a great aftertaste.

I really enjoy this rum. Having tried Zacapa 23, I was surprised by the flavor. It definitely has the character of extra char in the barrel, but in a very nice way. It’s not as sweet as Zacapa, but is still delicious.

In tasting this for the first time (neat), I wasn’t sure if I liked it, but realized I’d poured myself a 3rd taste and still wanted more. It has a hefty price tag ~$65 USD, but I’d consider picking up another if one comes along.

Tried the Edición Negra in direct comparison to the Zacapa 23 and XO and did not feel that it offered anything special. It is distinguishable in a blind tasting, but mainly because it is spicier, not for it's alleged smokiness. I think you could drink a Botran 18 to get the same spicyness and won't miss anything. The Zacapa 23 feels much rounder in comparison.