Ron Barcelo Imperial Rum

Barceló Imperial was the first rum ever to score 97 out of 100 at the Beverage Testing Institute, which twice named it the best rum in the world — and The Rum Howler, revisiting it after twelve years, scored it 88.5. Ron Barceló was founded in 1930 by Julián Barceló in Santo Domingo, and it's now the most exported Dominican rum on earth, sold in more than 80 countries, and one of only 3% of rum producers worldwide that grows its own cane. Imperial is the flagship: a blend of Barceló's finest Dominican molasses rums, column-distilled and aged up to ten years in ex-bourbon oak in the tropical heat, bottled at 40% ABV in a cognac-style decanter. Barceló describes a far smokier, more roasted nose than the rest of its lineup, and Rum Ratings' drinkers agree: very dry, smoky, and leathery, not for beginners, a cigar rum — with toffee and brown sugar underneath that never reads overly sweet, and a hint of oak. One Czech taster lined it up against Abuelo Añejo and Matusalem 15 and found only Angostura 1824, at twice the price, did better. RumX calls Imperial the sweet spot of the range that most reviewers agree on. Honest note: it's a soft, 40% Dominican column rum in the Spanish tradition — elegant and dry rather than funky. For a cigar, a Rum Old Fashioned, or neat over one cube, it's the Dominican Republic's most decorated bottle.

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