Flor De Cana Cn 12 Yrs

Flor de Caña's 12-year bottling is an aged dark rum. The age statement in the name signals a style built for sipping rather than for shaking into fruit-heavy drinks. The listing doesn't give an ABV, a cask description or a tasting profile, so the notes below are what aged rums at this age usually offer. Expect a gold-to-amber color, aromas of vanilla, caramel and toasted oak, and a palate of dried fruit, baking spice, light cocoa or coffee, and a dry, lingering finish. Rums aged this long usually taste smoother and less sweet than younger gold bottlings. Neat is the best way to taste it. Pour about two ounces into a tulip-shaped nosing glass or a small snifter, which concentrates the aroma, or into a rocks glass if you prefer a wider pour. Room temperature shows the most. If it feels hot at the start, one large ice cube or a few drops of water usually opens up the oak and vanilla notes without diluting it much. Chilling it heavily mutes the aromatics, so avoid that. For cocktails, use it where the rum is meant to be tasted. The Rum Old Fashioned is the clearest fit. Stir two ounces with a bar spoon of demerara syrup and two dashes of Angostura bitters over a large cube, then express an orange peel over the top. A Dark 'n' Stormy also works. Add the rum to ginger beer with lime, and expect the drink to taste richer and drier than it does with a spiced or blackstrap rum. A Daiquiri made with an aged rum is darker and rounder than the white-rum version, but it uses up a sipping bottle quickly. Mojitos and Piña Coladas are better made with a lighter, cheaper white or gold rum, because their mint, lime and coconut would hide the aging you're paying for. At the table, aged rums like this go well with dark chocolate, roasted nuts, flan or crème brûlée, and a cigar if you smoke. They also work against salty, sharp cheeses such as aged Gouda or Manchego.