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The World's Best Aged Rums, According To The SF World Spirits Competition

The World's Best Aged Rums, According To The SF World Spirits Competition

Forbes31-05-2025
The Aged Rum Finalists From The 2025 SFWSC
Five rums are finalists for the World's Best Aged Rum at the 2025 San Francisco World Spirits Competition. The SFWSC is one of the world's most prestigious spirit judging events, and both consumers and the beverage industry closely follow its results. Below are brief backgrounds and tasting notes for the finalists.
Jamaica's Worthy Park Estate has been distilling rum since 1741 and is renowned for its molasses-based, 100% pot still rums. The Select Rum is a lightly aged expression, typically matured for 4–6 years in ex-bourbon barrels at the estate. It's a classic Jamaican pot still rum.
The rum is bold and expressive on the nose, featuring ripe banana, molasses, baking spice, and a hint of funky overripe mango. It's rich and robust on the palate, showcasing layers of tropical fruit, vanilla, caramel, and charred oak, balanced by peppery spice and earthy undertones. The finish is long, fruity, and slightly dry, with lingering notes of banana bread, clove, and subtle smoke.
Worthy Park's 109 Rum is a high-proof expression created as a modern take on overproof rum. It is a blend of pot-still rums aged 4 to 10 years. Its deep mahogany hue suggests significant oak influence. It's designed for bartenders and rum enthusiasts who crave intensity and depth in a rum.
The rum is intensely aromatic on the nose, featuring pronounced notes of molasses, cola syrup, baking spice, dried pineapple, and classic, funky Jamaican ester aromas. It's full-bodied and robust on the palate, showcasing dark/burnt caramel, charred wood, grilled banana, and spicy notes of cinnamon and clove. The high proof adds structure and brings out the flavor components, without adding harshness. The finish is long, with lingering notes of nutmeg, black tea, and funky stone fruit.
Worthy Park 109 is a high-impact rum that strikes a balance between power and polish, making it ideal for sipping with a splash of water.
Fine Cuban cigars and glass of rum on wooden table
Despite its clear appearance, Planas is an aged rum from Venezuela's Diplomático Distillery. It's matured for up to 6 years in ex-bourbon, ex-malt whisky, and ex-sherry casks, then charcoal-filtered for clarity. It blends column, batch kettle, and pot still rums, showcasing finesse and complexity.
The rum is elegant and aromatic on the nose, featuring notes of coconut cream, vanilla, lemon zest, and subtle almond and caramel undertones. It's creamy and smooth on the palate, exhibiting notes of white chocolate, toasted coconut, citrus peel, and a slight undertone of caramelized sugar. The finish is long and refined, with lingering notes of vanilla, nutmeg, and subtle floral aromas.
Kaniché Fiji is a Fijian molasses-based rum aged first in Fiji, typically in ex-bourbon barrels, then finished in cognac casks in France by Maison Ferrand. This double cask maturation imparts both fruity tropical richness and a French oak polish.
The rum is fruity and aromatic on the nose, featuring ripe banana, honeycomb, baking spices, and toasted coconut aromas. The palate is smooth and full-bodied, with nuanced complexity showcasing notes of vanilla, caramelized pineapple, dark cocoa, wood spices, seasoned oak, and a subtle leather note. The finish is long, with lingering notes of fig, baking spices, and seasoned oak wood.
Xaymaca, pronounced zay-muh-kah, the indigenous name for Jamaica, is Planteray's homage to 100% Jamaican pot still rum. It's a blend of distillates from Long Pond and Clarendon, which are either unaged or minimally aged. It is designed to showcase the funky, ester-rich character of classic Jamaican rum.
The rum is aromatic and funky, featuring notes of green banana, grilled pineapple, fermented mango, and a touch of olive brine. It's dry and robust on the palate, showcasing notes of unripe banana, citrus pith, clove, burnt sugar, and leather, with a subtle earthy and slightly savory undertone. The finish is long and complex, with lingering notes of pepper, tropical fruit, allspice, and an ester-rich, funky character.
These rums have all been aged five years or less; nonetheless, they showcase powerful, robust flavors and a pronounced cask wood influence. They will add character and depth to rum cocktails and can also be enjoyed straight up. From the classic aromas and flavors of funky Jamaican rums to the lighter, fruitier style of Venezuelan and Fijian rums, there's a rum here for every palate.
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The Fortune Hotel series 2 line-up includes ex-police officer and poker player

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Forbes

time9 hours ago

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Missed Out On Bad Bunny Tickets? No Problem—Here's Why Puerto Rico Is Still The Place To Be

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The art form is deeply connected to the story of the island's formation, resistance, resilience and self-expression. Today, the town of Loíza is regarded as the mecca for all things Bomba as it remains a powerful symbol of Afro-Puerto Rican identity and cultural pride. Taller de Bomba N'Zambi is an artistic heritage space dedicated to teaching and preserving the history of Bomba. Under the leadership of Sheila Osorio, this workshop curates performances, educational events and ancestral nights that give new life to and celebrate the rhythms and movements of the island's ancestors. Hacienda San Pedro Hacienda San Pedro is a family-owned farm that has cultivated, harvested, and processed coffee the ... More same way for over three generations. Discover Puerto Rico Rum isn't the only liquid gold that flows through the veins of Puerto Rico. With over 15 coffee farms, the island has a thriving and esteemed coffee culture. 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Montreal Canadiens captain Nick Suzuki and wife Caitlin share intimate wedding photos: 'Just the two of us, forever'
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Montreal Canadiens captain Nick Suzuki and wife Caitlin share intimate wedding photos: 'Just the two of us, forever'

The couple tied the knot earlier in June during a ceremony in Turks and Caicos. The wife of Montreal Canadiens captain Nick Suzuki is reflecting on one of the most romantic days of her life. On Sunday, the 25-year-old shared several photos and videos from her intimate beachside wedding in Turks and Caicos last month. "Just the two of us, forever," she captioned an initial post. She paired her words with a dove emoji and her wedding date, which was on Monday, June 9, 2025. That post first featured a photo of herself and Nick, 25, holding hands and walking away from the camera, as she looked back over her shoulder with her veil draping down to the ground. The other pictures in the carousel showed off parts of the beach, one-on-one moments with her NHLer husband as well as his-and-hers vow booklets with their rings. Caitlin continued to shared a couple other posts from her stunning destination wedding, including a glam-shot video from a hair and makeup appointment for her cocktail bridal party. In the clip, hair artist Vanessa Wehbe showed off Caitlin's glamorous makeup look and immaculately-curled hair. A third post showed off the couple's "night before" in Turks and Caicos, where they spent the evening on a chartered catamaran. They took an intimate photoshoot on board, where they embraced in various poses and outfits on the boat. A couple shots featured Caitlin wearing a strapless white dress with her blonde locks tied in a ponytail, and Nick opting for a seafoam blue polo shirt and white pants. Another snapshot showed Caitlin wearing a white long-sleeve mini dress, with Nick changing into a white shirt and light khaki shorts. In all of the posts, fans raved over the beauty of the event and how stunning the couple looked during their beachside festivities. Others shared their congratulations to the newlyweds and expressed how they're still celebrating the duo. "Forever obsessed," wrote fellow Montreal Canadiens WAG Emma Fortin, who's married to Brendan Gallagher. "Gorgeous. Congratulations!" added Alexa Dobson, who recently married Montreal Canadiens defenceman Noah Dobson. "She hit us with so much in one day," joked Paola Anderson, who's married to Montreal Canadiens player Josh Anderson. "I'm so obsessed, no words at all," someone chimed in. "Actually never getting over these!!! Wow," someone else penned. Caitlin also took to her Instagram Stories to re-share numerous photos and videos — some of which had black-and-white filters — that wedding guests had posted on their accounts from the reception. That included clips from their first dance and other photos the couple had taken. Nick and Caitlin first connected through social media around 2016 or 2017. They had previously known of each other through mutual friends in London, Ont., and eventually Nick proposed in 2024 during a trip to the Dominican Republic. This past January, Caitlin took to social media to share footage from her bachelorette bash in Aspen, Colo. "The girlies take on Aspen part 1," she captioned a post on Jan. 5. The following month, she made an appearance on the "Never Offside" podcast hosted by Julie Petry, wife of Detroit Red Wings defenceman Jeff Petry, and Cat Toffoli, wife of San Jose Sharks alternate captain Tyler Toffoli. In an episode posted on Feb. 4, Caitlin opened up more about her relationship with Nick, her role as an NHL wife and her then-upcoming wedding "I've never dreamed of a wedding. I've dreamed of the person I'm going to marry, but I'm not a wedding person," she explained at the time. But thinking of having all of her loved ones in one room had pushed her to excitement over the big day: "To have everyone in one space together is my dream come true. ... I know it's going to be so much fun, so I'm really looking forward to that."

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