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Forbes
10-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Forbes
12 Ultra-Aged Gold Medal Rums Under $100 You Have To Buy
Glass of rum on the rocks with cigar in front of a cask getty If you think rum is just for tropical cocktails, think again. Ultra-aged rums are some of the most complex, flavorful, and underrated spirits in the world. Whether sipped neat, used in premium cocktails, or paired with food, these rums bring depth, elegance, and exceptional value. We've rounded up 12 ultra-aged rums—each matured from five to twenty-one years, retailing under $100 in the U.S., all proven medal winners on the global stage. These aren't just fabulous rums—they're must-haves for any serious spirits enthusiast. This rum is made at Barbados' famous Foursquare Distillery using a blend of copper pot and twin-column distilled spirits. The Real McCoy rum features aromas of vanilla, toasted coconut, and fresh sugarcane. It's smooth on the palate, highlighting notes of honey, sweet cooked cereal, almond, and subtle oak spices. The finish is medium-length with gentle spice notes. Pair it with a coconut-based cocktail, coconut curry, tropical fruit salad, or vanilla custard. The rum was created by Alexandre Gabriel at Maison Ferrand and aged in ex-bourbon and French oak barrels. It has won more than 30 awards at spirit competitions around the world. The rum is rich and aromatic on the nose, with notes of molasses, cooked tropical fruits, banana fritters, and leather. The palate is flavorful and full-bodied, highlighting rich fruitcake, caramel, tobacco, and a subtle Jamaican funk. The finish is long and smoky, with lingering hints of wood spices and seasoned oak. Pair the rum with dark chocolate, grilled meat, or aged cheddar. A perfect complement to a rich, sweet barbecue sauce. It's ideal for a Dark & Stormy cocktail. El Dorado 5-Year-Old (Guyana), 40% ABV, 750 ml. $33 Another exceptional rum from Guyana's top-tier distillery. It's a blend of rums from multiple Demerara stills. An entry-level rum offered at a great price. The rum features aromas of tropical fruits, especially banana, along with hints of vanilla and brown sugar. It's creamy on the palate, revealing tropical fruit, caramel, and oak spices. The finish is medium-length, with lingering notes of sweet, flavored pipe tobacco and roasted nuts. Pair the rum with grilled pineapple, banana fritters, coconut shrimp, or caramel flan. Planteray Barbados 5-Year-Old, 40% ABV, 750 ml. $30 This Barbados rum is aged 5 years in ex-bourbon casks and bottled by Maison Ferrand. This rum has won over 45 Gold Medals and Best-in-Class awards. The rum features grilled tropical fruits, banana fritters, vanilla, baked apple, and oak wood spices. It's smooth on the palate, showcasing flavors of fruit cocktail, wood spices, and seasoned oak. The finish is long, with lingering notes of caramel and seasoned oak. An excellent after-dinner dram: pair the rum with Banana foster, jerk chicken, or rum cake. A glass of rum surrounded by a selection of cheese and cured meats. Ultra-aged rums are ideal for pairing with a large Phot, J Micallef, all rights reserved Eight-Fifteen-Year-Old Rums El Dorado 12-Year-Old (Guyana), 40% ABV, 750 ml. $41 Demerara Distillers produces El Dorado in Guyana. It's a blend of rums from Enmore, Diamond, and Port Mourant stills. It has been a consistent gold medalist at the International Wine & Spirit Competition and the Caribbean Rum Awards. The rum offers rich aromas of molasses, brown sugar, golden raisins, and caramelized banana. It's full-bodied on the palate, revealing toffee, roasted nuts, dark spices, and tropical fruit. The finish is long and warm, with lingering notes of cocoa, tropical fruits, molasses, and seasoned oak. The rum is perfect for a Daiquiri or a Pina Colada. Pair it with blue cheese, grilled pineapple, and roasted nuts for an ideal complement. Flor de Caña 12-Year-Old (Nicaragua), 40% ABV, 750 ml. $40 The rum has been produced by Compañía Licorera de Nicaragua since 1890. Flor de Caña has consistently won Gold Medals at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition and was named Rum Distiller of the Year at the 2019 International Rum Conference (IRC). The rum has aromas of nougat, almond butter, and brown sugar. It's smooth on the palate, with flavors of nougat, honey, toasted oak, and subtle wood spices. The finish is long, with lingering notes of dark caramel, cinnamon, and pepper. Pair it with aged Gouda, caramel flan, or roasted walnuts. R.L. Seale's 12-Year-Old (Barbados), 46% ABV, 750 ml. $49 An authentic pot still rum from Foursquare, one of Barbados's top producers. The rum is rich and aromatic, with notes of molasses, baking spices, caramel, and seasoned oak. It offers a flavorful palate, highlighting caramel, nutmeg, toffee, and dark fruit flavors. The finish is long, sweet, and spicy, with lingering notes of oak. Pair the rum with apple pie, grilled figs, or smoked meats for a delightful combination. Diplomático Reserva Exclusiva 12-Year-Old (Venezuela), 40% ABV, 750 ml. $40 This rum is a blend of column and pot still spirits aged using a solera process. The rum features aromas of toffee, tropical fruit, vanilla, and licorice. It's rich and flavorful on the palate, with notes of chocolate, caramel, dried fruit, and spice. The finish is long and smooth, with lingering notes of tropical fruit and seasoned oak. Pair the rum with chocolate truffles, espresso, and crème brûlée. Homemade Mai Tai Cocktail with Pineapple Cherry and Rum getty Fifteen-Twenty-Five-Year-Old Rums El Dorado 15-Year-Old (Guyana), 40% ABV, 750 ml. $60 This rum is produced at Guyana's renowned distillery. Like all Demerara rums, it ages in tropical conditions. It's the only rum to win IWSC 'Best Rum in the World' eight times. The rum offers aromas of molasses, dried figs, banana bread, and seasoned oak. It's rich and smooth on the palate, revealing flavors of fruitcake, exotic tropical woods, spices, and creamy toffee. The finish is long and spicy, with lingering notes of seasoned oak. A quintessential sipping rum, pair it with Christmas pudding, glazed ham, or spiced fruitcake. Flor de Caña 18-Year-Old (Nicaragua), 40% ABV, 750 ml. $50 The rum is made from estate-grown sugarcane. It has consistently won medals in spirit competitions. The rum is rich and aromatic, with notes of toffee, fig, and wood spices. The palate offers caramel, nuts, ripe orchard fruits, and a subtle smoke. The finish is long and refined, with lingering hints of wood spices and toasted oak. Pair the rum with roasted almonds, blue cheese, or poached apple or pear. It makes a perfect match for warm apple pie (with vanilla ice cream, of course). Zafra Master Reserve 21-Year-Old (Panama), 40% ABV, 750 ml. $72 Don Poncho Fernandez crafts this rum. It's an authentic, 21-year-old, barrel-aged, column-distilled rum. This rum earned 95 points at a Beverage Testing Institute judging. The rum features caramel, vanilla, toasted oak, and citrus peel. It's rich and robust on the palate, highlighting caramel, dried cherry, tobacco, cinnamon, and seasoned oak. The finish is long, with layered complexity and lingering notes of oak spice and citrus zest. Pair the rum with an aged cheese, especially sheep's milk pecorino, grilled steak, or dark chocolate truffles. El Dorado 21-Year-Old (Guyana), 43% ABV, 750 ml. $99 Another award-winning rum from El Dorado. The rum features molasses, dates, wood spices, and seasoned oak. It's rich and full-bodied on the palate, revealing flavors of dark chocolate, spiced fruitcake, and leather. The finish is remarkably long, with lingering notes of seasoned oak and baking spices. Pair this rum with chocolate cake, aged cheddar, and fine cigars for a truly indulgent experience. From the smooth elegance of Flor de Caña to the bold complexity of El Dorado and Zafra, these ultra-aged rums showcase the depth, heritage, and craftsmanship behind some of the world's best distilleries. With layered aromas, richly textured palates, and long, satisfying finishes, each bottle offers an incredible experience at a price that won't break the bank. Whether you're new to aged rums or a seasoned collector, this curated selection delivers quality, character, and versatility in every pour. It's time to give rum the respect—and shelf space—it deserves. More From Forbes Forbes The World's Best Rum, According To America's Top Bartenders By Joseph V Micallef Forbes Top Rums Crowned At The 2025 San Francisco World Spirits Competition By Joseph V Micallef Forbes The World's Top Rum, According To The Beverage Testing Institute By Joseph V Micallef Forbes The Top Rum From The 2025 ADI International Spirits Competition By Joseph V Micallef
Yahoo
28-02-2025
- Yahoo
There's more to Cognac in France than its famous brandy
This article was produced by National Geographic Traveller (UK). It's strange to be surrounded by vines, flame-coloured and curling as autumn progresses, but sampling seemingly everything except wine. It's even stranger, seeing as I'm in France. However, the southwestern region of Cognac is an anomaly — 98% of its vineyards are used for cultivating brandy. It's a drink that can perhaps feel rather archaic to some of us. There was always a bottle of Cognac — a brandy type that can only be made from select white grapes from the region — in my parents' drinks cupboard. It rarely made it out and was left to gather dust except for the occasions when I pilfered it as a teenager, drinking it heavily watered down. Contained in a beautiful mandolin-shaped bottle embossed with gold lettering, it seemed like a waste; but when was the last time you overheard someone ordering Cognac at the bar? Only 3% of the premium brandy is drunk domestically; its main markets are China (61.5 million bottles imported in 2023) and the US (58.4 million bottles). But Cognac looks set to lose a significant amount of sales from the former, which imposed a new luxury goods tax on European brandy last autumn. Could its potential demise have the same effect on this historic area of the Charente as the closure of coal mines in northern England and Wales? Even in states of elegant disrepair, though, the region's rural Renaissance-era Cognac châteaux stand more chance of retaining tourists than the UK's former pit towns. In the city of Cognac, at the centre of the eponymous region, I wander cobbled streets dwarfed by ranks of Cognac houses that resemble army barracks. But my first distillery visit, in fact, has nothing to do with brandy. 'This was France's first gin distillery,' says Yohann Thuillier, visitor centre manager at Citadelle Gin, which first opened in the southwest Cognac village of Ars in 1996. 'It predates any craft gin production in the UK.' The quintessential Britishness of a gin and tonic makes this surprising, but France has had a ongoing relationship with the spirit since the 'gin craze' of the 18th-century. And while the 1751 Gin Act restricted gin production to larger companies in the UK, small distillers endured across the Channel.'Over the last few years, the popularity of gin has grown in France, even though it was historically never seen as a premium spirit.' says Yohann. 'The craft gin renaissance has made gin fashionable, and high-end French distilleries have even made it desirable.' The UK's first craft distillery didn't open until 2008, when the Gin Act was repealed, whereas here in Cognac, several were up and running by then. Citadelle Gin started as a side hustle for Maison Ferrand, a Cognac house founded in Ars in 1989 by Alexandre Gabriel. Cognac, like gin in the UK, was subject to a lot of rules, meaning that Alexandre could only make it for six months of the year. Not one for rules, he decided to also start making gin, and set about planting his own juniper. It took five years of wrangling before he managed to persuade the French authorities to grant him a licence to produce the spirit commercially. Today, the manor at the distillery — a grand, cream-coloured limestone house with a tiled slate roof — looks over neat rows of squat juniper shrubs that resemble Christmas trees. Yohann next gives me a cocktail-making lesson, taking in blends that include a sidecar made with Cognac; a pineapple rum daiquiri using rum from Maison Ferrand's West Indies Rum Distillery in Barbados; and a rhubarb and berry gin mixed with violet syrup. A simple Cognac and tonic meanwhile, is a revelation: warming, slightly syrupy and combining many flavours, pineapple and roasted hazelnut among them. Also bringing new flavours are Shandra and Bernard Gombert, originally from the French overseas territory of La Réunion, in the Indian Ocean. I visit the couple at Domaine de Pladuc, a former Cognac house a 25-minute drive south of town that they've converted into a gourmet guesthouse. Taking a seat in the kitchen, in front of the manor's handsome fireplace, we cut sheets of spring-roll pastry into triangles. Dried chillies hang by the stove. We shape the pastry into cones and spoon in a mixture of tuna, masala, garlic, spring onions and parsley. Once I get into the swing of it, stuffing and folding samosas has a meditative effect. 'Many people here still call La Réunion the 'Banana Republic',' says Bernard. The Gomberts and their children relocated to Cognac in 2021. Back on their native island, diverse dinner guests were the norm, including friends of Indian, Chinese, continental African and European descent. 'When slavery was abolished in 1848, the search for cheap labour for the plantations meant people came from all over,' says Shandra. The couple's cooking classes, says Bernard, 'are a way for us to show off our Réunionnais heritage'. When the samosas come out of the fryer, they're crisp and caramel coloured, and as I bite into one the hot tuna breathes out spice. A sharp, vinegary endive and walnut salad served alongside it cuts through the fat. As a nod to their new home, the Gomberts serve their samosas alongside a selection of Cognacs and a glass of Pinneau des Charentes, a fortified wine made from Cognac and unfermented grape juice. The latter is sweet, like maple syrup, and rounds off the samosas like a digestif. I travel half an hour east of town, through vineyard-patchworked countryside, to try something else I hadn't expected to find on the menu here: balsamic vinegar — traditionally from Italy. When Jacques Buffet's daughter married an Italian from the Modena region in the 1980s, Jacques was struck by the similarities between Modena and Cognac. Both regions had the same soil and grew the Ugni Blanc grape (or Trebbiano, as it's known in Italy). If balsamic vinegar thrived in Modena, surely it could be replicated in Cognac, Jacques reasoned. He began making his vinegars in the 1990s, selling them directly to chefs, before setting up his factory in 2004. Le Baume de Bouteville ages its vinegars in Cognac barrels, which are generally infused with three to four litres of brandy. I sample them during a tasting session: one has the flavour of honey; another has a Marmite-like savoury, earthy finish; and a particularly smoky one reminds me of bacon-flavoured crisps. We consume the vinegars drizzled over slices of comté and morbier cheese, like a jammy jelly. As samosas, gin and balsamic vinegar pave the way for Cognac's nouvelle cuisine, is there any hope for the brandy itself? Popular culture may be its saving. In the past 25 years, Cognac has become the drink of choice for US rap artists, namechecked in lyrics and appearing in videos by the likes of Busta Rhymes and Megan Thee Stallion. With a decline in Chinese sales seemingly imminent, Cognac's US popularity looks like a blessing. But perhaps the spirit's renaissance will be less about popular culture and more about rediscovering how we drink it. I think back to the neat gins I'd tasted with Yohann Thuillier. They were far from the budget versions beloved by British students, but even a premium product isn't easy to drink straight. And yet, like gin, when Yohann had mixed Cognac with tonic — Hysope, from Bordeaux, which comes in flavours such as elderflower, lemon and cucumber — the taste transformed into something beautifully complex. 'Very few people would drink gin neat,' he said. 'Just as very few people should drink Cognac neat.' Maybe this brandy never needed a rebrand, just an instruction booklet. Published in the March 2025 issue of National Geographic Traveller (UK).To subscribe to National Geographic Traveller (UK) magazine click here. (Available in select countries only).
