Diplomático's Latest Vintage Rum Has a New Take on Blending

Vintage statements are a crucial feature of fine wine because the year’s grape harvest usually determines quality. In spirits, a vintage date is about marking the year of a single barrel release, or about showcasing the blender’s skill—their ability to make a great expression using only components from one distillation year. Vintage dates are most commonly seen in scotch, among independent bottlers for their single cask whiskies, and branded producers like Dalmore, Daftmill, Bruichladdich, and Oban regularly.

Rum is also a place to find vintage-dated releases. Here, too, the focus is on showcasing a blender’s talent at working with old or rare stock from a given year. At Venezuelan rum maker Diplomático, the latest single vintage release is focused on blending, but has a different approach to the usual process.

Blending First, Then Maturation

Diplomático’s house style centers around blending rums that are produced on three different types of stills, each designed to create different flavor profiles. Its French-style Barbet armagnac column still produces light and tropical distillate; its traditional pot still creates a heavier and full-bodied spirit with funk notes; and its “batch kettle” hybrid still brings creamy spice notes. For its releases, Diplomático takes aged stocks made on each still and blends them in unique combinations. But its newest release flips that process by blending the distillates before maturation.

This expression is composed of liquid distilled in 2013. Master blender Nelson Hernandez selected unaged rum distilled from each of its three still types, and barreled the blend in a mix of bourbon and whiskey casks. The blend was then aged for 10 years in Venezuela (Venezuelan rums must be aged for at least 2 years in white oak), with the maturation also acting as an extra-long marriage process for the blend components. These barrels experienced an average of 6–8% angels’ share annually, losing around 60% of their overall volume to evaporation. The final release yielded around 18,000 bottles.

Approximately 6,000 bottles of Diplomático 2013 Single Vintage were allocated to the U.S. The rum can be found at select retailers around the country, with a suggested retail price of $120.

Tasting Notes

The nose is fairly deep, kicking off with a fragrant, perfumed wood note—not quite oak, but something similar—that is joined by ripe fruits, banana bread, and vanilla extract. The fruitiness carries over to the palate, with mango and cherry, plus leather, tobacco, oak, and vanilla. The finish adds spices, clove, and ground cinnamon.

If you’re already familiar with Diplomático’s core range of 2–12 year old Reserva Exclusiva, then this newcomer will be a departure. The Reserva has a very conspicuous clove note on the nose, which is absent in the single vintage. Vanilla reigns supreme on the Reserva’s palate, but it plays more of a background role in Single Vintage, undercut by pleasant oak and fruit notes. 2013 Single Vintage has a drier profile overall, but it offers pleasant depth of flavor. We recommend sipping it neat.

Diplomático 2013 Single Vintage Rum

ABV: 43%
SRP: $120
Availability: 6,000 bottles for the U.S.; at retailers nationwide