Rating: 16/23 N: There's some nice maturity here. Varnished wood, leads. P: Nicely rounded. The alcohol doesn't show through here. I get varnished wood with a nice sweet caramel and light brown sugar layer floating on vanilla beneath it. There are some nice spices in the cinnamon and ginger range with some white pepper adding in vegetal character and heat to balance this out. I'm not really getting fruit, but if you told me that tropical fruit brushed against the edge of this, I could buy it. A bit more of that sandalwood vanilla than in the 15 year old version. F: Varnish, caramel, wood, numbing. A bit of white pepper with vegetal and odd herbal notes on the long finish. - Conclusion - This beats Panamá-Pacific 15 (15/23) and Frigate 15 for sure. I don't think that this is an excellent rum, but it's enjoyable. For the price, it's a bit steep, but not something that I deeply regret. I'm thinking that this is a solid 16. It could be a high 16, but it isn't a 17. Well, if it is a 17, then it's a low 17. Highland Park 16 Wings of the Eagle (17/23) is more complex with less youthfulness.

Nose - earthy mint, molasses, vanilla, butterscotch, spiced apple, cinnamon bark, allspice, agave, floral notes, mild to moderate ethanol burn. Taste - sour apple, spearmint, black pepper, molasses, vanilla, butterscotch, ginger, cinnamon, clove, allspice, cherry, moderate alcohol bite, finishing medium short with spearmint, ginger, molasses, and baking spice flavors. My Panama-Pacific experience comes to an end with their 23 Year, the oldest expression they offer. The nose is rather similar to the younger offerings’. Molasses, butterscotch, mint, baking spices, and an interesting agave note that feels a bit out of place. The palate is unfortunately still thin and watery. And there’s a sour apple note that alludes to some overdilution. Honestly, all three Panama-Pacific expressions are fairly close in quality for me. The 15 and 23 were marginally better than the 9 Year, but not by enough to move the needle on my ratings. There’s a weird sour, minty toothpaste quality on the palate that’s slightly off putting. It’s a unique rum for sure, but just misses the mark for me. Another big thank you to @ContemplativeFox for the sample!

Gadzooks. Might be best tasting rum of all time. Everything you’d want from the platonic ideal of a rum. Brown sugar, banana, juicy stone fruit. Bomb.com/rum

Butterscotch

Exotic nose and viscous, rich mouthfeel. Long finish. An absolutely delightful and essentially dry rum.