Zacapa Centenario 23YO Rum

Soft, sweet start with aromas of caramel, vanilla, cacao, butterscotch, roasted nuts, toffee, banana and dried pineapple. On the palate, complex, generous and full-bodied. Dried fruit and apricot, building to savoury oak, nutmeg, leather and tobacco with notes of coffee and vanilla, balanced with a spicy touch of cinnamon and ginger. To finish, intricate with honeyed butterscotch, spiced oak and dried fruit.

• Distillery: Ron Zacapa
• Type: Dark Rum
  
• Region: Guatemala
  
• Alcohol: 40%
  
• Volume: 700ml
  
• Goes with: Neat or over ice
  

The balance of delicate and unique flavors of Zacapa 23 is derived from a blend of aged rums between 6 and 23 years old, originating from the “Sistema Solera” aging process. Zacapa 23 is aged in selected barrels that previously aged robust American whiskey, delicate sherries and fine Pedro Ximénez wines, creating a smooth & balanced rum.

Ron Zacapa rums are made from sugar cane harvested in southern Guatemala, which is pressed into virgin sugar cane honey. The fermentation process uses a yeast strain (saccharomyces cerevisae) isolated from pineapples to transform sugars within the ‘honey’ into alcohol. This fermentation process takes approximately 5 days after which the fermented ‘wine’ is distilled in a single continuous column.

After distillation, the Zacapa rum is transported to the ‘House above the Clouds’ in the Guatemalan mountains for maturation. Special cellars age the rum at an altitude of more than 7000 feet above sea level where the ambient temperature is much more stable and the oxygen levels are lower than at lower elevations. The more stable ambient temperature ensures that the aging barrels are subject to less differential air pressure between the outside and the inside of the barrel.

Zacapa is aged at high altitude where the temperature is lower. The lower temperature also directly influences the oxygen levels which are lower as well, and this lower oxygen level aids in a slower aging process. The slower aging, allows for more time for the aromas and flavours to combine. 

Zacapa rums are aged using a process they call ‘Sistema Solera’ which is based on the system used to age Spanish sherry. 

• Bronze - 2020 World Rum Awards - Column Still Rum