Bacoo 12 Year

It's 2020. It's December. Let's wrap up this year with a new whiskey daily. This is my personal whiskey advent calendar. +6! December 3, 2020 So I was in my basement, watching reruns of The West Wing and smelling a $30 rum from a Four Roses glass, and I started to wonder: how did we end up here? I know I said 'new whiskey,' but I also appreciate spontaneity in my whiskey explorations. I'm at one of my local shops, mentioning how much I enjoyed the redemption rum finish, and the helpful clerk offers a new product, saying, 'I bet most people couldn't tell that this rum isn't a bourbon.' It felt like fate. It was a challenge. I spent $30. According to the label, this rum from the Dominican Republic is made from sugarcane juice, which is harvested in an 'environmentally conscious' manner and then aged for 12 years in former bourbon barrels. Nose is 'wow.' That's what happens when a bourbon enthusiast sniffs rum. Are you even supposed to sniff rum? I think it has notes of mint, coconut, and red velvet cake. Sweet and delicious. Body hits first with the red velvet. It's sweet, chocolatey, sugary. The latter part of the body feels like bourbon. Sort of. Caramel, milk chocolate, fudge. That body is quite good. The finish also reminds me of bourbon. Chocolate powder, sugar, baking spices. A hint of coconut, but mostly the baked goods profile. This is good, but there's no way someone could mistake it for a bourbon. It has a bourbon influence, but that's the extent of it. In terms of that influence, it doesn't compare to the Balvenie American Oak or the Crown Royal 'not bourbon whiskey.' Still, at $30, this drink warrants a place in the market, just not on my shelf. 'Tis the season. My whiskey choice is day-to-day, so if you're reading this and there's something readily available you'd like me to experience/endure this holiday season, leave a suggestion in the comments. Happy whiskey holidays to all, and to all a beer flight!

Really good, simple to sip straight. You can detect the barrel aging, yet it still clearly tastes like rum. Quite smooth. I would get this again, especially for the thirty-dollar price point.

Lots of caramel aroma, but the palate brings notes of tobacco and leather, with just a touch of sweetness to soften the bite. A very smooth rum.

Butterscotch on the aroma. The taste begins with sweet molasses, followed by enduring oak wood mixed with vanilla. Concludes with a sugar cookie essence.

Tastes like butterscotch on the tongue. Extremely smooth, very good! Enjoy heartily

The name in this listing is wrong! It's Bacoo, not Bacon!!