Buy Centenario

Ron Centenario comes from Costa Rica, where the rums are aged in the mountains and blended using a solera system that stacks and marries casks of different ages. That method gives the whole range its family resemblance: mild, rounded and easy to drink, with the proof generally sitting at or near 40 percent.

Production leans on column-still spirit aged in ex-bourbon and some Scotch casks, then rested in solera. The lineup runs from the young 7 Años Añejo Especial and 9 Años Conmemorativo through the 12 Años Gran Legado, 18 Años Reserva de la Familia, and the flagship Fundación bottlings at 20, 25 and 30 Años, plus the Real and the limited 1985 Cask Selection.

How they taste depends on where you land in the range. The older Fundación rums lead with vanilla, caramel, toffee, raisins and baking spice, soft and syrupy with a short finish; reviewers consistently note added sugar, with the 30 Años drawing the most criticism for sweetness burying the aromas. The 18 Años runs drier, woodier and spicier, which fans of that style prefer. The younger 9 and 12 Años come across thinner and more spirity. The 1985 Cask Selection, finished in Scotch barrels, brings cherry, coffee, toasted oak and a touch of smoke that cuts the sweetness.

Most people drink the aged expressions neat as an after-dinner pour or alongside dessert, and several reviewers use the older bottles specifically for cooking and desserts. The younger ones mix cleanly into Coke or cocktails. If you want to buy Centenario and you are new to rum or prefer a sweeter, gentle style, the 20 Años is the usual starting point; if you lean dry, start with the 18.