Don Q Has Dropped a Pair of Premium Cask-Finished Rums

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Last fall, Puerto Rican rum brand Don Q released an excellent Cognac cask-finished expression. But the double-barrel aging fun isn’t over, because the distillery has released two new bottles as part of its continuing collection, one finished in port casks and the other in wine barrels.

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Destilería Serrallés Inc. is the distillery behind Don Q Rum, which is a best seller on the island of Puerto Rico and highly regarded elsewhere in the world. Maestra ronera Silvia Santiago and master blender Liza Cordero are the women behind the spirits, and were responsible for selecting and blending the single and multiple column distilled rum for this new pair of double-aged expressions. Santiago has been with the distillery for half a century, and is Puerto Rico’s first female master blender. “With the Double Aged Cask Finish rums, we wanted to create elegant expressions that showcase Don Q’s unparalleled rum crafting and nearly 160 years of innovation,” she said in a press release. “The aging in Port and Zinfandel casks impart incredibly nuanced aromas and flavors, making these rums a perfect ingredient for spirit-forward cocktails.”

The Port Cask Finish was aged in American white oak barrels for five to eight years, and then finished for over three years in European Old Tawny Port wine casks. That lengthy secondary maturation is where the “double aged” in the name comes from here, as that is really much longer than the usual finishing period. Official tasting notes describe some astringency on the palate, with complex, dry fruit notes and just a touch of sweetness. The Zinfandel Cask Finish followed a similar maturation trajectory—aged in American oak for five to eight years, then put into Zinfandel wine casks from California for more than three years. Tasting notes list citrus and dry wood notes mingling together, with some spice on the finish.