In the glass Don Papa 7 Year Old is a classic golden brown with an orange and red hue. It’s glistening and inviting. Let’s focus on the french market if you don’t mind, since it is the one I know and can talk about (been part of the industry for several years now).

Nez : Profond et riche avec une impression de puissance. Marqué par des notes d'agrumes et de vanille.As other R um focused reviewers have rightly pointed out this is fake rum – I would even question if legally it should be available as “Rum” in the EU. Some retailers have taken to listing this as Spiced Rum. Maybe enforcement of the EU directives would see this re-labelled but don’t hold your breath on that. The Philippines isn’t exactly known for rum, but why not? It’s hot, they’ve got sugar, and now they’ve got their own rum finally making it to the U.S. — Don Papa.

I get the appeal of this to the less informed drinker. Like in mass produced food brands and beverages, the sweetness entices a person. The sweet character makes it easy to drink and enjoy. But you won’t be enjoying the hangover you get from drinking artificially-flavored stuff like this. A small child would like the smell of this particular drink. It smells like the inside of a traditional sweet shop. Sherbet, artificial sweeteners, liquid candy. Rum you say? Not on this nose. The presentation and advertising and marketing of this rum is all about fancy bottle and label design, gorgeous visuals, and words to make you giddy with anticipation. It nails all aspects of those. Everything else is secondary, except the rum itself, which is tertiary. For an enthusiastic and uncritical perspective by a “lifestyle writer” (I will not use the term “journalist” because that would be like saying Don Papa is a real rum) I direct you to this Forbes article from May 2017. It’s just another in a spate of recent rum-themed articles that are written by people who seem to want to advertise that they really know nothing at all about the subject. You can use a heavy Jamaican rum instead of scotch, a medium-bodied Barbados rum instead of Irish whiskey, a Venezuelan rum instead of cognac, or a light Puerto Rican rum instead of vodka." What is the best rum?

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Pour yourself a glass of the rum and you will be immediately overcome with a stunning bouquet of aromas that perfectly complement the exotic location that the rum calls home. On the nose: I get unnaturally sweet and fruity aromas. There are these coherent fruity floral aromas that makes me think of Korean pears, pineapple syrup, banana flavored-candy, a sweetened drink with lemons and apples mixed with caramel and honey. g/L of additives as per the Hydrometer Tests and paid laboratory tests have shown 2.4 grams per/liter of glycerin and 359 milligrams per/liter of vanillin. There is also information out there to suggest that the rum also has a mixture of sweet fruit flavourings added to it as well. So lets see how this one tastes…… In other words, Sugarlandia is the spiritual home of Don Papa and, in turn, Don Papa is a figurehead who represents the island. I hate this so much right now! I was actually given this by someone who had it gifted to them. They couldn’t actually drink this.

The name Don Papa is a reference to activist Dionisio Magbuelas, who was also known as Papa Isio, as a tribute to his leadership in the Philippine revolution. Papa Isio was widely regarded as a local hero for his role in driving the Spanish away from the island of Negros in 1898, so his image felt like the perfect fit for the brand to convey the spirit of the island on the label. It is considered the country’s first sipping rum. Established in 2012, Don Papa Rum is a relative newcomer in the spirits space. But in its decade on the market, it has already made its mark as a premium rum. The brand, founded by Stephen Carroll and Andrew John Carcia, proudly embraces its home in the Philippines by highlighting the history and majesty of the region in the rum’s label, story, and bold flavors. I might have been less snarky if they had simply labelled it as a spiced rum (which it is) instead of some kind of aged artisinal product (which it isn’t). Just to confuse matters, there’s also spiced rum, which is blended with additional fruit and spices. How we test rum

Don Papa Aged 10 Years doesn’t really develop onto anything meaningful. Beyond the sweet/bitter orange on the initial sip you only really experience sweet saccharin notes on the mid palate. There is something which is trying to be oak ageing in there but its just overwhelmed by all the nonsense they have added to this putrid mess.