Angel's Share Title
When Brugal’s Maestra Ronera Jassil Villanueva created this limited-edition expression for Brugal rum, she pulled from childhood memories of growing up around cacao fields and was inspired to create something new for the brand. The first step the company took to create this product is to toast cacao beans in their Virgin European Oak casks, using their aromatic cask toasting technique. The beans are removed, and the cask is prepared to be filled with the rum. Brugal uses molasses as the core ingredient; they ferment it 12 to 40 hours using proprietary yeast. After this process, they double distill the liquid using column stills. The rum for the expression is aged for an unspecified amount of time, then blended and bottled at 45% ABV.
Appearance
The rum is packaged in a blue box that provides a minimum amount of information about the product. The bottle is a short-necked 700 mL custom bottle that is wrapped in black netting. Three-quarters of the bottle is frosted with a black design, with the upper third revealing the rum inside. The cap and cork are enclosed in black wax, with a black and gold neck wrap. The front label/wrap provides basic information about the rum along with the batch number, which for this bottle is from batch DR005B, and notes that it was bottled in 2023. Swirling the liquid created a thick band around the glass that proceeded to release several waves of fast-moving legs, then the legs slowed down and eventually stopped. The band quickly evaporated, leaving a few beads around the glass.
Nose
The aroma leads with the aroma of hot chocolate and is immediately followed by dried fruit, lightly charred oak, lemon zest, and vanilla bean.
Palate
The first sip leads with caramelized vanilla, immediately followed by roasted cacao notes and the heat of the alcohol. Oak spices drift in midpalate, presenting as allspice and mace. Dried banana chips and orange zest overtake the spice notes with a pop of roasted cashews and walnuts. As the nut flavors begin to fade, the sweetness in the flavor profile manifests and is balanced by the oak notes in a long finish.
Review
I found this rum to be a good addition to the Brugal lineup and was relieved it was not a variation of 1888. The roasted cacao notes clearly added some depth to the flavor profile that turned the base rum into a dynamic sipping experience. I can see where it would be a quality ingredient in some classic cocktails; however, it would have to be handled carefully with fruit juice-heavy ingredient drinks. As an after-dinner sipping rum, this stands out, as it is not as sweet as Leyenda or as sherry-forward as 1888. Overall, it is a positive testament to the craft and vision of the Maestra Ronero Jassil Villanueva and her team at Brugal. It will be interesting to see what the next Visionaria Edición will be and what new flavor experience they will share with the world.
