Abuelo XV Napoleon

Abuelo comes from Varela Hermanos in Panama, made on multi-column stills in the soft Spanish-style ron tradition. This XV is finished in cognac casks, and like its tawny port stablemate it sits on the smooth, gently sweet side of the category, with the wood and finish doing most of the flavour work over a light molasses base.

Column distillation keeps the spirit clean and mellow, and the cognac cask lends a grape and oak character. The nose shows cognac, caramel, vanilla and wood, while the palate is sweet and rounded with caramel, grape and nuts, finishing on mild wood, vanilla and a touch of spice and light smoke. At 40% it is very smooth with little heat. This is an easy, dessert-leaning pour for fans of sweeter sippers curious about a cognac finish, comfortable neat or alongside chocolate.