Albert Michler Distillery The Rum Factory

This ten-year Panamanian rum comes from Bodegas de America and is bottled under Albert Michler's The Rum Factory label. Panama usually delivers soft, vanilla-spice rons, but this one sits at the rougher, more rustic end of the spectrum, an aged molasses rum that has not been smoothed into easy submission.

The spirit is column-distilled molasses matured in ex-bourbon barrels, yet the wood and age here read more austere than mellow. Alcoholic, smoky and medicinal notes dominate the nose, the palate is strong, hot and again medicinal, and the finish stays sharp with a flicker of vanilla. At 41% it drinks bigger than its proof suggests. This is an honest, no-frills, rather raw take on Panama, better suited to drinkers who want grip and a medicinal edge than to those chasing a soft, sweet sipper.