Malteco Vintage Reserva 2011

Malteco Vintage Reserva 2011 comes from Bodegas de America in Panama, drawn from a 2011 distillation and bottled at 42.3%. It works Panama's soft, mellow, vanilla and spice tradition, with a nose of dried fruit, fruity confection and allspice. Built on a molasses base in the Spanish style, character here comes from the wood and a measured sweetness rather than a heavy spirit.

The palate brings dried fruit, red fruits and oak with an evident sweetness, finishing on tannins, more wood and lingering fruit. Sweet and creamy in feel, it stays in good harmony with a pleasant length, the kind of soft, rounded Panamanian made for unhurried sipping. It suits drinkers who enjoy a gently sweet, fruit forward Caribbean rum poured neat after a meal, with enough oak and tannin to keep the sweetness from running away.