Review: Companero Extra Anejo Rum 82/100
a review by Chip Dykstra (Aka Arctic Wolf)
Posted on December 1, 2020

Companero Extra Anejo Rum is a rum brand owned by 1423 Worldclass Spirits. The spirit was distilled in Panama (at an undisclosed distillery) and is sold in Canada through the LCBO .  It is also the rum featured in the number 1 slot in the company’s 2020 24 Days of Rum – The Original Rum Tasting Box Rum advent calendar.

In Ontario the rum is listed on the LCBO website as Companero Rum Panama Extra Anejo 12YO.  I would caution any who purchase the rum to take that 12YO statement with a grain of salt. My examination of the bottle’s label (the bottle which was found in the advent calendar given to me by my wonderful wife Maureen, contain no age statement, and indeed my examination of the bottle shot provided on the LCBO website also cannot glean any age statement.

The rum is sold at 54 % alcohol.

In the Bottle 4/5

To the left is the bottle shot I found on the LCBO website. It is a dark coloured bottle with a simple label which when examined really doesn’t tell us a lot. If I saw the rum in a liquor store in Alberta, I doubt it would catch my eye, and if I saw it advertised as a 12YO rum, I might be intrigued, although that intrigue would vanish when I would find no confirmation on the label.

I note that the spirit is promoted on the 1423 World Class Spirits Website as a 12-year-old Panama rum, perhaps if this is indeed the case, the age statement should be clearly marked on the bottle.

In the Glass 8/10

Working with a small advent sample means I will at times abbreviate my notes.

Colour: Gold/amber

Legs: Midsized droplets form dropping thickened legs.

Nose: Chocolate Chocolate and more Chocolate! Sweet rather than dry. Hints of Orange peel and vanilla and perhaps a dusting of oak spice but all of these are overwhelmed by the chocolate. Did I mention Chocolate.

In the Mouth 49/100

Heavy Bodied sweet rum full of chocolate flavour.  I like the rum, but I am annoyed that the spirit is labeled as a extra anejo rum; but it seems obvious that the spirit has been flavoured and sweetened. I suspect it should properly be labeled as a flavoured rum. There is no obvious oakiness which would indicate of 12 years of aging, although perhaps the chocolate allows the rum to hide its age. Getting under the chocolate, we can taste lots of butterscotch sweetness, hints of vanilla and orange peel.

In The Throat 13/15

Exit: A long chocloate filled finish with heat provided by the high alcohol content.

Lingering Flavours: Chocolsate, butterscotch and light citrus.

The Afterburn 8/10

If the spirit were labeled as a Chocolate Flavoured Rum, I would have scored the spirit in the 90s. It really does taste very good. However, the label on the bottle, and the producers website led me to believe this was a 12 year old sipping rum, not a flavoured rum. So my score of  82/100 reflects my disappointment in what I perceive is a lack of transparency.

If you are interested in comparing more scores, here is a link to my other published Rum Reviews.

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You may (loosely) interpret the scores as follows.

0-25     A spirit with a rating this low would actually kill you.
26-49   Depending upon your fortitude you might actually survive this.
50 -59  You are safe to drink this…but you shouldn’t.
60-69   Substandard swill which you may offer to people you do not want to see again.
70-74    Now we have a fair mixing rum or whisky.  Accept this but make sure it is mixed into a cocktail.
75-79    You may begin to serve this to friends, again probably still cocktail territory.
80-84    We begin to enjoy this spirit neat or on the rocks. (I will still primarily mix cocktails)
85-89    Excellent for sipping or for mixing!
90-94    Definitely a primary sipping spirit, in fact you may want to hoard this for yourself.
95-97.5 The Cream of the Crop
98+       I haven’t met this bottle yet…but I want to.

Very loosely we may put my scores into terms that you may be familiar with on a Gold, Silver, and  Bronze medal  scale as follows:

70 – 79.5    Bronze Medal (Recommended only as a mixer)
80 – 89.5     Silver Medal (Recommended for sipping and or a high quality mixer)
90 – 95         Gold Medal (Highly recommended for sipping