The Ultimate Awards Announces Its First Blind Rum Tasting Competition

The 2023 Best Caribbean Rum

The Ultimate Awards announces the launch of its first blind tasting competition, “The 2023 Best Caribbean Rum.” The event will gather brands, industry experts, and rum aficionados at Puerto Rico’s International Rum Festival, Taste of Rum, with local and international judges also taking part.

The participating brands will compete in three categories:

• Ultimate Professional Blind Tasting – Sipping Rum: Aged 1–3 Years
• Ultimate Professional Blind Tasting – Sipping Rum: Aged 4–7 Years
• Ultimate Professional Blind Tasting – Sipping Rum: Aged 8+ Years

A Panel of Top Rum Industry Experts

The judging panel for the 2023 Best Caribbean Rum competition is made up of a balanced mix of top rum industry professionals, brand ambassadors, culinary experts, and die-hard rum enthusiasts from across the world.

• Javier Berberena – Diploma WSET, Advanced Level 3 WSET Spirits, Certified Wine Educator, and Certified Spirit Educator WSET
• Joe Cabassa – Regional Brand Ambassador & Luxury Hospitality Lead – Caribbean The Macallan, WSET Certified Level 3 Spirits Educator and Edinburgh Whisky Academy Educator.
• Chef Ventura Vivoni – Celebrity Culinary Chef in Puerto Rico
• Bryan Inman – Social Media Influencer a.k.a The Rum Champion, awarded the North American influencer of the Year 2022 by The Ultimate Awards.
• Federico J. Hernández – Founder of TheRumLab.com
• Miguel Agrait – Co-Founder of TheRumLab, Rum Expert, and Historian

The caliber of judging will add a level of prestige and sophistication to the contest. In this sense, the elite panel will blind taste each sample and award points accordingly. This will ensure that judging is impartial and rigorous, consistent with the highest standards. 

The experts will come together in Puerto Rico on March 25, 2023, to review all participating expressions based on quality, complexity, and overall flavor experience. Every label will be carefully checked to make sure that it fits into the right category, and all samples will be given out in numbered glasses to guarantee anonymity.

The Registration Process Has Begun!

The registration period began on February 18th and will be extended to March 15th. The process is straightforward: brands interested in participating must submit their applications on The Ultimate Awards website. 

The registration fee is $50 per expression. Brands can register up to four samples in the competition. The next step is to submit the spirit(s) to Puerto Rico. It is important to note that all expressions must arrive at the warehouse in San Juan, Puerto Rico, by March 20th.

Leverage the opportunity to participate in innovative blind rum tasting!

The TUA Winner’s Prizes

The preliminary results of the Ultimate Awards will be announced on March 25. The winners of each category will get a digital medallion image and a two-year license to use the digital image of the award on their bottles, official websites, and other marketing materials.

The Ultimate Awards: A Benchmark Among the Spirits Competitions

The Ultimate Awards takes a step further to become the world’s major award in the rum industry. The launch of its first blind tasting promises to set a new standard in spirit competitions. It is creating an incredible and friendly ecosystem where distillers, experts, bartenders, writers, and consumers of the rum industry can share their passion for spirits.

For more than a year, TUA has added to its catalog of competitions at least six categories, including “Best Rum Bartender,” “Best Social Media Rum Group,” “Best Rum Ambassador,” “Best Sustainable Brand,” “Best Tiki Bar,” and “Best Rum Social Media Influencer.” In addition, it has held outstanding sipping rum competitions during the rum festivals organized by The RumLab.