The plot thickens! Not only is Planas in this shot, yet it’s not in this review (it’s the previous one), but also, there is another rum in this review that’s not even in the shot!

Remember how, in the Orlando airport lounge, I tried Caribaya, the certified worst rum to ever exist, and Planteray XO? Well, I also saw that they had a bottle of Seleccion de Familia there— one of the expressions of Diplomatico that I couldn’t find anywhere! But I had already taken all of the glamor shots, so let’s just roll with it. I’m also going to compare it against Havana Club 7, as that’s sort of my gold standard for a Spanish style aged rum. Don’t worry, I did these tasting notes over the course of several days.

It is a blend of molasses and sugarcane syrup rums, distilled in pot, kettle, and column stills.

Review

Smell

It smells of caramel and marshmallows. Very sweet and fun. It’s quite dark and has more of an ethanol smell than either Mantuano or Havana Club 7, similar to Reserva Exclusiva, where the fumes overwhelm the nose.

Taste

It’s quite harsh and strong, and it tastes like burnt caramel. A bit bitter, and you can taste the bourbon barrel, but it’s also very sweet. There’s a light raisiny funk to it. It’s not bad, but it tastes exactly like a slightly sweeter Mantuano. I literally tried them back and forth and it tastes exactly the same except sweeter.

Verdict 5/10

(Edited from 6/10 on 1/4/26)

Overall, all 3 rums tasted remarkably similar. When I tried the 3 expressions of Appleton Estate and 3 expressions of Havana Club, they had much more difference between them than these 3 Diplomaticos. I feel like you can buy just one and not really miss much in the other two.

Seleccion de Familia is the most expensive by the bottle out of every Diplomatico rum that I have tried, but also, it’s the harshest out of them, and it literally tastes exactly like Mantuano with a bit more sugar. I am not say that’s what it actually is, but I am saying, that’s the perception I get when I try it back and forth with the other 3 rums in this comparison. Based on the hydrometer data, it certainly does seem like this one has the most sugar (or at least tied with Reserva Exclusiva), which I actually like in my rum, but I’ll dock half a point because, even though Mantuano itself is not that smooth, this one is even harsher. 6/10.

January 4, 2026 Update:

I don’t have seleccion de familia anymore, so I am dropping it to 5/10 due to the new rating system.