November 22, 2015

A randomised rum session on a Sunday

Should we start to avoid the sugary ones from now on? It’s true that they tend to be depressing… But since we’re still learners, maybe we shouldn’t yet.

Jamaica 5 yo (43%, Compagnie des Indes, +/-2015)

A blend of different styles of Jamaican rum, aged in first fill bourbon oak. This may rock… Colour: straw. Nose: ooh, a session killer. Sure it’s young, and sure the strength isn’t high, but this Worthy-Parkness just, well, rocks. Olives, tar, engine oil, petrol, sugarcane, the sweeter and rounder notes of not too ripe bananas, cauliflowers, candy sugar… The whole remains approachable, and even kind of easy. That’s good. Mouth: less defined and extreme than fully dundery Jamaicans, and perhaps rounder than I had thought given the nose, but certainly fine, and closer to the cane. A little plum spirit, banana purée, and raisins. Not big, not light either. Finish: medium, with touches of salt, liquorice, bananas, and just one olive. The name’s Bond… Comments: whall we call this a beginner’s Jamaican? Very well composed, in any case. SGP:652 - 83 points.

Okay, we won’t choose the next one at random…

Jamaica 'Private Stock' (43%, Wray & Nephew, Soffiantino import, Italy, +/-1970)

Wray & Nephew are an old distilling and blending company based in Kingston, Jamaica. Their White Overproof Rum is very famous, but this is much older rum. A rare bottle! Colour: coffee. Nose: its not a heavy Jamaican, or perhaps not anymore. Rather a complex old spirit that could as well be an old cognac or an old malt whisky. Say a 1950s Laphroaig ex-first fill sherry after 40 years in a bottle. Some mud, concrete, menthol, old oloroso, pipe tobacco, prunes, tar, turpentine, chocolate… Yes, all that. Really very curious about the nose… Mouth: slow, then fast; light, then thick. What’s striking is all this liquorice, this is almost liquorice spirit. Some tar as well, then a feeling of peat, touches of lavender sweets, grandma’s secret old cordial (make what you want out of this), cinnamon, and more and more liquorice. Liquorice really is the keyword here. Amazing – but you have to like liquorice. Finish: long, a tad drier and more tannic, with dried mushrooms on top of all this liquorice. Comments: I had never thought mushrooms and liquorice would go so well together. Ha! A moving old bottle, thank you Francesco. SGP:572 - 89 points.

Look, I think we’ll stay in Jamaica…

Blackwell ‘Black Gold’ (40%, OB, Jamaica, +/-2015)

This brand is blended by Wray & Nephew, but I doubt we’ll reach the same heights. Colour: reddish amber. Nose: there isn’t much after the oldie. Perhaps molasses, a touch of earth for sure, some hay, some chocolate… Not unpleasant, just a little shy. So not very rasta! Mouth: starts a bit like the old W&N, which is very promising, but massive doses of sweet caramel, corn syrup, and toasted oak are soon to take over. That doesn’t taste very natural, somebody may have added ‘something’ to this, although it never gets sickly sugary. Finish: medium. Plenty of dried bananas, some caramel, a touch of coffee. Werther’s Originals and milk chocolate in the aftertaste. Comments: very okay, but I guess ice is needed. Or a Jamaican beach. SGP:630 - 72 points.

Worthy Park 7 yo 2007/2015 (53%, Compagnie des Indes, Jamaica, cask #WP42, 265 bottles)

Colour: gold. Nose: rather smoother and rounder than other young Worthy Parks (remember the Wilson & Morgans?) and much more on herbal teas, such as lime tree, orange blossom, and then vanilla. That’s a little bizarre, not unpleasant at all, but a little bizarre indeed. With water: we just opened a can of pineapple. Mouth (neat): new oak? Very oily mouth feel, with quite a lot of vanilla, syrup, then indeed, these phenolic notes that were expected. Pickled fruits and olives – but more fruits than olives. Pineapples and pepper. With water: same, even rounder and fruitier. Excellent, just a little disconcerting. Finish: medium, very smooth. Fruit syrups. Comments: so they make several kinds of distillate at Worthy Park? Not only phenolic olive bombs? SGP:651 - 85 points.

And a last one, and let’s make it a great one…

Monymusk 1979 (46%, Moon Import, 10th Anniversary, Jamaica, 1990)

A rare old bottling of Clarendon aka Monymusk for those magicians down there at Moon Import’s. Colour: white wine. Nose: the phenols are back. This is true ‘dunder’ Jamaican rum, with a lot of sugar cane juice (they distil molasses, but usually add fresh sugarcane juice), some carbon paper, our beloved olives, a lot of earth, bananas starting to rot, a little burnt sugar, and a few drops of both engine oil and diesel oil. Also superb whiffs of fern after the rain. Mouth: exceptionally Islay. It’s been discussed whether the Islay of rum was la Guadeloupe, Jamaica, or Trinidad. I’d tend to say Jamaica. Overripe apples and bananas covered with seawater, liquid liquorice, and of course, olive oil. Unbeatable. Finish: long, exceptionally balanced, between this salty side and the smoother tarry bananas. And let’s not forget the olives. Comments: happy anniversary, Moon Import! (I may well be a little late, apologies…) SGP:653 - 90 points.

(Thank you Francesco)

Check the index of all Rums I've tasted so far