January 4, 2015

Another bag of rums, since this is Sunday

We’re going on with our little exploration of the world of rum, rhum and ron from a malt lover’s point of view. Let’s hope we won’t come across too much plain sugar…

New Grove ‘Oak Aged Rum’ (40%, OB, Mauritius, +/-2013)

We’ve had the 8 back in November last year, and it really was to my liking (WF 82). I guess this one’s younger. It’s molasses-based rum. Colour: gold. Nose: a lovable fresh fruitiness, with mainly ripe pineapples and bananas as well as guavas, without any dullness, then more cane-y notes, including bits of olives and a touch of sea water. I find this impeccably fresh, with good presence, and even hints of cognac – not only from the wood. Mouth: same profile, fresh and fruity, with more raisins this time, as almost always, as well as the expected pineapples and bananas, while a mild spiciness (ginger, gingerbread) complements them. Really, it’s easy-yet-not-dull rum. Finish: medium length. Same notes, with more liquorice in the aftertaste. Again, as almost always. Comments: very fine. I’d say it’s on the same level as the 8. SGP:631 - 82 points.

While we’re in Mauritius…

Blue Mauritius 'Gold' (40%, OB, blend, +/-2013)

Love this on the brand’s website: ‘Why travel to Mauritius when Mauritius can come to you. How to drink? Replace the cognac, over pass the whisky and most importantly, like no other rums, can be enjoyed straight with no ice!’ Sounds… err… Colour: orange amber. Nose: wood varnish and pineapple sweets at first nosing, then quite a lot of coconut. Smells a bit like some old-style suntan lotion – and holidays. Actually, there’s more coconut than in coconut. Where’s Kid Creole? (Serge!) Mouth: more to my liking than expected, but this really is oak-aged Malibu. Not too much sugar, which isn’t bad news, but it is sweet rum indeed. Finish: quite short, and all on, guess what, coconuts. Comments: tastes more like a liqueur, and it’s got nothing to do with some traditional oak-aged spirit, but one could really quaff this on a lot of ice. Near a swimming pool. Not bad at all! SGP:720 - 72 points.

Oh, and maybe we could give Zacapa another chance…

Zacapa 'Centenario XO Premio Platino' (40%, OB, Guatemala, decanter, +/-2004)

An older ‘plus plus plus’ version of the famous Zacapa, let’s see if it’s less sweet than newer expressions. Colour: reddish amber. Nose: ah yes, it’s rather toasted bread and cake that we find at first nosing, then rather espresso and black raisins, with whiffs of menthol. It’s not a very talkative rum, and I don’t seem to manage to find much sugarcane character, but I find this nose fine and balanced. Mouth: nah, it’s got this sweetness that I always find embarrassing (feeling of coffee liqueur), which is quite a pity because I seem to detect finer notes of sugarcane, marmalade, banana compote and liquorice rolls (right, or sticks) in the background. A wee earthy dustiness as well. Are you allowed to write ‘wee’ for rum? Finish: short, all on sweet liquorice. Comments: oh, I just don’t manage to get used to this style, but I’m sure it’s ‘high quality rum’. SGP:730 - 75 points.

We’ll stay in Guatemala, but time to tackle higher strengths… ;-)

Malteco 20 anos (41%, OB, Guatemala, +/-2013)

You see, this is the ‘reserva del fundador’, but I doubt it’s really 20 years of age despite what it says on the label. Or am I too sceptical? Colour: amber. Nose: wait, this is quite nice! It’s pretty close to the Zacapa but it’s also got a kind of woody smokiness and very pleasant notes of chocolate à l’eau-de-vie. Evolves more towards orange liqueur after a few seconds, then flowers (orange blossom water) and overripe pears. This baby’s got nothing to be ashamed of so far. Mouth: very, very Zacapa-ish, that is to say extremely sweet and even sugary. Cocoa liqueur, marshmallows, sugarcane syrup, Kalhua and ‘stuff’. It’s almost sticky. Finish: not too short, and it’s not only because this is the finish that I find it a little more to my liking. More toasted bread, beyond the thick sugary coating. Comments: let’s not be too harsh, it’s all a matter of taste, isn’t it. Sam league as Zacapa, I’d say. SGP:730 - 75 points.

I think we’ve had enough syrupy ones, let’s move to another country…

Panama 15 yo (46%, Cadenhead, Green Label, +/-2010)

Panama 15 yo (46%, Cadenhead, Green Label, +/-2010) It doesn’t say so but this baby should come from the Valera Hermanos Distillery, like other indie Panamanians. Colour: gold. Nose: well, I guess you can’t have it both ways. This one hasn’t been ‘doped up’, or so it seems, but then it’s also a little shy. Not-too-ripe bananas, grass and peel, then a few raisins and some cane juice. And roses. A bit of dough as well, you could think it’s malt whisky at times. Mouth: ah, this is stronger! It’s got this typical South American sweetness but it’s got some grass as well, a handful of fruit drops, a little vanilla, then this feeling of Fanta that’s often to be found in these rons in my my opinion. Finish: medium length, with a little more coconut and vanilla from the oak. Comments: very fair and loyal South American rum. Not my favourite style (I know, I’m always wittering on about the same old things), but yeah, I find it very honest. Liked the roses in the nose. SGP:640 - 78 points.

Okay, how many do we have? Five? Let’s try to make it to eight then…

Don José 19 yo 1995/2014 (48.5%, The Whisky Agency, The Perfect Dram, refill barrel, 269 bottles)

It seems that Don José Distillery is operated by Valera Hermanos, so this might be the same make as the Cadenhead’s. Colour: gold. Nose: it’s funny that we’re finding these whiffs of roses again. Or rather a whole rose garden this time. Other than that, there are bananas, warm pastries, overripe apples and indeed, quite some grass again. Also a little moss and fern, which I find cool in rum. No wham-bam rum so far, but I find quite some elegance to it. Mouth: a much, much punchier version of the Cadenhead, and beyond the plain sweetness, I now find various tropical fruits, such as mangos, as well as an unexpected briny side. Oh and a curious medicinal side as well, has this baby seen a Laphroaig cask or something? It’s also rather piny. Finish: long, candied and sappy. Grandma’s Kario (a kind of herbal liqueur that cures just anything, except alcoholism.) Comments: a funny baby, shaky at times, but fun. And fun is worth a few more points in my book. SGP:661 - 84 points.

Panama: done…

Bellevue 16 yo 1998/2014 (43%, Compagnie des Indes, Guadeloupe, cask #G51, 300 bottles)

This will be fast, if I’m not mistaken, all Bellevues I could try have gone from good to great. Colour: deep gold. Nose: yes. Soot, petrol, brine, black olives, plasticine, cane juice, then mangos and overripe bananas. Simply my kind. I told you this was going to be quick… Mouth: oh perfect. Crystallised oranges, peat smoke (yup), olives, salt, liquorice, camphor pills, maybe a wee bit of lavender (sweets)… It’s only 43% but the spirit’s fat enough to make it feel more like 45 or 46. For the same price! Finish: long, liquoricy and mentholy. Notes of tinned litchis. Salty aftertaste. Salmiak. Comments: this is a perfect malternative. Islay fans ahoy! SGP:552 - 89 points.

While we’re in the French West Indies, let’s take a boat to Matinik. I mean, Martinique.

Clément 6 yo (44%, OB, Martinique, +/-1980)

Old rhum agricole, this should be interesting. But we had the current 6 yo by Clément last year and found it ‘flabby’. Let’s see… Colour: mahogany. Is that natural? Nose: oh this smells kind of precious! Old humidor, polished wood, certainly a lot of sugarcane, many overripe – and I mean really over – fruits, bananas flambéed, something very molassy given it’s an agricole, faint whiffs of carbolinium, then more and more mulled wine, aniseed, cloves, red wine and so on. Eruptive, so to speak. Lots going on. Mouth: it’s the son of some Christmas cake and some gingerbread. Ripe bananas, liquorice, cloves, aniseed, cinnamon, rancio (bottle ageing?), prunes, raisins, pepper, tar… It’s amazingly fat and heavy in style. I liked the Bellevue better, but I have to say this one’s pretty impressive as well. Finish: very long, liquoricy, slightly smoky, jammy, candied, raisiny, tarry, oaky… Comments: fat and massive agricole. It’s to be wondered if glass maturing doesn’t work even better than with whisky. We may try more old bottles of rum in 2015, so stay tuned if that’s of any interest to you. SGP:651 - 87 points.

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