
May 1, 2016

A bunch of superb Jamaican malternatives

Whether Jamaica’s the Islay of rum remains debatable, there are certainly a few other contenders. But what the island certainly isn’t is ‘the Lowlands of rum’. Let’s expect some very congeneric, dundery flavours… And start with an old apéritif!

Black Joe Original Jamaica (40%, OB, Jamaica, Italy, 1980s)

A brand of unknown origin that was available in Italy, and still is, apparently. Colour: gold. Nose: a rather wild, pretty gasoline-y style, with whiffs of those old things that used to fill our childhood. New plastic toys, glue, plasticine, new LP (make that a double)… There’s a thin layer of banana jam and tinned pineapples, but little brine or smoke this time. A little tar, though. Mouth: typically and totally Jamaican, that is to say phenolic and tarry, with touches of salt and once again, some easier notes of pineapples and liquorice (allsorts). Perhaps drop of Maggi and… do you know Antésite? It’s some kind of liquorice extract that we used as a syrup, you could add only three drops to one litre of water. It was very popular in the 1970s. Finish: medium, now with olives! Love olives in my rum. Comments: rather great, if not totally stellar Jamaican rum. SGP:562 - 85 points.

Worthy Park ‘Gold’ (40%, OB, Jamaica, +/-2016)

Doesn't it look like an American beer bottle? Ah we remember a white Worthy park by Rum ation that was, well, smashing, two year ago. Colour: pale gold. Nose: pure brine kept in vanilla-ed American oak. It’s a wonderful nose, with also green olives, black olives, all kinds of tinned fish, some ink, old papers, tar and liquorice, capers, and perhaps just hints of ylang-ylang. This floral/briny combination works particularly well on the nose. Mouth: it is a little rough and, well, unpolished, but that’s almost expected from such a profile. Raw cane sugar, more olives, salt, tarry things, tobacco… And indeed more liquorice. The rum is fat enough to perfectly stand the low strength, you juts don’t feel like ‘you deserved a little more’. Finish: long, always briny, tarry, and liquorice. And what do we have in the aftertaste? That’s right, olives. Comments: one of the ‘peaters’ of rum. In a way, this is the Ardbeg Ten of rum (the older bottle at 40% vol. ;-)). And it’s not expensive at all. SGP:363- 87 points.

Jamaica 5 yo ‘Navy Strength’ (57%, La Compagnie des Indes, Jamaican blend, +/-2015)

A blend of three rums by this new French bottler (well, not that new anymore) that’s already garnered a huge reputation. Mind you, they only bottle pure rum, never sweetened or glycerined ‘junk’. And no fantasy ages. Colour: pale gold. Nose: yes! I don’t know how much ‘lighter’ rums there is inside this vatting, but the high-esters ones are leading the pack. Leatherette, tobacco, tar, liquorice, a little ink, then rather more chocolate and custard – moderately. Perhaps hints of pencil shavings. Some marriage time in active oak? With water: ah, a touch of coconut… Mouth (neat): really very good. It’s a fairly approachable Jamaican, despite the high strength, rather fruitier than the Worthy park. Perhaps blood oranges? But other than that, everything is there, olives, tar, smoke, salt… With water: we’re getting much closer to the Worthy park. Finish: long, well balanced, relatively easy, yet totally Jamaican. Comments: pour this to your friends who aren’t rum ‘experts’. And put Peter Tosh on the stereo. They’ll like it. SGP:462 - 86 points.

Plantation Jamaica 2001 (42%, Plantation, +/-2015)

They wrote ‘Jamaica Grand Cru’ on the label. That is, of course, imaginary, unless I missed something. Or perhaps did they mean ‘single distillery’? Colour: orangey gold. Nose: dry, a tad oaky, and plainly Jamaican. Same inky tar and brine than in the Worthy park, except that there’s also some chocolate, cakes, and several spices, such as cloves and nutmeg. The official Worthy park was brighter, but this 2001 is to my liking. Mouth: there’s some added sugar, which is a shame and a pity, but they seem to have exercised restraint this time, they did not totally kill this baby with the medicine. But the liqueury feeling is a little unpleasant. Thickish mouth feel, and more and more Cointreau or Grand-Marnier, the sugar is taking over after just two minutes. Finish: medium, sugary. Comments: did the distillate really need this medicine? Or does the market still have a very sweet tooth? I could understand why one would do this to a Dominican, or a Guatemalan, but to a Jamaican that seems to have been perfectly all right, according to its nose? SGP:731 - 70 points.

Back to unadulterated Worthy Park if you don’t mind…

Worthy Park 2005 (40%, Mezan, Jamaica, +/-2015)

More pure unsweetened port still rum! Sure the 40% vol. sound a little meagre, but with Worthy park, that may be enough. Colour: pale gold. Nose: a lighter style, it seems. Starts with peaches and custard, goes on with pears and apples, and gets then pretty floral, with dandelions and other yellow nectar-packed flowers. The whole’s very elegant and subtle, just not very ‘Jamaican’. But the Jamaicans don’t only produce congeneric monsters, do they? Mouth: excellent. The first one was an Ardbeg of rum, this one’s a Benriach or a Tomatin. Beautiful soft orchard fruits and several herbal teas, chamomile and compadres. A touch of honey and a touch of crème au beurre. I find it excellent, especially since a little tar is sticking its nose out after two minutes. And a little mint. Unexpected, but very very good. Finish: medium, soft, now a little grassy. I was about to write ‘malty’. Comments: plainly malternative. A very lovely bottle, all elegance and freshness. Some kind of high-class anti-Wedderburn? SGP:552 - 89 points.

Well done Mezan, let’s have another Jamaican Mezan…

Long Pond 2000 (40%, Mezan, Jamaica, +/-2015)

Long Pond is a closed distillery since 2011, not sure it could be restarted. What’s sure is that I’ll always remember Gordon & MacPhail’s stupendous 1941/1999! Colour: straw. Nose: it’s a little acetic after the stunning Worthy Park, and a little grassier, but I would call it ‘dundery’. We’re somewhere between both worlds, with indeed some olives and tar, but also a softer side, with fresh butter and golden delicious apples. There’s also more and more eucalyptus and mint, the whole remaining well-chiselled, as always with Mezan’s offerings. Perhaps a little dust/cardboard? Mouth: leaning to the tarry side, but moderately. Apple pie and cigar smoke and ashes, touches of mint again, a touch of tarry rubber, and ripe green apples. It’s very good, it’s just that the Worthy park was superior in my book. Hints of burnt wood, perhaps, which makes it a notch more, say muddly? A matter of contrast. Finish: medium, a tad bitterish. Green oak? Bicycle inner tube in the aftertaste. Remember? Comments: it’s very good, I think, it’s just that the Worthy Parks never quite gave it the floor. SGP:453 - 85 points.

Great Jamaicans! As long as the bottlers don’t alter them or ‘liqueurise’ them, they make for some of the most perfect malternatives out there. IMHO, as we used to say on usenet. Now it's perfectly fine to enjoy sweetened rums, of course, those are just not real malternatives. Remember, we're tasting rum from a whisky POV!

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