
December 9, 2018

Our traditional bag of rum

Since this is Sunday… Let’s see what we have…

Plantation Barbados 2002 (43.2%, Plantation, +/-2017)

This one’s been finished in cognac casks, I suppose that was necessary? Or was there an idea behind this? Colour: gold. Nose: rather gentle, a tad leafy, with some ethanol (tutti frutti eau-de-vie) and notes of molasses and burnt caramel. Touches of sawn wood. Mouth: some sugar, pineapple sweets, syrups, then some better earth, roots, and a little tobacco. Sweet carrots. Finish: medium, slightly sweet and sour. Sugar, raisins and pineapple liqueur in the aftertaste. Comments: fair, but not my kind at all. Lacks distillery character in my humble opinion. Now I’ve heard Plantation have recently issued some ‘un-doctored’ rums, I can’t wait, I’m sure they’re very good.
SGP:640 - 72 points.

Bermudez 12 yo ‘1852 Aniversario’ (40%, OB, Dominican Republic, +/-2018)

You never know, do you! Colour: gold. Nose: ah! Burnt oak, molasses, caramel, office coffee, violets. This baby reminds me of some Indian rum that we once tried around fifteen years ago. Mouth: humble, very humble. Caramel and molasses, drops of unlikely liqueurs (including Spanish coffee liqueur, the kind of stuff they sell for 5€ a bottle in Andorra), and that’s pretty all, good folks. Finish: short, rather on American motel jams. Comments: I wasn’t expecting much, and had even though this was coming from the Bermuda Islands. It was rather the Bermuda Triangle.
SGP:330 - 40 points.

Caroni 1998/2015 (40%, Bristol Classic Rum, Trinidad)

Angus already tried this one earlier this week, and rather liked it (85). Isn’t it a little strange that they would have reduced it to 40%? Colour: gold. Nose: lower strengths have got their good sides too, in this case more complexity and perhaps elegance, while many Caronis can be a little brutal. I’m rather finding notes of aniseed and fennel here, peonies, Cuban cigars, thuja wood, mushrooms, humus, and older hay. Absolutely not your regular Caroni, whether heavy or light. Mouth: there’s this old-style-ness that’s rather pleasant, these old woods and cigars, these tea leaves, this tar, apple peels, dry breads (Swedish style), orange cordials, Spanish brandy… It really is unusual, and yet very old-fashioned. Just kot extremely Caroni – as we know it. Finish: medium, on exactly the same notes. A little sour wood in the aftertaste. Comments: subtle and rather contemplative, I would say, but the oak rather took over after just 16 or 17 years. Which is the case with many Caronis by the way, in my humble opinion.
SGP:452 - 84 points.

Port Mourant 2005/2017 (60%, L’Esprit, Guyana, cask #BB22

Port Mourant 2005/2017 (60%, L’Esprit, Guyana, cask #BB22)

Very good house, L’Esprit! Colour: white wine. Nose: probably lovely, just a little too punchy for this old nose (that I’ll still need for a little while). Fennel, dill, charcoal, cut grass, fresh asparagus, fresh strawberries… Seemingly… With water: rootier and even more on fresh asparagus, beans, celeriac, verbena, gentian… Mouth (neat): raw earthy eau-de-vie, gentian, celeriac, strawberries, samphires, crushed black olives (we call that black tapenade madame monsieur), pastis, mirabelle, kirschenwasser… With water: absolutely and excellently rooty. You would believe they have distilled roots, not sugarcane molasses. Gentian liqueur and stuff. Finish: long, extremely earthy and rooty. Ribbed celery, bitter herbs. Comments: a little austere, and surely an acquired taste. But it talks to you and never tries to trick you.
SGP:362 - 87 points.

Worthy Park 7 yo 2010/2018 (57.5%, Scotch Malt Whisky Society, #R11.2, ‘Absolutely Fabulous’, Jamaica, refill barrel, 309 bottles)

Angus already tried #R11.1 and #R11.3. Let’s fill the gap. Colour: pale gold. Nose: simple, brine-y, tarry, slightly rubbery, with touches of coffee beans and an impression of ‘a Saturday morning at IKEA’s’. Indeed, that’s a lot of new plywood and strange cakes, but more seriously, this is rather perfect so far. With water: could you make some kind of marzipan out of olives? Would that be criminal? Mouth (neat): huge, more on lemons than other young WPs that we could recently try, rather vanilla-influenced (American oak), so creamy, and actually extremely good. Great feeling of fullness. Other than that, there are, indeed, olives. With water: totally excellent and indeed, almost ‘absolutely fabulous’. Perhaps just a notch simple, and that’s the youth. Finish: a touch of varnish – it was about time! Comments: we’re approaching the 90-mark here.
SGP:362 - 89 points.

(Thanks again, Lance)

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