Chairman’s Reserve White Label is the latest white rum up for review.  Regular readers will be aware of my fondness for the regular Chairman’s Reserve and other offerings from the excellent St Lucia Distillers.

St Lucia Distillers produce a fine range of blended pot and column still rums and I would thoroughly recommend anyone who is serious about authentic rum seeks out their offerings.  I’ve reviewed most of the rum that is available in the UK and decided to round off a recent round up of a few white rums with this offering.

First up the White Label comes in the “traditional” Chairmans Reserve bottle.  Short and stubby and great to pour from.  It comes with a decent screw cap with some detailing and the label is in keeping with the contents – white.  The rum is a blend of pot and column still (a continuous Coffey still) rums aged between 3 and 4 years.  The rums in the blend are aged in Jim Beam, Jack Daniels and Buffalo Trace barrels.  They are then blended together and matured for a further 6 months in more white oak barrels.  The rum is much the same as the regular Chairman’s Reserve except the regular Chairman’s is aged for 5 years.  It is then filtered to remove the colour.

I seemed to upset a few people with my review of Plantation 3 star (I still don’t think its anything special).  I think sometimes people place to much emphasis on my score and neglect to read the reviews.  If you can take things out of the tasting notes that would appeal to you then give the rum a try.  I judge a rum on the basis of my own taste first and secondly by how well made I feel the spirit is, despite my own personal preferences.  Doing so is very tricky.

Chairman’s Reserve White Label is available for around £20-23 in the UK for a 70cl bottle at 40% ABV. So it is very competively priced.

The White Label is a very sweet smelling spirit.  In keeping with many white rums I have tried.  As this rum has been aged I am a little surprised that it doesn’t display any of the dry and oaky notes that the regular Chairman’s Reserve does.  The nose is sweet, quite a strong spirit nose with a lot of fruit mostly banana and a little apple.  It’s slightly creamy.  It smells quite similar to the El Dorado 3 and the Lemon Hart White.

Sipping the White Label is a so-so experience.  The alcohol is quite prominent taking the drink neat.  Ice opens up the flavours more.  The banana becomes more pronounced.  It reminds me a lot of Clarke Court’s Old Grog (a very banana-ey gold rum).  It’s okay but I don’t think it is something you would really want to return to that often.  I know of few people who are dedicated white rum sippers.  If you are you may wish to try this.

Where I really fell in love with the regular Chairman’s Reserve was when it was mixed.  White rum and cola is always popular so I will try the White Label like that.

The rum moves up a good couple of notches when mixed.  The strong alcohol nose and up front taste when sipped disappears.  The rum becomes much smoother.  It compliments cola.  It gives the cola a smooth profile and also gives way to a lot of fruit flavours.  Banana and Pineapple come through.  There is a little raisin and grape in the mix.  A little sweet milk chocolate.

So far this is the tastiest white rum I have tried.  Bacardi Gran Reserva might have given a better sipping experience (well smoother anyway).  I would rank this rum up with the J Wray and Nephew Overproof.  This is definitely a lighter less intense taste.  It is neither Jamaican nor Overproof so it lacks a little “oomph” on those two counts.  However it must be noted that at least some of the blend is pot stilled rum so it doesn’t lack flavour like some whites can.

This is a very good value and very good white rum.  Definitely one of the better ones on the market.  Well worth swapping the Bacardi Superior for I guarantee that.