Kill Devil Guyana 15 Year Old

Bythefatrumpirate

Kill Devil Guyana 15 Year Old Rum review by the fat rum pirateBoth Kill Devil and rum from Guyana make regular appearances on these pages.  Up until now, not both in the same article.  Here we have another in the excellent line up of Single Cask rums from Hunter Laing’s rum offshoot.

Kill Devil Guyana is limited to only 276 bottles worldwide.  A 70cl bottle with a 46% ABV will set you back around £60.

The rum was distilled in June 2001 and bottled earlier this year.  It is from the Diamond Distillery.  Unfortunately I could not get any further information regarding this rum.

What I did do was consult a rather brilliant reference on the internet.  None other than the excellent Marco Freyer’s piece “The Demerara Distilleries 2.0“. I would strongly advise to bookmark as it has a lot of information.  I’ll also take the time to recommend Marco’s site BarrelMetal Aged Mind which has a host of rum reviews and articles in both German and English.  Just one thing though make sure you have plenty of time as he makes my reviews look like Whiskyfun’s……….

From consulting Marco’s essay I came to the conclusion that this rum was produced on a Metal Column/Coffey Still (Continuous Metal Still).  I seem to recall reviewing a Velier Diamond which I enjoyed a lot so here’s hoping for this particular bottling.

I’m very pleasantly surprised by the colour of this rum when poured in the glass.  It’s quite dark. Reminiscent of that Velier Diamond.  This is a bit of surprise as I’m not sure how long this rum has spent in the tropics.  We have two options – it has been aged considerably in the tropics or it has been coloured with caramel.

The nose indicates that the colour is possibly down to tropical ageing as its very big.  Much more oomph than say the Mezan Uitvluigt or Bristol’s 1998 Diamond, which were much lighter and less intense on the nose.

The nose is rich, nice hit of treacly molasses and some all too familiar dried fruits and wafts of toffee and chocolate.  It’s full bodied but not overbearing. It reminds me a little of the El Dorado 15 Year Old in that it also has quite an oaky influence hanging over the top giving it a nice balance.

Kill Devil Hunter Laing Guyana Diamond Rum Review by the fat rum pirateI would say that this rum has spent quite a chunk of its maturation in the tropics.  Not all its 15 years but certainly a decent amount.

At 46% ABV the rum is at a just about ideal (in my opinion) sipping strength so at least for the first sip I won’t be adding any water.

Nor will I be for any subsequent sips as the rum does not need opening up any further.  The flavours you should be seeking in a good well aged Demerara are all present and correct.

Again its all familiar very much like an unsweetened El Dorado Rum.  Chocolate, coffee, a little treacle, big juicy plump raisins, a little fig and a very nice oaky and slightly leathery bite on the finish.

It’s a big, bold rum.  A rum which if I smoked I would certainly pair with a cigar.  It’s not a rum you need to rush or take large sips.  Small sips deliver more than enough concentrated rich flavour.  Each sip lasts a long time.  It has a fantastic length and depth to it.  I get a feeling that Pusser’s Navy Rum would taste a little like this if it were aged for around the same period.  It’s also very similar to the Velier Diamond 1999.  which I have reviewed previously.    Could I give a better compliment? And its only a third of the price of that bottling, granted with a lower ABV.

If people realise what is in this wonderful bottle of Kill Devil rum I suspect you might struggle to find one of the 276 bottles.  I would urge you not to pass up a chance to buy this bottling.  However, a word of caution – be careful when buying the Kill Devil’s as they have a lot of different single cask offerings out so make sure you buy this one and not one of the others by mistake.  (Having said that they are probably all well worth the money anyway)

If you are familiar with Diamond or even Enmore Demerara’s then I wouldn’t hesitate in snapping this up.  Great stuff from a bottler who is really beginning to make a mark in the rum world.

5 stars

 

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  • Tijuca Blended Brazilian Rum

    Bythefatrumpirate

    Tijuca Brazilian Blended Rum review by the fat rum pirateTijuca Blended Brazilian Rum. Production of Sugar Cane Spirits in Brasil is a huge business. Many people in the rest of the world consider Cachaca, the native Brasilian Sugar Cane Spirit a bit of a niche product. In Brasil, where it is produced it has an absolutely huge foothold in the domestic market.

    Over 1.3 billion litres of cachaca are produced each year and only around 1% of this is exported. As far as aged and premium cachaca is concerned the percentage is even smaller. Put simply the demand in Brasil for such spirits means they simply do not have to export their product. Demand in many instances outweighs supply.

    It is worth noting at his point that rum sells ar (mound 1.7 billion litres worldwide. So the Cachaca market is much bigger than people outside of Brasil realise.

    Tijuca Blended Brazilian Rum is in actual fact cachaca. The various cachaça’s used in the blend are produced in Rio de Janeiro, which is most famous for the Magnifica brand of cachaca. Unfortunately I do not know the distileries involved in the production of the cachaca used in this blend.

    Tijuca as the website domain name shows is a French based brand. The cachaça’s used in this blend are all made on Pot Stills. So we don’t have a more industrial style cachaca produced on a multi column still. The cachaca is produced from fresh sugar cane juice which is harvested on the estates which house the distilleries. So this is an artisan blend.

    The cachaça’s are aged in “wooden barrels endemic to Brasil” before being blended and finished in France in oak barrels which used to contain White Port.

    On the Tijuca Spirits website they detail that “cachaca” is a protected denomination, which can only be produced in Brasil. So they are opting to call their spirit rum as it not produced completely in Brasil.

    Whilst I have not been able to establish the “Fazenda’s” which have produced the various cachaça’s in this blend, their is an infographic on the website which shows 5 distilleries/fazendas all around Rio de Janeiro state.

    Tijuca (Portuguese pronunciation: [tʃiˈʒukɐ]) (meaning marsh or swamp in the Tupi language, from ty (“water”) and îuk (“rotten”)[1]) is a neighbourhood of the Northern Zone of the city of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It comprises the region of Saens Peña and Afonso Pena squares.

    Tijuca Blended Brazilian Rum comes housed in a round stubby bottle with a picture of an exotic bird on the front. It comes with a chunky cork stopper. A 70cl bottle set you back around €55 (mostly available in France) and it is bottled at 40% ABV. You can pick up a bottle via the website or you could try this retailer as well.

    I don’t have much else by way of information so lets see how this one goes down.

    In the glass, we have medium/golden brown spirit. A standard aged rum colour if you like.

    The nose is vegetal, with lots of sweet sugar cane and a distinct “freshly mowed field” aroma. It’s nicely integrated with notes of sweet port wine and some icing sugar. There is a nice balance of nuttiness and oak spices with hints of vanilla and nutmeg. The wood influence gives this rum/cachaca a lovely depth and balance.Tijuca Brazilian Blended Rum review by the fat rum pirate

    Sipped it is a little more acidic with notes of lime juice and marmalade. The initial entry is spicy with a kick of white pepper. As you sip more Tijuca Blended Brazilian Rum becomes sweeter – with a nice harmony of grassy sugar cane, vanilla and some tangy tropical fruits.

    The mid palate reveals a slightly soapy taste which lingers on into the finish. It’s quite creamy but it works nicely alongside the sweeter flavours and grassy sugar cane. The wood/oak floats along in the background giving a slightly spicy and warming kick to the spirit.

    The finish is warming and a more than reasonable length with a nice mixture of creamy/soapiness and warming slightly drying oak spices. All in all this is a really nicely put together and blended cachaca/rum.

    I didn’t mix with this cachaca. Firstly the presentation would suggest it is aimed more at the sipping market and secondly….I just enjoyed it so much neat I felt it would be a waste.Tijuca Brazilian Blended Rum review by the fat rum pirate

    Having not tried Tijuca Brazilian Blended Rum prior to it being put in the ex-White Port casks I do not know how much of an influence it has had on the spirit. That said if you hadn’t told me it was aged in an ex-White Port Cask I would never have guessed.

    So depending on how skilled you consider me to be you can take it that it maybe didn’t have that much influence.

    That being said still a very pleasant spirit and nice to see some cachaca (even if its called rum) being brought onto the market by us Europeans.

  • Blackadder Raw Cask Barbados Foursquare Rum 11 Years Old

    Bythefatrumpirate

    Blackadder Raw Cask Rum Foursquare Barbados aged 11 Years Rum Review by the fat rum pirateBlackadder Raw Cask Barbados Foursquare rum.  Blackadder’s Raw Cask rum selection are a number of rums which are “raw” and straight from the cask.  No colouring, no additives and no filtration, so they look a little cloudy and raw.

    Sourcing Blackadder rum has proved difficult. I ended up getting this bottling from Poland, of all places.  This is particularly frustrating as most of Blackadder’s range is aged in the UK.

    I paid around £80 for this 70cl bottle.  Blackadder Raw Cask Barbados is bottled at cask strength 62% ABV.  My bottling is number 57 of 239 bottles all taken from a single cask.  It was distilled in November 2004 and bottle in March 2016.  The rum was released towards the end of 2016.

    There is something a little “home made” about the Blackadder bottlings.  It all feels very small batch with almost hand made labels etc.  The bottle number for example is hand written on the front label.

    The cardboard sleeve to house the rum isn’t made of the sturdiest card and the overall appearance is rather strange and slightly gothic.  I quite like the actual bottles for their hand made simplicity but the carboard sleeves are a little gaudy, over the top and perhaps even a little silly.

    In keeping with a £80 bottle of rum you get a decent quality wooden topped cork stopper.

    In the glass the Blackadder Barbados Foursquare is a deep dark golden brown.  The rum is very similar to Foursquare’s own Exceptional Cask 2004 release.  Whilst Richard Seale is against additives he has conceded in the past that consumers do expect rum to be a certain colour.  However, I am fairly certain this was not the case for his own 2004 release.  So likely this rum has not been coloured.

    Blackadder Raw Cask Rum Barbados Foursquare rum review by the fat rum pirateAs noted by the “Raw Cask” element of these Blackadder releases their is a quite a lot of sediment in this rum.  This can be seen when poured and even more vividly when you shake the bottle.  There are a lot of black floaters (likely barrell char) in this rum. I’ve tried picturing this – you can see a lot of the sediment at the bottom of the bottle.

    If anyone has ever read the Michael Crichton novel “Prey” it reminds me of what I envisage the swarms of nanobots to look like.  This may be off putting to some – mostly those who do not understand or know about filtering.  Anyone buying this rum and then complaining about the sediment, will likely be wasting their money anyway.

    I have spent quite a lot of time with this rum.  I have also tried it alongside the 2004 Foursquare release.  It is likely that the rums are cousins if not quite brothers.  They were distilled in the same year.  I spoke with Richard Seale about the differences I noted in the two bottlings.  I’ll explain now how I found this in comparison to the 2004 rather than reference in the main tasting notes.

    Compared to the 2004 Foursquare it is a lot spicier.  I sense more interaction with the cask (Richard did suggest that this may have been partly aged in a Scotch Whisky cask) it has more bite than the 2004.  Again when I asked Richard about this he stated that he had blended the 2004 to be “softer” than the ABV might suggest.  He described the 2004 as a soft rum.  Which is probably a good explanation.  I found the 2004 to be slightly more balanced more in harmony, at peace with itself.  This still seems to have a little bee in its bonnet.

    Anyway enough or I will ruin the review, lets get on with the nosing!

    The nose is classic Foursquare.  Vanilla, a little toffee and there is a good hit of Bourbon cask sweet/sour mash.  It’s all quite familiar.  What is less familiar is an almost savoury Scotch Whisky like aroma – its quite malty and almost hoppy.

    Whilst the nose isn’t hugely aggressive it is quite apparent that this is a cask strength rum as opposed to one bottled at 40 or 43% ABV.

    Blackadder Raw Cask Rum Foursquare Barbados aged 11 Years Rum Review by the fat rum pirateWhen sipped the more savoury whisky notes in the nose do not disappear.  You still get a little of that.  Everything else is familiar for anyone acquainted with Foursquare’s laid back balanced Bajan style.  It is very difficult to judge all the different bottlings coming out under the Foursquare banner.  Most (if not all) are very, very good.  This is no exception.  It’s nicely balanced and even with a 62% ABV still very drinkable.

    It’s not a hugely fruity rum.  Its pretty dry and quite spicy on the palate.  The finish is long and satisfying if just a little on the “Scotch” side for my particular taste.  I do prefer the sweeter unsweetened rums (theres a condundrum for some of you).

    It offers something slightly different to the Foursquare 2004.  I very slightly prefer the 2004 (another factor is price you could get two 2004 for the price of this).  Still you are paying for a rarity with this.  There is only one cask the same as this and only 239 bottles in circulation.

     

     

     

     

     

  • Revolver Rum

    Bythefatrumpirate

    Revolver Rum Review by the fat rum pirateRevolver Rum is a new rum brand from the Rathlee Distilling Co. based in Cornwall on the South Coast of England.

    It is a product of two rum lovers – one from Colombia and one from Cornwall.  The world Revolver in this instance, is not linked to pistols or guns.  It actually means in Spanish to “stir” which may give you an idea as to what direction this rum is heading in.  They also mention evolving on the label which is probably another nod to using the word revolver.

    Bottled at 40% ABV in a very distinctive stubby 70cl bottle, it ticks a lot of boxes for me presentation wise.  It has a striking appearance and the package is topped off with a very substantial wooden topped synthetic cork stopper.  A few UK online retailers have already picked this up – Drink Finder for instance.  It is retailing at just under the £30 mark.

    The rum has only been out a few months but already it has a very impressive website.  I’ve seen how “home grown” rums such as the Duppy Share and Elements 8 can succeed as a result of a mixture of slick marketing and solid presentation.  However, it is worth noting that both these brands had something else behind them – very well chosen rums.

    With little information on the label other than “Cask Aged Golden Rum” I had to do a bit of digging to find out the exact origin of this rum.  It is column distilled and aged in used ex-Bourbon barrels for 18 months.  It is forwarded at Cask Strength to the UK where it is diluted to 40% with Cornish Mineral Water.  Unusually it is not a blend of rums.  The rum is currently being aged in the UK for an additional 6 months as the people behind Revolver see how this matures come the summer.  The rum itself comes from a very respected producer, unfortunately the team behind Revolver are unable to reveal whom as part of their agreement with them.  I do know but I won’t tell.

    Revolver rum have teamed up with The Cocktail Trading Company to create a few signature cocktails.

    Revolver rum review by the fat rum pirate

    Anyway enough of all this jibber jabber lets move onto analysing the actual rum in the bottle.

    The rum is a light gold/straw colour.  It displays no signs of added caramel and the nose shows no signs of added sugar.  This is another rum which is without additives.

    The nose is unsurprisingly a little fiery with strong notes of sweet young alcohol.  It has some familiar notes for me.  It has a nice buttery quality to it.  Despite the youth of the rum it does seem to have quite a smooth profile.  It has some decent oak notes in the mix, some spices and a good rummy feel to it.  It’s a lighter bodied Spanish style “ron” and I certainly feel that it could easily pass as a couple of years older than its actual age.

    Sipping this rum is mpsa quite spicy experience.  It’s not so much young alcohol that overwhelms the first few sips but more the spicier notes in the nose – its quite peppery and the oakiness is a little bitter.  It has a short yet fiery finish.  A top rate sipper it isn’t – its too young.  However, it fairs a lot better after a couple of glasses (when perhaps some of the senses are a little numbed) than many other older rums.  As you persist with it you get a little more of the fruitier notes and some honey, the oak is very evident on the finish.  I do like the oakiness of this spirit as I feel good rum should have evidence of cask ageing – there should be oak in any aged spirit.Revolver Rum review by the fat rum pirate

    Although I have commented on the sippability of this spirit (because I was pleasantly surprised and quite enjoyed the experience) it’s really as a mixer that Revolver is being marketed.  Which I find quite refreshing as many other “rums” think that chucking a load of additives at young rums and adding droplets of older rum constitute calling the rum XO or Solera 81 or other such nonsense.

    When it comes to mixing I’ve yet to experiment that much with cocktails at home (the site does have a Rum Ginger Beer and Red Wine Cocktail which even I can create and works very nicely), so its been put to the usual Rum and Cola test mostly.

    There are a couple of things that appeal to me in a rum and cola – I like a spirit which can slightly dull the fizz in cola and smooth out the drink and I very much enjoy tasting the presence of an actual rum.  For me that is some oaky notes and some slightly sweeter fruitier notes.  Which is exactly what this rum delivers.

    For regular readers this reminds me of one of my perennial favourites – Chairman’s Reserve.  I like the nice oaky profile and the little hints of vanilla and honey.  Slightly dry and all round for such a young rum which isn’t even a blend – very nicely balanced.

    All in all this is a good solid tasty mixer.  It’s certainly much better than you would expect for a rum less than two years old!

    3.5 stars

  • That Boutique-y Rum Company Flying Dutchman Rum Aged 4 Years

    Bythefatrumpirate

    That Boutique-y Rum Company Flying Dutchman Rum Aged 4 Years rum review by the fat rum pirateThat Boutique-y Rum Company Flying Dutchman Rum Aged 4 Years. We are back reviewing another Boutique-y Rum Company release. This time I’m 100% up to date as this bottling is due for release today (19/11/2021).

    Which is nice because things have been slipping a little lately on the site. I haven’t been updating it as often as I would like. Life has a habit of getting in the way of doing the things you’d like to do I’ve found recently……..

    Anyway, this is the first Boutique-y Rum release from a distillery based in mainland Europe. As the title suggests this rum hails from the Netherlands and comes from the Zuidam Distillery. The distillery which is headed up by distiller Patrick Van Zuidam has been producing their won “Flying Dutchman” branded rum for a number of years now.

    I’ve been aware of Zuidam Distillery for some time but have never previously had the opportunity to try any of their rums. I’ll also say that due to my somewhat eclectic buying choices/decisions I have never sought to buy their products either. Quite why I’m not entirely sure as I have heard good things about them. I will confess though I am always put off a little by distilleries that produce multiple types of spirit rather than focusing one in particular.

    More often than not Rum is pretty much an after thought or a Spiced/Flavoured rum range is released as a cheap cash in. So I tend to avoid releases from such distillers. I will say at this stage that I have been told that Zuidam but a lot of care in to all their products.

    So what do we have for review today exactly?

    This rum is produced using imported molasses, which goes through long fermentation (two weeks plus, I’ve been told) utilising multiple yeast strains before being double distilled in Pot stills. This rum has been aged for 4 years in the Netherlands using an ex-Pedro Ximénez cask and is bottled with The Flying Dutchman name, which is consistent with the own-label rums released from the distillery.

    The usual wacky Boutique-y label design shows Patrick van Zuidam in full Willy Wonka garb with a pirate-y eyepatch. He is in a roiling sea of fermenting molasses, beneath a nightmarish looking sky. A member of the crew hands him his telescope, as he is said to always have one eye on the future. A pitched battle appears to be won by the crew of the Howard Pyle. The nearest ship to them has been holed, slipping below the waves with the Captain clinging to the mast. Another ship has turned tail and is making off like a bat out of hell. A Windmill in the background reminds us of the heritage of the rum in the bottle.

    That Boutique-y Rum Company Flying Dutchman Rum Aged 4 Years comes in a 50cl/500ml bottle. The rum has been bottled at 53% ABV. Stock in the UK at Master of Malt is quite limited, as a lot is being sent to mainland Europe. I am unsure how many bottles of this have/will be released. Currently it is limited to one bottle per customer which will cost you £59.95. If you are in a hurry to buy this then here is a link, which will also see me get a couple of quid to go towards hosting fees etc (or maybe a bottle of rum).

    So lets see what this rum is like I’m very keen to try something finally, from this distillery.

    In the glass we have rum which is a shade or two darker than perhaps a “traditional” Gold rum. It’s nearly dark……but has an orange hue around the edges and running right through it.

    On the nose That Boutique-y Rum Company Flying Dutchman Rum Aged 4 years is initially very sweet and very heavy on the raisin. In short the initial burst is that of PX Sherry. For those unfamiliar PX Sherry is a very sweet sherry that does carry a lot of raisin aromas (and flavours). Bit like Christmas Cake.

    Further nosing and the raisin noted develop more into dark chocolate covered raisins. I am now beginning to notice more of the “rummy” notes in this spirit though. So I am getting a nice hit of treacly molasses and some really nice vanilla and coconut notes.

    Due to the age of the rum it does have quite a nostril tingling kick to it and a slightly astringent note. Some pencil shavings and a touch of green chilli. I’m also noticing a kind of minty/menthol note, the more I stick my beak into it.

    It’s rich and fruity but has a little menace to it as well – bit of backbone which I like in a rum – especially a Pot Still Rum. It’s pretty complex and there are also a couple of notes/aromas that I can’t quite place but they add to the rich fruityness of the nose. Some kind of exotic fruits.

    Sipped, I am getting much of a Pot Still Rum flavour now. More heavy treacly molasses and some spicy notes which give a nice kick of spicy heat and oak tannins. The fruitiness especially the raisin from the PX cask mingles in amongst this and is less dominant than on the nose. Dark chocolate, plums and some apricot jam develop on the mid palate alongside some of the slightly minty elements and a good chunk of oak and spices. Some Gingerbread and a touch of fennel.

    As we move into the finish I notice more of the vanilla and some coconut notes. The finish is a reasonable length but it does lose quite a lot of the oak and spiciness. This leaves behind the gentler vanilla and coconut, which fade out nicely.

    That Boutique-y Rum Company Flying Dutchman Rum Aged 4 Years rum review by the fat rum pirateAs it stands this is certainly a very mature sip for what is a 4 year old rum. Yes it does show some of its youthfulness – but I quite like that. Overall it’s a very complex experience. There is a lot of development from the initial nose to the finish on the sip. At full strength I didn’t feel it needed any water. As mentioned earlier, it certainly belies its age to some extent.

    My interest in Zuidam Distillery is well and truly piqued by this release and I would be very keen to try this with more age on it. I think the use of PX cask has really worked – without being overbearing. It’s added a layer to the rum which is what a good finish/maturation should do. It should add some influence to the rum not make the rum taste like Sherry.

    Great stuff

  • Mount Gay Black Barrel Double Cask Blend

    Bythefatrumpirate

    Mount Gay Black Barrel Double Cask Blend rum review by the fat rum pirateMount Gay Black Barrel Double Cask Blend. Until pretty recent times Mount Gay were a bit of a one trick pony. They have and likely always will make their money selling truckloads of their “entry level” Eclipse rums. In particular the “Gold” variant of Eclipse as the “White” or “Silver” can be quite tricky to find here in the UK. By tricky I mean pretty much impossible. I have only ever seen it for sale once in the EU and I bought (a rather overpriced) bottle as soon as I saw it.

    Other than the Eclipse rums Mount Gay are also famous for their Extra Old rum or MGXO (Mount Gay Extra Old) as it is often referrred to, or just simply as XO. Straddling the line between these two rums between “entry level” and “sipping rum” they have had a “Black” variant of Mount Gay. A rum aged in more charred barrels. This started with a 100 Proof (50% ABV) Eclipse Black, which was phased out in favour of a new “rum” Mount Gay Black Barrel around 2013. It hit the UK in 2014 if I recall correctly.

    This “Black Barrel” rum was reduced down to 43% ABV and like the Gold Eclipse became a bit of staple in UK supermarkets. This also saw Mount Gay XO gain some shelf space as well. Giving further exposure to authentic Barbados Rum, alongside the usual Navy, Spiced and flavoured nonsense that makes up 90% of Supermarket “rum”.

    In 2019 long time Master Blender Allen Smith left Mount Gay and was succeeded by Trudiann Branker, who has wasted no time in stamping her own mark on two of Mount Gay’s core expressions. Whilst the Eclipse rum remains unchanged both the Black Barrel and Extra Old expressions have been altered. Whether this is a positive step for the Black Barrel blend we will discover later. For now I will concentrate on what is going into the bottle in 2020.

    First up the liquid has is slightly older. Previously Mount Gay Black Barrel was aged between 2 and 7 years. Now we have rum that has been aged between 3 and 7 years. In addition to this Trudiann, has also introduced a higher proportion of Pot Still rum into the blend.

    However, the most noticeable change to the blend (and this is reflected in the colour of the rum) is that the ageing process has changed. Rather than all the rum being aged in deeply charred ex-bourbon barrels it is now a blend. We have a proportion of the rum which has been aged entirely in heavily charred ex-Bourbon barrels. Then blended with rum which has been aged solely in ex-American Whiskey barrels. Please note this is the distinction Mount Gay are using on the label.Mount Gay Black Barrel Double Cask Blend rum review by the fat rum pirate

    The other big change has been the price increase. In the rum world new packaging and/or re-blended lines often means a price increase. However, it is worth pointing out the original Black Barrel has stood at a price point of around £30 since it’s introduction to the UK market back in 2014. So a price increase after 6 years was perhaps inevitable.

    If people wish to make comments about how disgraceful this is please feel free. I’ll delete them same as I have on other reviews…….you’re very boring.

    So let’s move on and see how the new juice is.

    The most immediate difference between this and the old style Black Barrel is the colour of the rum. This is clearly a shade or two lighter. No doubt that is due to only a portion of this blend being aged in “Black Barrels” eg Heavily Charred ex-bourbon barrels.

    This change in the colour is also reflected on the nose. It’s much lighter, more balanced overall and ultimately a lot softer. It smells older and more more mature with less of the aggression and “beefier” notes we had before.

    In  many ways it it has more in common with with MGXO than ever before. It’s a softer, more balanced blend of rums. Whether it is the extra Pot Still element or the less charred overall profile it has more balance than before. It has a bit more complexity.

    There is a good weight of char and smoke but it is balanced by some really soft toffee/caramel notes and quite bit hit of vanilla ice cream. It’s a lovely nose in all honesty and suggests a rum much older than it’s 3-7 year blend might suggest.

    As a sipper it works far better than the previous iteration of Black Barrel. It has a much more forgiving character and is better balanced it terms of the smoke and char. The initial entry is soft and very agreeable. Icing sugar, banana, pineapple, green apple and some gooseberry. It’s light and fruity initially but the mid palate reveals a very nice development of spice and char. It is dry and slightly bourbon esque but it keeps a lot of rum character.

    Had this been released under another name it probably wouldn’t have got the stick it Mount Gay Black Barrel Double Cask Blend rum review by the fat rum piratehas got in various online rum forums. Rum Fans are always ultra suspicious of re-brandings and price increases. Mount Gay probably could have avoided some of the fall out if they had called this something different Mount Gay VSOP or something.

    If you approach this rum as something “new” rather than a “better” version of Black Barrel you will probably realise just what a really nicely balanced and tasty rum this is. If you are a huge fan of the original Black Barrel this may dissapoint as I think this is very different.

    Finish wise Mount Gay Black Barrel Double Cask Blend delivers a nice spicy, very Barbadian easy-going but pretty complex array of barrel char, vanilla and light soft fruity notes. It lingers nicely on the palate and has a really nice length and character to it.

    This is a much more sippable effort than the previous version of Black Barrel. Much lighter overall in terms of profile. It’s a better rum for mel but if you are a huge fan of the old style Black Barrel, you might want to stock up while it’s still available. This is a lot different.

    There is no change in score as I think both rums are very solid 8/10 efforts. If I was after a Rum and Coke I would go old style Black Barrel. Sip wise I’d opt for this.

    Well worth £37.

  • That Boutique-y Rum Company Monymusk Distillery Aged 13 Years

    Bythefatrumpirate

    That Boutique-y Rum Company Monymusk Distillery Aged 13 YearsThat Boutique-y Rum Company Monymusk Distillery Aged 13 Years. I’ve a “Zoom Tasting” of Rum and Whisk(e)y later today, so I thought I would dig through my sample boxes and see if I had anything outstanding to review from That Boutique-y Rum Company.

    I was quite surprised to come across this particular sample still intact. Today I am reviewing one That Boutique-y Rum Company’s older releases. You can actually still buy this particular bottling but it is in very short supply over at Master of Malt.

    This is a 100% Pot Still Rum which was distilled back in September 2004. It was shipped unaged to the UK where it has been aged in “recycled rum casks” (I’m assuming these are ex-bourbon casks which then stored other rums) up until 2014. The rum was then re-filled into more “re-cycled rum casks” for a further maturation of just over 3 years.

    The artwork is suitably bizarre in keeping with the That Boutique-y Rum Company’s usual look – this time we have dogs riding the London Underground. Something which hints at where the rum was matured is what is hinted on in the description at Master of Malt.

    As with all (bar the Signature Blends) this rum is in a 50cl size bottle or half litre if you prefer. A carafe of rum maybe? This means less rum but a higher outturn of bottles. It retails at £59.95. This initial batch of rum was a release of 473 bottles. That Boutique-y Rum Company Monymusk Distillery Aged 13 Years has been bottled at 55.4% ABV, which I assume is Cask Strength or near enough!

    For those unfamiliar with Monymusk/Clarendon they produce a lot of rum for major producers such as Diageo – Captain Morgan and Myers’s for example. However a lot of this rum is their column distilled rum. Their Pot Still rum is still very well regarded and is very popular with rum enthusiasts. It is a popular choice amongst Independent bottlers such as That Boutique-y Rum Company.

    So lets see how this particular bottling rates.

    In the glass the continental ageing is immediately apparent. After 13 years in the tropics it is fair to say that the rum would be a lot darker! What we have hear is a very lightly coloured spirit. Straw coloured. It could almost pass as a “white” rum in some circles where producers don’t mind a yellow tinge.

    The initial nose is slightly salty and carries a nice hit of pineapple. Salted Pineapple? Is that a thing?

    Beneath this I am That Boutique-y Rum Company Monymusk Distillery Aged 13 Yearsgetting some notes of what I can only really describe as beer. It smells a bit like the bottom of a pint of bitter. Quite hoppy and malty. Nice though!

    Further nosing reveals some light chilli heat and some hints of smoke and tobacco. There is also a bit mixed fruit jam lurking around adding a bit sweetness.

    It’s a reasonably funky nose but its nothing stupid. I guess it midway between a Hampden and an Appleton. Probably more in keeping with a Worthy Park in that it has that refined note to it.

    Sipped the rum is quite spicy on the initial palate but it has a fruitiness that carries the spice along nicely. Pineapple, banana and some apricot stand out alongside some chilli and black pepper. A touch of cardamon as well. Therres something quite menthol about the rum with a bit liquorice.

    The mid palate remains vibrant with some more oak spice and further fruity notes and to the spicy heat on the tongue.

    As the mid palate moves into the finish you get some vanilla and more waThat Boutique-y Rum Company Monymusk Distillery Aged 13 Yearsrming oak. As the rum begins to fade out into the finish you get a lot of fruitiness again with the pineapple and apricot leading the way.

    The finish is a good length and is pleasantly fruity but has a good weight of oak and spice as it begins to fade.

    It is safe to say that whilst this is a reasonably “funky” rum in the overall way of things – its not a huge Jamaican funk monster. It’s not Hampden level DOK.

    It relies less on the oak ageing than Appleton but it does seem to have “mellowed” over time into something, which is a bit more refined than you might expect from 100% Pot Still Jamaican Rum.

    Not entirely sure why I hadn’t reviewed this before. I can only think I got mixed up and thought I had already reviewed it.

    Still a couple of bottles are still available if you are quick.

     

     

     

     

     

     

4 Comments

  1. Just bought a bottle (in Germany there are still some available) and really looking forward to open it. Yes, Kill Devil really does a good job on describing the origin. It was destilled at Diamond Destillery 2001 by using the French Savalle still. According barrelagedmind the still was moved1999 from Uitvlugt, so this was done by the so called Uitvlugt still. Everything clear.

  2. The newest Kill Devil bottlings from Guyana have statements regarding the stills. I have seen two of them lately, both were marked as coming from Diamond Distillery, but in addition to that one was marked as a rum from the Versailles Single Pot, the other as rum from the Savalle Column. I am really happy about Hunter Laing, they are doing so much things right.

  3. Sounds really interesting. The problem I have with these bottlers is how they label the rum. Sure it’s from the Diamond distillery, but by 2001 Diamond had many of the other stills operating at it, for example the single wooden pot still from Versaille was moved to Enmore, then to Uitvlugt and then to Diamond in 1999 so this could be from that still and not a metal coffey still. Due to the complex nature of Demerara rum and the amount of time the stills were moved around, bottlers really need to include still information when they are labeling up so people actually know what is in the bottle rather than which distillery it’s come from.

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