Thameside Signature Blend Premium Caribbean Rum
Thameside Signature Blend Premium Caribbean Rum. This is the first rum to be released from the Thameside Rum Company which was established in 2018.
The rum is noted on the front label as being an English style blend of the finest aged Caribbean rum. This information is clarified further by the rear label which notes that the rum is from Jamaica, Barbados and Guyana.
These Caribbean destinations (I would normally say islands but Guyana is actually on the coast of mainland South America) have long been associated with Navy rums. In some circles rum from these countries are referred to as “British Style”.
Multi Island Blends of rum are often looked down upon by more serious Rum Enthusiasts. They are often fairly cheap and made up of fairly young rums. Rums such as Lamb’s Navy Rum and Captain Morgan Dark Rum are usually taken with cola or ginger ale and aren’t generally on the spectrum of such enthusiasts.
Rums such as Pusser’s Navy Rum are seen as better but more expensive alternatives. The Whisky Exchange have just released a new Black Tot Rum which is priced at £40 which is a multi island blend.
So it will be interesting to see how Thameside Signature Blend fares in the market. It is priced at just under £40, currently in stock at both their own website and Master of Malt.
Presentation wise Thameside Signature blend comes in a rounded stubby style bottle with a chunky cork stopper. The branding is clear and modern and you are given some information about the actual rums in the bottle. No age statements etc however. The rums in this blend have been aged entirely in ex-bourbon casks and there have been no post distillation additives used. It is also without any kind of colouring. Rums such as this are usually very dark. So fair play to Thameside Rum Company for taking a different, more daring approach and presenting this rum in its natural stat
e. It is also non chill filtered.
Thameside Signature Blend is blended at Cask Strength but is brought down to 40% ABV when bottled. Which is to be expected as the minimum ABV for a rum retailing at this price point. I dare say a few people would like to see a higher ABV. Maybe they will introduce a “Cask Strength” or “Overproof” offering in the future. Obviously as a new company they are still working on increasing their Economy of Scale.
The Thameside Rum Company website is very informative and they give a breakdown on the rums used in the blend. (I think some of this information on the bottle might also be useful). So the rums in this blend are as follows
4 Year Old 100% Pot Still rum from Jamaica
5 Year Old Pot and Column distilled rum from Barbados
2-5 Year Old Pot and Column distilled rum from Guyana
The actual distilleries aren’t named but the Barbados element will almost certainly be from Foursquare and the Guyanese rum can only hail from Demerara Distillers Limited. The Jamaican element could be from a few different options – Long Pond, Hampden or Worthy Park being the most likely.
I don’t think there is much else I cant say about this rum. I think pretty much everything is covered. So lets see how this fairs when put to the taste test.
In the glass as promised we have a golden brown rum, rather than the more “traditional” dark brown/black style adopted by most other blended Navy/British style rums. It’s a little on the hazy side which attests to it not being chill filtered.
On the nose Th
ameside Signature Blend will be familiar to anyone who has tried some Continentally Aged Demerara and/or Jamaican rum. It has a slightly savoury note to it – woody and earthy at the same time. Hints of aniseed and brown sugar mingle alongside some smoky funky notes. Burnt banana and some unsweetened toffee.
Further nosing reveals vanilla and some sultanas. It is a very complex nose especially for a 40% ABV rum. I think if you were given a glass you might well think it is a higher ABV. Such is the concentration of the aromas – rather than it being particularly “boozy”.
That said it is quite a hairs on the chest kind of rum. It’s certainly not delicate and fragrant. The Barbados element of the rum certainly stops the Jamaican Pot Still from running away with this rum but its still big and punchy.
Sipped this is every bit as flavourful as the nose suggested. It’s less smoky and oaky than the nose with a lot more fruitiness coming through.
Classic Demerara notes of brown sugar, toffee, raisins and aniseed mingle alongside some more savoury Jamaican funk. It’s not out there funky but its enough to keep things interesting and an extra layer.
The Barbados element of this rum is adding just enough balance to keep this from becoming unwieldly.
It’s quite a dry rum but the finish isn’t as oaky as I was expecting. It retains just enough sweetness throughout the delivery. The initial burst of sweetness moves into the smokier and oakier elements of the rum on the mid palate. The finish is a decent length and some of the sweeter notes return in the form of brown sugar and raisin.
The lower ABV on this one makes is really easy to sip. Especially if you are used to sipping Cask Strength aged rums. It deliver a more “Continentally Aged” style of rum than some of the Velier aged rums. If you are a fan of European aged Demerara rums then I think you will get a lot of enjoyment out of this rum as an occasional sip
per.
I’m usually quite skeptical about rums like these, however as you will see from their website the company behind this are very much against the usual industry bullshit. Which is great to see.
For £40 this makes a really decent sipper. However, they also suggest using this rum in a number of cocktails and other serves. I have to say having this in a rum and cola makes for one of the best I have had to date. In some ways it does the job of a few different rums. The Demerara and Jamaican rums give a real complexity of flavour and the Barbados element really smooths the drink out and adds a great balance.
Really, really good stuff. Cask Strength next please……….
Much to my uncontrollable excitement Pusser’s Rum Ltd, recently re-vamped (and to be fair tidied up) their range of rums. This was done partly to introduce new expressions but also to avoid confusion caused by the numerous “Blue Label” versions on offer in varying territories.
discerning British Sailor’s drink of choice. Well, choice is something the British Sailor did not have when stationed an any Naval Base in the UK. The maximum ABV allowed is 40%. So in order to get the British Navy Rum to the British Navy, Pusser’s have opted to lower the strength.
Firstly the nose, it is as expected the classic Pusser’s aroma. It is a slightly less pungent version of the 54.5% ABV Pussers. More of the Demeraran influence is apparent on the nose. Its sweet and fruity. Plump raisins and currants. Theres a little bit of Christmas pudding (I know very seasonal!) in the mix. I’m still getting a pungent cooked banana nose which reminds me of Jamaican rum but I now understand maybe the influence of the Port Mourant and a bit of the Trini rum used. I was surprised about the Trinidad rum. I’ve found that they are relatively light and inoffensive (the exact opposite of Jamaican rum’s). Think Angostura 1919. However, my tastings were/are limited. I have since sourced a 16 year old Caroni which is bottled by a small company in Scotland and is issued in a 50cl bottle as Ancient Mariner Navy Rum. It too is based on the original naval recipe. There are similarities to Pusser’s but it is clearly the preserve of just the one island so doesn’t really taste the same. Pusser’s has been called the “single malt” of rum partly due to its lack of additives (very unusual for “British” Navy style rums) and possibly partly due to its slightly whisky like profile on the nose. I understand a lot of whisky drinkers enjoy Pussers. I’m not big on whisky but even I can detect whisky notes on the nose. It does have that kind of earthy smell to it a bit like a peaty single malt.
MOB33 Gold Heist Rum. A bit of American History is required to make sense of the name of this rum. In 1920, the US introduced Prohibition, which banned the sale of alcohol for anything (pretty much) other than medical purposes. Bizarrely enough at the time you could Bourbon for medicinal purposes and it wasn’t seen as a joke.
Well, Professor Cornelius Ampleforth’s Rumbullion! to give it its full name. Rumbullion is a Spiced Rum made exclusively for Master of Malt as part of their Professor Cornelius Ampleforth’s range of spirits and pre-mixed cocktails.
ABV. Making it very definitely a Spiced Rum rather than a Spirit Drink (less than 37.5% ABV)
Mixed initially Rumbullion again seems quite sweet but that quickly fades and leads to a dry almost bitter finish. The Ginger and Cinnamon still shine. In some ways it becomes medicinal again its very much mulled in flavour. This is a winter time Spiced Rum rather than a Summer one. It’s very British and warming.
Havana Club 11 Year Old Small Batch Exclusive to The Whisky Exchange. This is a world first. Havana Club, the iconic Cuban distillers have never previously released a bespoke expression for a single retailer.
Jung and Wulff Luxury Rums No 1 Trinidad. I’ll be honest with you all, I can’t say I had heard of L.E Jung and Frederick Wulff before coming across this range of “Luxury Rums” from Sazerac.
gar has been added to this rum. A Hydrometer Test confirms this as well.
uld much prefer using something like this – without the “dosage”.
S.B.S The 1423 Single Barrel Selection Panama 2006. I’ve not been seeking out rums from Panama lately. Personally, they aren’t the type of rum that excites me.
glass S.B.S Panama 2006 is a dark brown colour with a slightly orange tinge.
e of rum.