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Hi, this is one of our (almost) daily tastings. Santé! |
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November 2, 2014 |
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Malternatives on Sundays,
today claro and hard rums |
We’re really going to wander today, with several very unusual rums from various countries. |
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Dictador 100 mo 'Claro' (40%, OB, Colombia, 2014)  This is South American rum from a distillery in Cartagena de Indias. That was the good part, because this 8 yo - they say 100 months old, like a Swiss distillery once did with their whisky – was then heavily filtered to remove a large part of its colour. Or so they say, maybe there wasn’t much colour in the first place. Shall we see this in whisky soon (and again?) Colour: very pale white wine. Nose: hello? Anybody in there? A little dust, a little grass, some kind of plant… Tends to slowly improve, with a little coffee, but this baby will never reach stardom in my glass. Mouth: not quite. Burnt notes, grass, burnt sugar, a little coffee again, a few jelly babies, then touches of sour fruits. It’s less light than I had feared, but it is a little thin. Finish: a little short, slightly dirty, with some molasses. Comments: calls for a lot of crushed ice. Probably. Please notes that it tends to improve quite a lot with breathing. SGP:330 - around 65 points. |
So you want some ‘claro’ rum?... |
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Clairin Sajous (53.5%, Velier, Haiti, batch #2, 2014)  I’ve been playing hide and seek with the Clairins for years, knowing that I had to try some, and yet always failing at putting my hands on a bottle – too busy, too late, too lazy perhaps. The indefatigable Luca Gargano’s been promoting these truly artisan spirits lately, let’s see if he’s right… (of course he is). Oh and clairin is white rum from Haiti. Colour: white. Nose: the exact opposite of the Dictador. We’re actually between a white agricole and an artisan mezcal, if you like. Brine, olives, tar, diesel oil, geranium flowers, then overripe bananas and dried kelp. It’s pretty wild spirit, extremely expressive and characterful. You guessed it, me likes. Mouth: whoo-hoo! The nose was nothing, this is big, very punchy, amazingly limy and salty, with plenty of sugarcane and liquorice, plus notes of artisan gin, oranges, sloe, various herbs. A very different spirit, a little hard to describe while only using analogies. I guess you’ll have to try it yourself (as always, yeah I know.) Finish: very long, maybe just a notch cologne-y – like gin (don’t shoot.) But the amazing salty aftertaste is, well, amazing. Mushrooms (oyster mushrooms), raw potatoes. Comments: this or mezcal? Mezcal or this? We’ll try to do a large mezcal vs. clairin session next year, and find out. Stay tuned. SGP:372 - around 88 points. |
All right, in no way we could have some lightish rum after that big clairin, so let’s try to find some other big ones. Such as this, quite possibly… |
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Monymusk 10 yo 2003/2014 (53.5%, Duncan Taylor, Jamaica, cask #18, 162 bottles)  Same strength as the clairin, this may work indeed. I remember a surprisingly great Moneymusk 5yo by Murray McDavid finished in tempranillo. Colour: pale white wine. Nose: pure Jamaican style. It’s rounder and smoother than the clairin, obviously, but there are many similarities, the fatness, the oiliness, the tar, the brine, the earth… Ah dear dunder! Ah the yeasts! Having said that, it tends to lose a bit of steam, especially when you revisit the amazing clairin. Mouth: no this is pretty perfect, although we’re rather between two styles, that is to say high-esters and lighter, rounder ones. I believe there is a name for this but I forgot. Oranges, a little coconut, plenty of liquorice, only a touch of brine, then more vanilla. And olives. Perfect mouth feel. Finish: very long, salty, olive-y, tarry. The fruits have been tamed. Comments: the clairin had the upper hand (what a killer) but this Monymusk’s still great fatty rum from Jamaica. SGP:561 - around 86 points. |
And now we’ll have to be extra-careful. Only monsters please!... |
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Bundaberg 'Overproof' (57.7%, OB, Australia, +/-2013)  You said ‘monster’? Colour: suspiciously amber/orange. Nose: could have been worse. Dusty molasses and overripe fruits plus a touch of menthol and mercurochrome. Mercurochrome? Not a bad idea… With water, you never know: more dust. Soap. Mouth (neat): a very strange brew, on rotten fruits and anything from a dentist’s. Cloves, disinfectant, soap, chlorine… What is this? Tastes more like some kind of deadly liqueur made by a psychopath than like rum. Now, that’s fun ;-). With water: better, but not good. Cloves and cheap gin, vanilla, corn syrup. No, really, that’s better. Finish: long, on gin and more chlorine. Better aftertaste, almost human, on orange liqueur. Comments: I liked the regular version much better, it had many less off notes. Now, again, it’s fun and cheap. Personality’s always to be rewarded. SGP:451 - around 40 points. |
We will survive (not sure), with… |
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Tilambic '151' (75.5%, OB, Mauritius, +/-2014)  151 US proof, so indeed, 75.5% vol. A Stagg-ering strength (wow, bravo, S.!) I guess ‘tilambic’ is a contraction of ‘petit alambic’, so ‘small still’. Wish me luck… Colour: gold. Nose: not too dangerous, provided you don’t plunge your nose too deep into your glass. I seem to find some caramel, ripe bananas, and whiffs of cane juice. Not too sure, I won’t double-check all that ten times, thanks for your understanding. With (a good amount of) water: let’s add even more water: no, I don’t seem to manage to catch this one, it’s becoming dusty and not unlike the Dictador Claro. Mouth (neat): cough, cough. Not easy to grasp when you’re only taking a quarter of a drop. Caramel again, Demerara sugar, sweet chocolate, perhaps, what seems to be a little tar… The problem is that even your lips feel the strength, so let’s not be too stupid and… With water: this is much more okay. Oranges, ginger and sugarcane, a touch of tar and a drop of brine. Pretty agricole – but not sure at all it’s agricole. Finish: quite long, simple, not too smooth. Comments: I liked this baby much better than the deadly Austrian Stroh 80%. Honest rum – and it’ll impress your visitors. Get the extra beds ready! SGP:441 - around 70 points. |
 Check the index of all rums I've tasted so far
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