October 4, 2015

Malternatives, more rums at random

After all the old armagnacs and cognacs that we had in recent weeks, maybe is it time to go back to rum, even if our heart is bleeding given the amount of depressing junk that some rum brands are putting out these days. But let’s try to avoid sugar and glycerine today, rum is not only fake…

Bielle 2008/2015 '40ème' (53.4%, OB, Marie Galante, rhum agricole, decanter)

What a bad idea to start with this! Great distillery, great place, and cask strength. How smart, Serge! Colour: gold. Nose: there. Citrons and oranges plus honey, with a touch of smoke, mint, and myrtle. Amazingly deep. Perhaps a touch of bourbony vanilla, but no big deal, we’ll always forgive Bielle. With water: superb menthol! Old crème de menthe, raw mint leaves, plus a grassy earthiness. Embrocations and tiger balm, this nose gets more and more medicinal. Mouth (neat): granted, the vanilla and the American-oak-side are a notch too in the front for us, but other than that, these notes of pineapple liqueur, papayas and guavas are perfect, even if the whole might be a little sweet and slightly un-Bielle. But who am I to tell you this? With water: oils from the wood, tropical fruits, and a touch of benzoin, perhaps. Oh and plenty of liquorice. Finish: long, rather more honeyed. Comments: it’s just the sweetish oak that I would have avoided, but other than that, this roars and soothes. SGP651 - 84 points.

Mount Gay 'Black Barrel' (43%, Barbados, bourbon casks, +/-2015)

A blend of pot still and column still rums, finished in charred bourbon barrels. Quite like the ads, ‘It’s ready when it’s ready, give or take 300 years’. Yeah yeah, Rémy… Colour: gold. Nose: fine, fruity, slightly phenolic and tarry, with a little liquorice wood and shoe polish. I can’t see who would be against this. ‘Ideas’ of bananas aged near the sea (what?) Mouth: a wee tad thin, perhaps, but the profile is very ‘cool’, fresh and banany. Liquorice allsorts and orange liqueur. Goes down very well. Finish: curiously salty, and even sort of long. Comments: a rather good bottle that echoes many contemporary NAS from Scotland. Not too industrial, though… SGP:541 - 79 points.

Fair Belize 10 yo (40%, OB, +/-2015)

A new bottling by the very smart people at Fair’s, who only do fair-trade spirits. In this case, it’s rum from Travellers Distillery, but it wouldn’t say on the bottle. Colour: full gold. Nose: in truth, we’re not far from the style of the Mount Gay, but this Belize is a little lighter and easier, with more herbal teas. I’d say hawthorn and lime tree. And as often, overripe bananas. Mouth: simply very good, round but not sickly sweet like the dreadful Don Papa and consorts, with some guava jam and a touch of maple syrup. Good and easy – if a tad sweetish. Finish: medium, balanced, sweet, rather jammy. Comments: a sweet style, well made and well selected. Beginners should start with this, rather than the aforementioned brand (or A.H. Riise and other insulting plain and utter horrors). SGP:631 - 80 points.

While we’re at it…

Fair Belize 11 yo (50.7%, OB, +/-2015)

One more year and 10.7 more percents. Let’s check if that changes anything… Colour: deep gold. Nose: you bet! It’s a superb mentholy fruitcake from some remote tropical island, where tar liqueur, pineapple juice, mango chutney and a wee bit of new oak are singing in tune. With water: menthol, cinnamon, and herbal teas. Plus normal tea. Okay, Assam. Mouth (neat): very good. There is a little oak, perhaps (pencil shavings), but other than that, we’re having rose jelly, soft crème de menthe (very important, that keeps the whole thing fresh), pink grapefruits and… some fruit salad. That would even include apples. With water: once again, there’s more soft spices from the oak. Cinnamon cake and all that. Finish: medium, jammy and spicy, easy. Comments: it’s not only the business scheme that’s fair, the spirit’s very, very fair too. SGP:641 - 85 points.

Back to Barbados…

Barbados 1998/2015 (45%, Samaroli, cask #11, 250 bottles)

Could this be Mount Gay again? Colour: deep gold. Nose: it’s amazing how close we are to the Black Barrel. I mean, not to tasteless Girvan of course, we’re talking about Mount Gay’s Black Barrel. Once again, there’re a few pencil shavings (hope the rum makers won’t start to talk only about oak just like the Scots!) and then rather not-too-ripe bananas, plus overripe apples and a touch of fresh butter. In fact, this baby’s a little shy. Shier than Black Barrel. Mouth: so very similar. Sweet oak, banana sweets, soft liquorice, a little fudge, and repeat. The easiest side of indie rum, I’d say. Finish: medium, sweet, with some sugarcane and more banana sweets and jellies. A touch of salty liquorice in the aftertaste. Comments: very good, no doubt, just not very characterful in my opinion. SGP:641 - 78 points.

Let’s hop to Trinidad if you please, but this won’t be Caroni!...

United 24 yo 1991/2015 (50%, Silver Seal, Trinidad)

I believe this distillery also makes Angostura, but that shouldn’t stop us. Colour: gold. Nose: it’s not often that you can nose ashy rum, and it’s not often that you can find asparagus in your rum. In fact, it seems that this is ultra-light rum from a good cask. It’s shy, but it’s not void of any interest. Perhaps touches of very light and soft honey? With water: well, soft mint tea, perhaps. It’s very thin rum, we’re very far from high-ester Caroni! Mouth (neat): easy, mellow, soft, thin (not in a bad way), and fairly citrusy. It’s got a spritzy side. Schweppes-Lemon? With water: fine, easy, light. Finish: short, fine, easy, light. Comments: hello? It’s fine, it’s good, it’s easy – but it’s probably too easy. IMHO. SGP:441 - 75 points.

We all know that Silver Seal can do ten times better…. A hundred times better…

Bellevue 17 yo 1998/2015 (50%, Silver Seal, Guadeloupe)

Colour: pale amber. Nose: ah, this Bellevue (coz there are others), glory of the Caribbean… We’ll keep this short, but imagine someone would smoke sultanas and bananas… With water: oh, bandages! And tar, tyres, candle wax, wine lees… It is unusual. And great. Mouth (neat): so very and totally agricole! Mint, eucalyptus drops, mint-flavoured liquorice, smoked tea, grapefruits, smoked wax (or something like that)… And strength and body are just perfect. And yet, with water: oh yeah, gentian, wormwood, elderberry flowers, oranges… Finish: medium, superb, herbal, flowery, mildly medicinal… Comments: it’s the complexity that’s always thrilling in Bellevue. This was another very, very fine example. SGP:552 - 88 points.

Time to put an end to this little session. Perhaps with a ‘heavy’ Caroni?

Caroni 15 yo 2000/2015 'Millenium' (60%, OB, Trinidad, 12 barrels, 1420 magnums)

Only magnums while some Scots are doing depressingly small half bottles, that’s what I call panache, Luca! Now, if I remember well, 2000 was Caroni’s last vintage, wasn’t it? Colour: amber. Nose: it talks, you listen. Carbolinium, creosote, carbon paper, oyster mushrooms, pitch, lamp oil, long-forgotten Easter-Germanic herbal liqueurs, and just a touch of oak. With water: not sure it needs water. And yet, 60% vol… Mouth (neat): it’s not rum for everyone, okay? Because you have to like anchovies in brine, black olives, extreme salmiak, and even new leatherette to enjoy this salty monster of a rum. But if you do, you’re in for a treat (and you’ve got 1.5l of it!) With water: yes. Kools, heavy Dutch liquorice, smoked bananas, salted figs (what?) and kippers. Indeed. Finish: pretty long, but it’s hard to come up with just the right amount of water. Hope you’ve got a good pipette. Comments: some say heavy Caroni used to be the Ardbeg of rum. Well, nobody’s ever sent Caroni into space, it seems. That’s what’s good with extinct brands and distilleries, they just couldn’t do any pathetic marketing stunts anymore, and so they’ll simply never become the new laughing stock around. In short, when you’re dead, you’ll live forever. Rule Caroni! SGP:462 - 88 points.

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