
September 13, 2026

The Rum Sessions,
a few more rums and some weird aperitifs

Sometimes flavoured (or spiced) rums manage to sneak into these little sessions, despite our best efforts to keep them out. So today, rather than waiting for the next ambush, we’ve decided to take the bull by the horns and deliberately choose two weird spirits as aperitifs. A little fighting fire with fire, if you like… But we’re not going to do this entirely at random, we’ll choose flavours that we often encounter when tasting… normal spirits.

Jaffa Cake Vodka (42%, OB, +/2025)

Perhaps only the second or third vodka we’ve tasted on WF, unless we count pot still vodkas such as Polugar… This baby is made with orange zest and cocoa, apparently. Colour: blush. Really. Nose: orange and medicinal alcohol, with no real impact from the cocoa or chocolate at first, then the chocolate starts to come through indeed. You really would think of Jaffa Cakes, and it’s not bad at all. Mouth: same combination, except that this time there’s a sweeter side to it, which is a bit of a shame. Rather like triple sec flavoured with chocolate. Finish: same. Shame about the sweetness. Comments: imagine Cointreau with ten percent Kahlua or Tia Maria. It’s not unpleasant, but you really have to add ice cubes, and that’s strictly outside our tasting procedures. We could almost regret that…
SGP:720 – 70 points.

Spytail ‘Cognac Cask’ (40%, OB, spirit drink, +/-2025)

Some kind of mixture of spiced rum and neutral spirit, finished in Cognac casks. Why should that have gone wrong, especially since we’re already getting closer to the real theme of the day? Colour: full gold, a tad orange, which suggests big caramel. Nose: ginger biscuits, aniseed, orange cake, liquid caramel and, indeed, notes of Pineau des Charentes. It’s not bad at all, especially since we’re also finding some rather lovely rum in there. Mouth: not bad indeed, with the same combination of aniseed, ginger, orange liqueur and rum, but it’s also rather sweet, almost as much as the Jaffa Cake vodka. Finish: not short, but too sweet for me, it becomes a little cloying, although once again I reckon three ice cubes, or even four, would sort things out. Comments: we’re not going to start giving different scores to two spirits that are, all things considered, very close, at least in spirit.
SGP:730 - 70 points.

Naga 12 yo ‘Siam Edition’ (40%, OB, Thailand, +/-2024)

A little anecdote, some fifteen years ago I went to Rue de Siam in Brest, where there was a renowned delicatessen called Kerjean. And at the back of the shop, what did I spot? A shelf full of Bowmore Bicentenary, which had been sitting there for a good twenty years. ‘Impossible to sell at that price’, I was told. And that was the original price. Once everything had been dusted off, I relieved the good man of his sleeping stock. The sort of story that, sadly, hardly ever happens anymore. Anyway, Siam… Colour: deep gold. Nose: it’s still very caramelised and gentle, without any of the oomph you might expect from the great names of Thailand, especially Chalong and Issan. Fortunately, there are very faint notes of olives and ultra-ripe bananas, then a little juniper and some very subtle petroly touches. Still, it’s perfectly decent. Mouth: much drier than expected, almost rough and tannic, like black tea that’s been forgotten in the pot since yesterday. But once again the olives, and especially the liquorice, come along to lift the whole thing. Finish: decent, on tea and liquorice. A slight saltiness. Comments: it suffers a little from its dry, light texture, otherwise it’s not bad at all.
SGP:451 - 78 points.

La Palma ‘La Isla Bonita n°5’ (59.1%, Les Frères de la Côte, Canary Islands, +/-2025)

We imagine Madonna has nothing to do with any of this, although at 59.1% this particular Isla Bonita may well get you into the groove. This is Aldea ex-solera, taken for a little sail aboard a yacht by the famous Frères de la Côte. Colour: gold. Nose: a gentle rum despite the alcoholic strength, rather on ripe apples, hay, cinnamon and fennel seeds. A little waxed cardboard. With water: very lovely little touches of wholegrain mustard and even a hint of dried ceps. Mouth (neat): this strikes me as very good for a Spanish-style rum, beautifully peppery and orangey, with something more Andalusian than Canarian about it. Lovely fino and lemon notes, even a few oysters. Small ones and not too many, granted. With water: the citrus fruits come charging in and take control of the boat. Finish: lovely and long, herbs and tobacco, then citrus fruits and a very faint smokiness. Comments: to cut a long story short, I’ve just discovered that this baby had spent its final years in a La Favorite cask. Mystery solved, then.
SGP:552 - 86 points.

Brasil 13 yo 2011/2024 (52.1% Valinch & Mallet, The Spirit of Art, Brazil, 205 bottles)

Generally speaking, all these independent Brazilian babies come from Epris/Purigran. Conveniently enough, ‘épris’ means ‘in love’ in French, so there may be trouble ahead. Colour: gold. Nose: lovely, on pollen and jujubes, with something delicate and unusual in the aromatic profile. Some small ripe plums and, above all, massive amounts of verbena. Absolutely massive. With water: please don’t tell me nobody tipped bushels of verbena into this cask. Mouth (neat): perfect! Beautifully austere and earthy, rather like a tobala mezcal, with the verbena returning together with some peppery lime. Really surprised, once again. With water: there really is a mezcal side to this rum. And verbena. Finish: long, fresh and earthy, magnificent. Lime, genepy, gentian and… verbena. Comments: well, it seems I’ve become épris of Epris. In love with Epris, in other words. Perhaps best enjoyed while listening to the late Hermeto Pascoal.
SGP:461 - 88 points.

Foursquare 21 yo 2001 (54.5%, The Duchess, Marine Life, Barbados, refill bourbon, cask #11, +/-2022)

We’ve got plenty of not-too-recent indie Foursquare in the stocks, which fills us with joy. Colour: gold. Nose: delicate, soft, slightly waxy, and rather on white chocolate otherwise. Very ‘column’. But no desiccated coconut, let’s not exaggerate. With water: some modelling clay, which is rather regressive. Remember nursery school? Mouth (neat): more oomph than on the nose, grapefruit, apple peel, cider, even a touch of bagasse, even though this is molasses-based (so what, S.?) With water: the classic Foursquare profile, light yet complete. Apples and lemons, in lovely balance. Finish: not long, but fresh. Hay, peel. Comments: not easy coming after that surprisingly superb Brazilian, but it acquitted itself very well.
SGP:441 - 86 points.

Caribbean Rum Blend for Sweden (68.6%, The Colours of Rum, 2025)

68.6%! Now you see where our dear Swedish friends get their reputation from… Colour: full gold. Nose: esters, olives, petrol, liquorice, and basta così. With water: it cuts your nose clean in half, which, let’s admit, is hardly the most flattering look. Indeed, even with water, and actually more so than without. Mouth (neat): Jamaica lays down the law. Carbon, acetone, varnish, concentrated lime, tapenade, mangoes so ripe they’re practically rotten… With water: it doesn’t calm down in the slightest. Pepper comes charging in. Finish: very long, almost invasive. And magnificent. Comments: there’s strictly no information here apart from Sweden. No ages, no distilleries… Bah, never mind, we adore this little monster… By the way, since it seems to be the trend, and since we used to do this in the early days of WF, there’s a rather lovely little Swedish band, pretty easy-listening, that I’d recommend, they’re called ABB… I mean, Dina Ögon. De nada.
SGP:464 - 90 points.

So, you reckon our Swedish friends picking a beast like this was a one-off? …

WeiRon Black ‘Navy Strength’ (57.1%, Svenska Eldvatten, +/-2021)

Colour: gold. Nose: it’s powerful, but actually much gentler than expected, with vanilla cake, banana cake, roasted plantains and chestnuts. Touches of orange zest. With water: freshly mown grass and leafy notes, including boxwood and privet. Mouth (neat): livelier, more lemony, almost blade-sharp, so narrow is the profile. With water: gums, oils, herbs. Finish: quite long, and prettier here, lemon, apple, light brine, capers… Comments: very, very good, in that light yet powerful style, although it’s light, but powerful, but light, but powerful, but light… (that’ll do, S.)
SGP:452 - 85 points.

Right, as usual, we’ll finish off with Jamaica… Islay’s tropical outpost, naturally.

Long Pond 25 yo 1998/2023 ‘ITP’ (51.5%, Rest & Be Thankful, Jamaica, Port Charlotte ex-sherry finish, 310 bottles)

ITP means a really low ester count. Port Charlotte, on the other hand… I must confess we’re rather sceptical at this stage, replacing the esters with peat and sherry seems a funny idea, but let’s keep our lugholes and nostrils open… Colour: gold. Nose: it pains me, perhaps even physically, to report that this seems to work, we’re getting conifer smoke, dried seaweed, picture varnish, lemon tart and fruit stones. With water: metal polish. Everybody loves metal polish in their spirits, don’t they? Mouth (neat): this is horrible yet this is very good, smoky and salty, with a curious mixture of varnish and lemon juice. Almost a daiquiri de la muerte. With water: this ‘Jamaican’ smoke really is intriguing, we’re almost in the realm of brand-new vinyl records and smoked salmon, really. Finish: we were terrified all the way through. Comments: in the end, it works extremely well.
SGP:452 - 87 points.

Check the index of all rums we've tasted

The Rum Sessions, a few more rums and some weird aperitifs

The Rum Sessions,
a few more rums and some weird aperitifs