Rums make a triumphant return on WF


March 1, 2026

Rums make a triumphant return on WF

(Right.)

Shall we start by finding a little aperitif, if you don’t mind… Perhaps this one? ...

Savanna ‘Le Must’ (45%, OB, La Réunion, +/-2025)

This is a traditional rum, therefore from molasses, partly grand arôme, therefore with plenty of esters; we do not, however, know the exact proportions, but we do know that the maturation took place in ex-cognac casks. Colour: gold. Nose: fresh, marked by liquorice flavoured with fruits, especially orange and orange blossom, with light petroleum and mineral touches, all kept in fine balance. A few gentle, softer notes and perhaps a handful of sultanas, no doubt stemming from the cognac wood. Mouth: rather rounded, in any case not at all a grand arôme ‘that tears your head off’, as I think you sometimes read on the forums, with a honeyed side, still liquorice-led, still on candied orange zest, with just a slight salinity in the background, which in fact only grows. Finish: fairly long, genuinely very good, even if the cask is a little assertive to my taste. A small liqueur-like touch of strawberry and cherry right at the end. Comments: very good, just a little cask-driven.
SGP: 651 - 83 points.

Maurice ‘Very Special Coffee Product’ (55.7%, Vagabond Spirits, Mauritius, +/-2024)

Well then, here is a rum from Gray’s, infused with coffee beans. It probably has no real place in a session such as this one, but since we are here… Coffee, as you know, is in any case a perfect resetter of both nose and palate. Colour: gold, in no way dark like coffee. Nose: rather surprising, above all very floral, somewhere between rose and nuts, coconut and Brazil nuts… For the moment, however, no very obvious coffee that we can clearly detect. Yet it is rather pleasant indeed. With water: an explosion of buttery coconut. We could almost be on a beach in the Balearic Islands, circa 1970. Mouth (neat): we find exactly that toasted coconut character again, which is quite disconcerting. Some orange liqueurs as well. With water: the same profile remains, although the orange steadily takes on more prominence as we add water. Finish: of medium length, with no notable change. Comments: all that remains is to put Aphrodite’s Child or early Pink Floyd on the stereo. Do take my score with a pinch of salt, it is out of category in any case.
SGP: 630- 78 points.

Since we were talking about the Balearic Islands…

La Palma Suave 17 yo (40.5%, Tres Hombres, Canary Islands, 2086 bottles)

It is from Aldea, of course. The casks were brought back to France by boat, seasoned with PX and Pineau des Charentes. They call this dynamic ageing, how amusing! We wait to see what Elon M. will make of the idea… All this may sound a little improbable, but the truth lies in the glass, does it not. Colour: deep gold. Nose: well now, this is far more pleasant than the Aldeas we have already tasted, no doubt thanks to the casks, and perhaps to the ageing at sea. It is particularly the pineau that seems to assert itself, peaches, sultanas, dandelion, soft honey… Suave indeed. Mouth: the pineau returns, with white nougat, tobacco, peanut butter, gingerbread, ginger biscuits. It is genuinely very good, even if the ‘rum’ aspect sits somewhat in the background. Acacia blossom liqueur. Finish: not so short, and more or less on the same notes. Vanilla and pretty aniseed touches right at the end. Comments: a very good surprise for me, even if a few ice cubes might be welcome. This summer perhaps?
SGP:430 - 82 points.

Since we stayed in Spain…

El Ron del Artesano 10 yo (57.6%, OB, Panama, Tobia Reserve Tinto Cask finish, cask #351-25, 150 bottles, 2026)

This baby was only just bottled in February 2026. We are dealing with a finishing in a Rioja cask, therefore Tempranillo. As they say, it either works or it fails, and we do love great Rioja… I am not entirely sure that a little Panamanian can withstand such treatment, but perhaps that is precisely the good news… Colour: apricot gold. Nose: no marked vinosity, I repeat, no marked vinosity. Certainly there is candied cherry and clafoutis, but also sugar cane, honeys, a few earthy puffs, even zucchini flowers… With water: cherry pipe tobacco! Mouth (neat): rich, very smooth, very much on cherry and orange liqueurs, but also almond and maraschino… With water: fried doughnuts, elderflower liqueur, do prepare the Hugos… Finish: fairly long and, above all, not overly sweet, which is a blessing for us. Comments: you see, when you are a whisky chap and you taste rum, what I have learnt is that you need a much more open mind. Goodness me, I feel as though I am speaking like Frank Zappa. A very lovely rum, surprising and very well made.
SGP:641 - 85 points.

We’d quite like some mineral rums, actually. Maybe this one? (no joke!)

Captain Flint 12 yo ‘Extra’ (52%, Famille Cabanne, Dominican Republic, cognac cask, 2025)

A brand bottled in France, in keeping with the age-old tradition of our harbours. We had rather a poor image of Dominican rums, owing to all those brands that fiddle extensively with their juice, but we have recently tasted a few versions from independent bottlers that were not bad at all. Colour: pale gold. Oh! Nose: of great softness, with a marked lightness, on vanilla, hay, herbal infusions, dried flowers, mandarin peel… In short, at this stage, we are rather taken with it. With water: a touch of metal polish and linseed oil, which is rather pleasant. Mouth (neat): a present yet fairly restrained sweetness, bagasse, hay, cold tea, lime blossom, a little mint… Truly nothing to complain about. With water: a few roots and a little earth, that too is pleasant. Finish: short but fresh and without a false note. Comments: perhaps not immense in expressiveness, but for once here is a Dominican that is balanced and not ‘doctored’ to the point of nausea, I may exaggerate again. In short, it is light, and it is good.
SGP:331 - 80 points.

A little jaunt to South Africa…

Mhoba ‘Imbasha’ (61.5%, OB, South Africa, LMDW Foundations, bourbon cask, cask #WRD6, 289 bottles, 2024)

We have already had ample opportunity, on many occasions, to say all the good we think of Mhoba. Colour: gold. Nose: forget it, I love it. Sea water, old leather, ointments, fresh paint, and myriads of other molecules. And what is more, I am sure that with water it will go fractal. With water: indeed it does, in a rather meta-Jamaican style. Mouth (neat): they are a nuisance, they were already beating us at rugby, now they are beating us at rum as well. Incredible freshness and razor-sharp precision, Sicilian lemons, brine and tar, salmiak… With water: magnificent. At 3°C, with proper caviar, alas no more Russian and no more Iranian… Finish: long, with plenty of little lemons coming to joust with all that brine and those notes of paint. Comments: enough said.
SGP:463 - 90 points.

At that stage, you’re more or less obliged to turn to Jamaica…

Jamaica Blend 3 yo 2022/2026 (55.4%, Fadandel, new virgin oak, cask #RUM001, 390 bottles)

It is a blend of Clarendon and Long Pond, and the mere mention of ‘new virgin oak’ already makes us smile. If any distinguished linguists are kind enough to read Whiskyfun, then tell us, pleonasm or not pleonasm? Colour: very deep gold. Nose: this combination of pencil shavings, graphite and above all cedarwood, together with the varnished and briny side of the Jamaicans, works very well on the nose. A little coconut and peanut butter coat the whole. Goodness me, for the moment, it works. With water: we move towards new rubber, the Nike corner and a parcel from Temu. The worst of it is that we adore these aromas. Mouth (neat): you are drinking a pot of paint, loosened with varnish, sea water, almond milk, lemon juice and Ardbeg. That last part is important. With water: cedarwood and speculoos come in to seal the deal. Finish: long, with the arrival of orange marmalade with ginger and pepper. Salty aftertaste, as it should be, and candy sugar to finish. Comments: I love this little brute which, in the end, we managed to tame rather easily. Very high score to age ratio.
SGP:563 - 87 points.

Given that we had some Long Pond…

Long Pond 26 yo 1998/2024 (58.3%, The Whisky Blues, Jamaica, barrel, cask #10272, 143 bottles)

Parrots rule the roost on many rum bottles, and that is perfectly fine. Colour: straw. Nose: this appears to be a very gentle version, almost cosmetic, with a mixture of almond milk, face cream, a few ashes of resinous wood, and lanolin. The esters here are extremely civilised. With water: what is this, apple juice? Dry cider? Perhaps a marque such as CRV or LRM. Mouth (neat): well now, that is quite something, there is far more punch on the palate, ashes mingled with lemon juice, cider vinegar, concentrated lemon juice, petrol… With water: it is bitter almond that comes along to settle the matter. Finish: long and soft. Amaretti, Campari and limoncello. It could hardly be more Italian. Comments: beware, water makes it snap, best avoided, or just a drop.
SGP:452 - 86 points.

Monymusk 25 yo 2000/2025 (53.5%, Thompson Bros., Jamaica, 126 bottles)

Well, we can already guess what is going to happen, can we not. As they say on the curling rink, it ticks all the boxes. Colour: white wine. Nose: who had the wild idea of smoking a mixture of pineapple and lemon juice over beechwood? With water: and of adding carbolineum and anti-rust? Mouth (neat): it is so good that you could almost forgive the design of the label. You will retort that at least the label makes it clear that it is what is IN the bottle that truly matters. You are quite right. With water: it fans out in all directions, on medicinal notes, mineral notes, smoky notes and fruity notes. We could attempt to list them all, but we do not have all day, do we. Finish: not especially long, almost discreet, in any case possessed of impeccable politeness now. A very fine soft brine and Atlantic water. Comments: very limited impact from the cask, infinite charm from the distillate. In short, it evolves like a quality Islay.
SGP:463 - 90 points.

Inevitably, some Hampden…

HD 2019/2025 ‘HGML’ (65.8%, The Whisky Jury, Jamaica, The Ester Hunter Catch 6, refill barrel, cask #HG-ML-8, 231 bottles)

Okay, HGML means 1000 to 1300 grams of esters per HLPA, so that guarantees aromas of puncture repair glue and acetone. Colour: gold. Nose: puncture repair glue and acetone. No, seriously. Behind that, oysters perhaps not of the first freshness and a sort of ammoniated peach juice. I know this may sound highly improbable, even off-putting, but in reality it is very beautiful. With water: small glues and varnishes, a medium-sized IKEA warehouse, and all that. No, not the meatballs, oh no. Mouth (neat): a Tyson of rum. Forget it, we are not reckless, we add water immediately, given that our lawyer is still unreachable and probably on a golf course where ‘there is no signal’. Yeah, right. With water: carbon, ashes, pure lemon juice, varnish and glue. No compromise, no mercy. Finish: long and taut, very saline and petroleum-like. Comments: to think that some marques from Hampden are even more ester-driven. This one is already quite extreme, to be honest… But we love it.
SGP:364 - 90 points.

Right then, just one more, no point overdoing it (right)…

Hampden 41 yo 1983/2025 (55.1%, The Colours of Rum & Absolutely Nuts, Jamaica, This Time No Colours, Edition No.1)

This is what is terrifying about spirits such as Hampden, there is absolutely no guarantee that a very old version, such as this one, will be superior to a very young one, or even to a white simply rested with care for a few months in stainless steel. That is both the fate and the glory of the very greatest distillates. Colour: gold. Nose: let us be frank, at this stage it could be 10, 20, 30 or indeed 40 years old. This distillate defies time. Bitter almonds and varnish, sea water, lemon zests, linseed oil, shoe polish, olive oil. With water: add wafts of beeswax polish, old libraries, a brand-new vinyl record, let us say Bad Bunny… Mouth (neat): frankly, this is marvellous. Not a gram of fatigue, superlative bitters, though you must enjoy that style, and a mixture of olives, capers, samphire and ashes. With water: simply incredible. A cold soup of miso, chervil, parsley, oregano and parmesan. Indeed, parmesan. Finish: an incredible dryness, you might think of one of the very greatest finos. Comments: it would be extraordinary were Hampden to team up with Equipos or Tradicion to fino-ise some of these rums. But I do not wish to meddle in what is not my business.
SGP:373 - 92 points.

Check the index of all riums we've tasted