We’re having a rum session once more, specializing in the Colors of Rum, the rum venture from Wealth Options.
They have a tendency to launch large batches with all types of distilleries from totally different nations directly. Right here’s what we’ll do: we’ll have three pairs. Two Uitvlugt rums (Guyana), two Hampden rums (Jamaica) and two Foursquare rums (Barbados).
Uitvlugt 31 yo 1990 (48,4%, The Colors of Rum 2022, Version n°4, ex-rum cask #18, 161 btl.)
Nostril: dusty wooden, clay and lightweight vegetal notes. Burnt thyme and caraway seeds. Then barely extra funky notes of plasticine, gasoline and freshly painted steel. A citrusy word beneath. Moist autumn leaves too. It’s a reasonably elegant profile, with the funky aspect completely rounded off.
Mouth: now extra highly effective than I anticipated. I’m getting black olives, candy lemons, refined brine, bitter almonds and ginger cake. Liquorice and tar as nicely, with a dose of nutmeg and pepper rising stronger, however once more it’s not as edgy because it sounds. In a while citrusy notes and suble stewed orchard fruits make it rounder.
End: medium lengthy, delicate and oily, with salted fruits, bitter almond and a steely edge.
A really elegant Uitvlugt, in a extremely developed dry fashion. There are just a few unusual touches, including complexity. Actually good. Nonetheless out there from Colors of Rum or Grasp of Malt for example.
Uitvlugt 32 yo 1989 (64,1%, The Colors of Rum 2022, Version n°3, ex-whisky cask #18, 222 btl.)
Nostril: deeper and richer. Burnt caramel stands out, adopted by candy pineapple, basic oil paint and previous varnish. Petroly caramel. Recent Granny Smith but in addition chocolate and tapenade. Hints of tobacco as nicely.
Mouth: identical mixture of brighter notes (lemons, inexperienced fruits) with caramel, firmly salty liquorice and tarry notes. Sturdy and undoubtedly extra rustic than the 1990. Resins and bitter natural notes after some time. Then some floor espresso and charred wooden. Even a touch of antiseptics. Simply flashes of barbecued pineapple within the background.
End: lengthy, on tarry notes, liquorice, saline notes and natural bitters.
Fairly a heavy fashion Uitvlugt, very wealthy however with a dose of astringency as nicely. Actually good however a type of ‘hammer’ spirit. It makes me admire the well-dosed steadiness of the 1990 much more. Accessible from Colors of Rum or The Whisky Barrel amongst others. Rating: 89/100
HD 29 yo 1992 (58,1%, The Colors of Rum 2022, Version n°5, ex-rum cask #9, 250 btl.)
Nostril: these pretty overripe fruits at first. Fermenting pineapple and banana, with spiced orange, inexperienced sugarcane in addition to some gummy bears, vanilla and nail polish remover. Minty freshness. Thai basil leaves. Hints of cod liver oil and natural tea. Glorious.
Mouth: the banana / pineapple combo continues to be there, however the hints of salted liquorice, tar and black olives are greater. Then some mango, leathery dryness and thyme. A faint trace of rubber. Anchovies and resinous notes in the long run.
End: lengthy and drying, with salty notes, olives and liquorice.
Spectacular Hampden, with a lot of salty notes, funky fruits and sheer energy. A funk phenomenon. Solely from Grasp of Malt so far as I can inform. Rating: 92/100
HD 29 yo 1992 (58,2%, The Colors of Rum 2022, Version n°4, ex-rum cask #6, 251 btl.)
Nostril: considerably rounder and hotter, with extra vanilla up entrance. Much less fruity notes maybe, with a slight bias in the direction of banana now, and fewer pineapple. Then natural notes, a bit glue, inexperienced olives and a touch of candied ginger.
Mouth: now a bit extra grassy and rubbery. A stunning mixture of acidity, mustardy astringency and tarry dryness. Then walnuts, olives, banana skins and anchovies give it this typical tannin-like dry impact. A wholesome dose of grippy oak spice too. Getting fairly natural in the direction of the top.
End: lengthy and drying, with salty notes, olives and liquorice.
It’s exhausting to choose a favorite. This one is ever extra intense, with a lot of natural notes and fewer of the fruity / minty freshness of cask #9. It has all of the qualities of an important Hampden, simply the fruits aren’t as distinguished as we’d like. Rating: 91/100
Foursquare 22 yo 1999 (61%, The Colors of Rum 2022, Version n°14, American oak cask #16, 210 btl.)
Nostril: fairly fruity (plums, baked pears) and comparatively delicate compared with the earlier rums. A raisin sweetness behind it, in addition to some toffee and brown sugar. Darkish tea and wee natural notes.
Mouth: candy bananas with honey and oak spice (cinnamon, nutmeg, pepper). Then some yellow apple. Additionally caramelized popcorn, vanilla and leather-based. In reality this jogs my memory of grain whisky of comparable age, perhaps as a result of there’s most column nonetheless spirit in right here?
End: medium, barely spirity, with drier leafy notes and natural touches because it fades.
This Foursquare has a fairly whisky-like profile – column nonetheless whisky. It’s rounded, not massively complicated, in addition to influenced by plain American oak. Accessible from Colors of Rum or The Whisky Barrel for example. Rating: 84/100
Foursquare 22 yo 1999 (61,9%, The Colors of Rum 2022, Version n°13, ex-rum cask #13, 228 btl.)
Nostril: much less candy than the opposite cask, extra slim as nicely. There are some dry wooden shavings and leather-based. Spiced notes and a touch of polished steel. Once more there’s a whisky-like aspect.
Mouth: meh. This appears slim, fairly woody and spirity. I’m getting a lighter fashion of spirit, overtaken by some alcohol burn, oak spice and liquorice. Cloves and mentholated freshness.
End: lengthy and drying, on oak spice. Some warmth and pepper.
We had related Foursquare bottlings from the Colors of Rum collection, however none of them made an enormous impression. A little bit of an outsider on this rum session. Accessible from Colors of Rum direct. Rating: 82/100
