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Posts Tagged ‘Rum Review’

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Review: Plantation Barbados 2000 (Old Reserve Rum)

Posted by Arctic Wolf on June 26, 2011

The Plantation Barbados Old Reserve 2000 is a Bajan rum blend distilled from both column and traditional pot stills, aged in a combination of bourbon and sherry casks. The rum was transported from Barbados to France by Cognac Ferrand to be placed in used Cognac casks to enhance the rum before it is bottled as part of Cognac Ferrand’s growing line-up of Plantation Rum.

Cognac Ferrand has long had a special relationship with a variety of Caribbean rum producers. This relationship is based upon the rum producer’s need for quality oak casks to age their rum. Based upon this relationship, Cognac Ferrand is able to acquire certain old and unique batches of rum from various Caribbean sources, which they brought back to France to finish in their own Cognac Casks.

I was given eight sample bottles, each 200 ml in size, which represent a good portion of the Plantation Rum line-up. The Plantation Barbados Old Reserve 2000 is the second of these sample bottles which I have chosen to review here on my blog. (My first Review was the Plantation Granada 1998)

Here is an excerpt from my review:

“…The rum leads out with caramel and molasses, musty leather, tobacco, and a muted orange peel in the mouth. These four flavours play together nicely demonstrating not only a nice richness of flavour, but also a nice balance of flavour…”

You may read the full review here:

Review: Plantation Barbados 2000 (Old Reserve Rum)

Please enjoy the review!

Posted in Dark Rums, Rum, Rum Reviews | Tagged: , , , , | Comments Off on Review: Plantation Barbados 2000 (Old Reserve Rum)

Review: Angostura Royal Oak Select Rum

Posted by Arctic Wolf on June 21, 2011

Today I am re-posting another of my very early reviews. As with most of my early reviews, the commentary in the review is rather fragmentary; but (and this is the saving grace for the review) it is also honest. I wasn’t especially good at descriptors in my earliest reviews, but I was good at getting across what I liked. And as you read the review you will see that this is a rum I liked.  The review is somewhat nostalgic and for good reason. you see I discovered this rum on my honeymoon more than 20 tears ago. ….

More than twenty years ago, my wife and I spent three weeks in Tobago at the Turtle Beach Resort. At the time, I was a whisky drinker, and not a fan of rum at all. However, as the saying goes, when in Rome…

So at the hotel and on the beach I drank rum, and I discovered that I liked it. What they were serving me was a locally produced rum, and although more than 20 years have passed I do believe it was a product which was very reminiscent of Angostura Royal Oak Select. I went back to Canada with two 40 ounce bottles; but alas, they are long gone. I went back to drinking whisky, as the rums available in my locale just did not measure up. It was not until the rum explosion in my locale that my palate for rum was rekindled. Flor de Cana, Ron Matusalem, and El Dorado rums have helped to bring me back in the fold.

Then recently, I found 3 bottles of Royal Oak Select covered in dust in a local liquor store. The proprietor said they were new stock, the dust said otherwise, but I bought all three to see if that rum still tasted as good as 20 years ago.

Here is an excerpt from the resulting review:

“…The Royal Oak rum  has a nice sweet caramel flavour. If indeed caramel has been added it does not bother me. Taste is what counts and this tastes nice. I can taste that hint of coconut I smelled in the glass and a mellow spiciness. Everything is light, relaxed and this is an easy-going rum…”

You may read the full review here:

Review: Angostura Royal Oak Select Rum

Please enjoy this very early review of mine!

Posted in Cocktails & Recipes, Dark Rums, Rum, Rum Reviews | Tagged: , , , , , | Comments Off on Review: Angostura Royal Oak Select Rum

Review: Matusalem Gran Reserva (Solera 15 Blender)

Posted by Arctic Wolf on June 14, 2011

It’s Tuesday again, and for the past six weeks I have been re-posting my earliest reviews every Tuesday for the sake of my newer readers who may have missed them. This week I am re-posting my very early review for Ron Matusalem Gran Reserva Rum. Like most of my earliest reviews this one is terse and to the point. I was sorely tempted to rewrite it to give the review more form and substance; but other fixing a few typos and adding a touch of clarification,  I decided to leave it as it is. The review still gets the main point across, and that point is that this is a fine rum!

The Matusalem Gran Reserva is a “Solera Blended” rum which means that the red “Solera 15 Blender” stamp on the bottle does not indicate the youngest rum in the blend, rather it denotes the age of the oldest rum in the blend. (I believe an argument can be put forth that a teensy tiny fraction of the rum may be older; but, the relative amount of super aged rum in the blend is so small that to try to include its age in any sort of statement would be misleading.)

The Ron Matusalem Website does a pretty good job of describing the solera method and if you are interested you should give it a little read. However if you are more interested in my early review, then perhaps I should provide you with an excerpt:

“… This is very good;  mellow vanilla and caramel are the dominant flavours.  In fact mellow is the best description for this rum. It is very smooth which makes this a good rum to drink straight. There are no bitter notes or other flaws in the flavour profile, and on days when I feel like a more mellow drink this really hits the spot…”

You may read the full review here:

Review: Matusalem Gran Reserva (Solera 15 Blender)

Please enjoy the review!

Posted in Cocktails & Recipes, Dark Rums, Rum, Rum Reviews | Tagged: , , , , | Comments Off on Review: Matusalem Gran Reserva (Solera 15 Blender)

Review: Old Port Deluxe Rum

Posted by Arctic Wolf on June 7, 2011

Old Port Deluxe Rum is distilled and aged at Amrut’s facility in Bangalore India from Indian sugar cane. This cane has a unique and exotic taste all its own making this a truly different taste experience for a ‘Western’ palate like mine.  My original review was published in October of 2009 very shortly after I opened my website. As with all of my early reviews it is terse and to the point. Some persons have told me confidentially that they enjoyed my early reviews which, although they were not as professionally written as my current reviews, seemed to reflect a certain enthusiasm and passion.  I guess I will let you see for your self.

Here is an excerpt from my very first review of a rum produced in India:

“…I can taste real complexity here. Touches of soy sauce, caramel, cinnamon and Brazil nuts. Very Complex but there is a slight touch of bitterness just hiding around the corner. Sometimes I get it and sometimes I don’t. This easily ranks up in texture and richness with the best rums I have tasted but I will warn you that it is a very different sort of taste….”

Please enjoy this early review re-posted for those who may have missed it.

Review:  Old Port Deluxe Rum

If you are interested in rums from India then this review may also be of interest to you:

Review: McDowell’s No. 1 Celebration Rum

Enjoy the reviews!

Posted in Cocktails & Recipes, Dark Rums, Rum, Rum Reviews | Tagged: , , , , , | Comments Off on Review: Old Port Deluxe Rum

Review: Panama Red 108 Overproof Rum

Posted by Arctic Wolf on June 5, 2011

Panama Red 108 is a Panamanian rum brought to you by PANAMONTE BRANDS. The rum is handcrafted by the creator of Zafra Master Reserve, Master Blender, Francisco “Don Pancho” Fernandez. It is produced from the sugar cane that grew in Las Cabras de Pese, the same region where the Distillery is located. Although the rum is stated as overproof, Don Pancho has assured me that the rum will feel much smoother in the mouth than a typical overproof rum. It has as its base, a 5 year molasses based rum which is aged in used Bourbon casks at the distillery warehouse in Pese.

There is a bit of a romantic story behind the name of this Rum and it was related to me via email by the Mr. Carlos E. Esquivel G., the Executive Director of PILSA (A Rum distillery and production company, specializing in Aged Rums, and Rum related products in Panama and South America). With his permission, I have reproduced the story here on my website and you may access it through a link in the review.

Here is an excerpt from my review:

“…A rum with 54 per cent alcohol strength by volume packs quite a punch!  And that punch is full of concentrated flavours. These flavours practically leap into the mouth out of the glass. Sweet flavours of caramel candy take the lead with more pungent flavours of tobacco and leather riding the coat-tails….”

You may of course read the full review here:

Review: Panama Red 108

Posted in Cocktails & Recipes, Dark Rums, Overproof Rum, Rum, Rum Reviews | Tagged: , , , , , | Comments Off on Review: Panama Red 108 Overproof Rum

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