Dougdogs' Dusty Rum Bottles...

[dougdog]

I’ve recently become more interested in Rum…

A bottle of Sea Wynde, a post from Chuck (CL) titled “What Rum Do You Drink Neat?†and some influence from Tim (TMH), is all it took.

You can see more about my first Rum-Rhum vertical tasting HERE

I have found several bottles to get started with. But how did I know what to look for?...Well…The list of what to look for, came from everyone’s’ contribution to CL’s post…Thanks CL! (And all!)

The picture below shows a few of the first days’ huntin’, they are:

1. Green Label, Cadenhead bottling, 10yo, 46%, 750ml, Jamaica Rum, white wine color.

2. Green Label, Cadenhead bottling, 20yo, 46%, 750ml, Jamaica Rum, very dark color.

3. Pyrat, Superior Blanco, NAS, 40%, 750ml, Anguilla, British West Indies.

4. Pyrat XO Reserve, NAS, 40%, 750ml, hand numbered bottle 26909LW, Anguilla, British West Indies.

More to come… Stay tuned!

Dougdog

[gr8erdane]

Not sure about the others but I'll attest to the Pyrat XO as being very yummy. Last year after the holidays HiTime had a REALLY good sale on gift packs with two glasses for about half the normal price of the bottle alone. Keep tuned to them for any specials!

[dougdog]

While out rum hunting…I found these, some were on the list of rums in CL’s thread, others not.

Cruzin Rum, NAS, single barrel, 40%, 750ml, hand numbered bottle 59482 barrel 85197 UPC 89016, St. Croix, US virgin Islands, this was on the list.

Next are two bottles of Chauffe Coeur Rhum, NAS, 54%, agricole, 750ml, Martinique, France. Imported by Whyte & Whyte of Chicago/Elk Grove (usually remembered for the great single barrel bottlings of SMSW that grace my bunker and my palate these days) (Signatory did most, if not all of the Whyte & Whyte bottlings) these bottles date back pre 1994. The gold wax tops are brittle and there is no “pull tab†to aid in opening. I opened the taller wine bottle version, and found that it was not at all what one would expect rum to taste like. It has no evidence of barrel influence. (You can see from the color) It is youthful and exuberant, you can smell the juice dripping out of the cane while standing in the cane field, complex hints of citrus and tropical fruit were just behind the big “cane†profile that dominated the nose…they gave no clue to what was about to come . The ABV was not subtle or demure; it was very able to take your breath away if you were unsuspecting. The big “fresh cane†flavors were now most evident and burst onto the palate, engulfing your entire mouth. The Rhum had a thick and viscous texture for the best mouth feel of any rum/rhum tasted to date. Then after the initial blast, some soft, grassy, green vine notes and a reminder of the tropical fruits emerge that eventually lead you to a long warming “Tallisker like†finish. The legs were slow and irregular…incredible! (I wonder if this stuff was pot stilled?). At the end, while wiping out my glass for the next pour, I noticed how “hazy†my glass had become, Indicating the Rhum was not chill filtered…lots of fats in this one…It will be interesting to see how this one opens up in the bottle, now that it has had a breath of oxygen. This one was not on the list.

Next is a bottle of Gosling’s Black Seal, NAS, 40%, 750ml, Bermuda rum, UPC 21094, this one was on the list.

Last up is Appleton Estate, 12yo, 43%, 750ml, Jamaican rum, UPC 83960, this one was on the list.

[dougdog]

Dane, you wrote

Not sure about the others but I'll attest to the Pyrat XO as being very yummy.

I'll second that...as a matter of fact, The Pyrat XO was one of the tag-along items I took to Christmas dinner at a friends house this year...I poured it for the host, he liked it so well he begged to buy it...who was I to argue...I would have given it too him, but he just received a bottle of Cardhu 12yo SMSW from me for his Xmas gift...

BTW...another great rum that I just opened was the El Dorado 15yo, slightly different than the Pyrat, but just as "yummy"...that one was from a note/list on CL's thread, El Dorado got high marks there...no wonder!

Dougdog

[dougdog]

The last three bottles from this huntin' trip are:

Ron Antiguo, Santa Teresa 1796 Rum, Nas, 40%, 750ml, Venezuela, UPC 24223.

Next is Pusser's Navy Rum, NAS, 47.75%, 750ml, British Virgin Islands Rum, UPC 80686. (This is a very good rum with or without the low price point...higher priced rums should take note!)

Last is a cracker...El Dorado, special reserve 15yo, 40%, Demerara rum from Guyana. UPC 11629. I guess I'd have to say that this is what I think rum tastes like, rich and full bodied. It is thick and syrupy with no "off" notes. At 35 bucks it is real good rum...I still have a bunch to open and taste...but this one is leading the way right now. It is the yardstick by which all others will be judged!

All you guys who posted notes about El Dorado on CL's thread, "What Rum Do You Drink Neat"....well...Thanks!

dougdog

[T47]

Have you ever tried ZAYA GRAN RESERVA 12 YR RUM? It is from Guatemala. I am thinking of picking up a couple bottles. 1 to sample, and one to save for my 11 year old son, until he is an adult. I adopted him from Guatemala and think it would be an interesting gift for a 21st B-day?

[dougdog]

T47 you wrote:

Have you ever tried ZAYA GRAN RESERVA 12 YR RUM? It is from Guatemala. I am thinking of picking up a couple bottles. 1 to sample, and one to save for my 11 year old son, until he is an adult. I adopted him from Guatemala and think it would be an interesting gift for a 21st B-day?

I have tasted Zaya and found it interesting and different but it is not gonna make my top ten list probably ever...It is a grand idea to buy one for your son, for all the reasons you mentioned...so, do it!...Just buy yourself some other rum for same amount of money, in the meantime, and hopefully you can be there when he opens the Zaya on his 21st B-Day and enjoy it with him then...Kinda deferred tasting/gratification-father/son bonding experience.

best regards, dougdog

[T47]

you can be there when he opens the Zaya on his 21st B-Day and enjoy it with him then...Kinda deferred tasting/gratification-father/son bonding experience.

Good idea, and thanks for the advice...happy new year.

[Jake_Parrott]

Another (IMHO better) one from Guatemala is Zacapa Centenario.

[ratcheer]

I was going to ask you, last night, whether you had tried the Pusser's. But I was afraid it would be a stupid question, so I didn't.

A friend gave me a drink of it about 5 years ago and I thought it was wonderful. But my tastes don't seem to run with so many others' on this forum (e.g., everyone is enthralled with the wheaters, but I am not), so I kept quiet.

I'm glad to hear you like the Pusser's.

Tim

[dougdog]

I picked up these "Ron's" a couple days ago...finally got around to posting the finds!

Ron Anejo, Aniversario, NAS, 40%, 750ml, Venezuela Rum with a nice little leather bag (not shown)

Ron Zacapa Centenario, 23yo, 40%, 750ml, Guatemala Rum.

Dougdog

[dougdog]

These bottles were forgotten on the side…they were purchased a bout 5-7 days a go.

1. Macouba Rhum, 6yo, 50%, 750ml, Agricole, France.

2. Rhum Barbancourt, 8yo, 43%, 750m, Haitian rhum.

3. Ron Viejo De Caldas, 8yo, 40%, 750ml, Colombian rum.

4. Ron Matusalem, NAS, 40%, 750ml, Gran Reserva, Dominican Republic rum.

Sure are a lot of “Rons†in the rum world…aren’t there?

doudog

[TNbourbon]

...Sure are a lot of “Rons” in the rum world…aren’t there?...

That was probably a tongue-in-cheek statement -- but, in case not, ron is Spanish for rum.

[dougdog]

Tim,

I didn't know that until you posted it... My original comment was a knee-jerk observation, made in ignorance.

Had I known that...I wouldn't nave been clever enough to make it look tongue and cheek like it appears...actually, looking back, it’s pretty funny the way it unfolded!

Dougdog

[JeffRenner]

I’ve recently become more interested in Rum…

I love books and information almost as much as drinking - they seem to make the whole experience more enjoyable.

You might enjoy the book Classic Rum by Jane Arkell (Prion Books, 1999, ISBN 1-85375-298-3). It's not as good as the ones by Jim Murray in the same series (bourbon, Irish and blended Scotch), nor does it list some of the rums you've mentioned, including the delicious sounding Chauffe Coeur Rhum (also, sadly, not available in Michigan), but it's a good general reference. I see that it is available new and used on Amazon.

Jeff

[Frodo]

I've tried and really liked the Ron Matusalem 15yr. Subtle oak, really smooth and non of the molasses taste that I lothe in rum. I should say its a great pour at it's price .

[doubleblank]

Hey Dane.....They've already put this year's Pyrat XO Reserve gift pack on sale......$18.99 here in Houston. Includes a nice leather cigar case and a decent cutter.

PS Spec's puts most of the gift sets on "blow out" prices after New Years because "they take up too much space" according to their manager. IE, the Rare Breed in the wooden box/glass lid with two tumblers......$19.99....one day only. IOW, the gift sets are priced significantly below the regular shelf product.

Randy

[Gillman]

That's cheaper than on St. Martin and where it's made, Anguilla, 8 miles across from where I am sitting. Yesterday we travelled there and I sampled the XO, first on ice and then in a punch - just 8 miles away the punch is different than on St. Martin, it is the fruit-juice based version, with nutmeg sprinkled (like in Barbados). Anyway it is a very good rum. There are so many brands available in Saint Martin, I tried Trois-Rivieres, which has a cigar box-like taste, and many others, most from the French West Indies but many are from all around the Caribbean. I found the 8 year old Barbancourt one of the best, made in Haiti. Certainly Saint Martin is a rum haven, however, a quick bourbon question. I found here some Old Grandad, 80 proof, with an older-style label, at the bottom it states, "Distilled, bottled and aged in Franfort at DSP 14". No mention of Clermont. In the corners of the label there appears an "88", but no other indication of age of bottle. No mention of Beam or National Distillers, just Old Grandad Distilling Company, the usual trade name that is without mention of the corporate owner. Is this National Distillers whiskey? I find the taste much better than current Grandad, it has a raisiny-like fruitiness and while it has something of the rye dryness and flavour of the current one this DSP 14 is richer (seemingly), deeper and better balanced. Sorry to thread-highjack but I am using an old computer with unreliable access so maybe someone can set up the question in the right place. There is quite a bit of this Grandad available here.

Gary

Gary

[TNbourbon]

DSP-KY-14 IS Old Grand-Dad Distillery, and the raisiny/fruity flavor sounds like the real thing. I'd grab as much as I could, personally. Or, maybe I'd just drink it on the spot . Hope you're enjoying your vacation, Gary.

[kbuzbee]

DSP-KY-14?

Drink as much as you can.

Carry back your allowance.

Ship the rest!

By the way, enjoying a terrific rum I just picked up. Zaya. It is very sweet so I doubt I could have more than a couple but it's rich and full and just wonderful. Finishes with the same anisey/minty finish I get off a good rye. Unusual in a rum.

Ken

[Gillman]

Thanks Tim, wow I'll try to get more (the sources are other side of the Island).

Gary

[Jake_Parrott]

Yeah I just found a DSP-KY-14 OGD BIB (distilled 1982 bottled 1990)...1.75L!