The Whisky Jury - HD 1990
32yo / 53.1%
Region: Jamaica
Cask: Refill barrel
Scoring: 91/100
Nose: someone tried to glue together a dozen of overripe bananas. Then pickled olives, pineapple, sour cherry. The ester level is so high that you get a little buttermilk and citrus. Aniseed and light vanilla. Then back to acetone and new plastics, as well as pine needles and Hammerite. Geeky rum.
Mouth: quite assertive and thick, but again firmly un-fruity. It’s entirely on salty liquorice, a kitchen drawer full of dried herbs, pine needles, with hints of sea salt and camphory earth. Bitter almonds and some medicinal hints, like menthol. Later more pencil shavings. Then ink, black olive tapenade and faded hints of petrol. Not exactly easy sipping rum, but nicely complex.
Mouth: ester galore, attacking your tongue (and saliva). The acidity is quite extreme, with sour fruits like fermented pineapples, green bananas and a lot of citrus. Really sour, but quaffable. Then brine, white pepper, anise and hints of pencil shavings. Acetone too, even a whiff of vinegar. More plastics and glue, as well as oak spice and green olives in brine towards the end.
Finish: very long and rather more gentle now, folding down to sour citrus notes with green olives and some umami echoes in the background.
This is quite something. The ester level here is 1300-1400 g/hlpa, better known as the C<>H marque or Continental Hampden. Even that cannot be mentioned explicitly, or so it seems. Anyway, the ABV is well chosen, in my opinion, keeping this extreme ester bomb at a drinkable level. Whether this is too much or within limits, is your call.
TASTING NOTES, REVIEW & SCORING BY: WHISKYNOTES.BE
32yo / 53.1%
Region: Jamaica
Cask: Refill barrel
Scoring: 91/100
Nose: someone tried to glue together a dozen of overripe bananas. Then pickled olives, pineapple, sour cherry. The ester level is so high that you get a little buttermilk and citrus. Aniseed and light vanilla. Then back to acetone and new plastics, as well as pine needles and Hammerite. Geeky rum.
Mouth: quite assertive and thick, but again firmly un-fruity. It’s entirely on salty liquorice, a kitchen drawer full of dried herbs, pine needles, with hints of sea salt and camphory earth. Bitter almonds and some medicinal hints, like menthol. Later more pencil shavings. Then ink, black olive tapenade and faded hints of petrol. Not exactly easy sipping rum, but nicely complex.
Mouth: ester galore, attacking your tongue (and saliva). The acidity is quite extreme, with sour fruits like fermented pineapples, green bananas and a lot of citrus. Really sour, but quaffable. Then brine, white pepper, anise and hints of pencil shavings. Acetone too, even a whiff of vinegar. More plastics and glue, as well as oak spice and green olives in brine towards the end.
Finish: very long and rather more gentle now, folding down to sour citrus notes with green olives and some umami echoes in the background.
This is quite something. The ester level here is 1300-1400 g/hlpa, better known as the C<>H marque or Continental Hampden. Even that cannot be mentioned explicitly, or so it seems. Anyway, the ABV is well chosen, in my opinion, keeping this extreme ester bomb at a drinkable level. Whether this is too much or within limits, is your call.
TASTING NOTES, REVIEW & SCORING BY: WHISKYNOTES.BE