I have a bit of a thing where I make separate wish lists of all my wants: I have a wine wish list, a whisky wish list and among many many others, I keep a rum wish list. Normally my process of buying is to wait for something to come on sale, buy it and cross it off before promptly slumping in my chair in the quiet satisfaction of consumerism. This week I broke my trend as I just couldn't wait for this bottle: R L Seale's 10 year old Barbados Rum.Firstly, the bottle is wonderful, it's unique, quirky, cool and looks ever so slightly tipsy, and I like to be able to relate to my drink (er, drink responsibly children). An added bonus of the shape with the long neck makes the bottle feel really comfortable in your hand, you could swig from this like the pirate you wish you were: this shape is a nod to the leather bottles real pirates would have drunk their grog from. History as well as booze: double trouble.
On the nose there are waves of caramel, butterscotch, vanilla and nuts. This is far flung from many of the tropical fruit smelling rums and in fact there is little to differentiate it on the nose from some single malt whiskies (but not Islay of course... never Islay...).
On the palate it is a bit sweeter than I was perhaps expecting as the nose had led my mind in another direction. However, this is a stunning rum, fully of body, whilst being very smooth, rounded and most importantly, sip-able. There are sweet spice notes, with caramel, vanilla, some green apple perhaps and other dried fruits. There is a nice amount of complexity here, but nothing too over the top.
This is a top, top quality rum, and it can be drunk straight or mixed to great effect. Unfortunately, the quality is reflected in the price with the rum costing £34.45 from The Whisky Exchange, but I assure you that you won't be disappointed with this - I mean, let's face it, you already want this bottle on your shelf.
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