This richly crafted rum has been laid down in oak barrels for at least 21 years then artfully blended for you to savour and enjoy.
Tasting Notes Nose of mocha, toffee, tobacco, and dark spices. The mouth is velvety smooth with full body of tropical fruits, coffee, leather, and rich toffee. The Finish is nutty and smoky.
What Gary Says
Nose: Burnt demerara sugar, fruitcake soaked in rum, oak, toasted orange zest, baking spices, brown sugar, raisins and plums. Palate: Fruitcake with orange, apricot, coconut, raisins, bits of dark chocolate, medium roast coffee and honey. Finish: Moderately long and drying. Comments: Hands down my favorite of the three. A nice step up from the 15 yr, although I can’t say I like it 2.5x as much as the 15 yr. Like whisk(e)y, the price starts to get crazy with age for a number of reasons. And like whisk(e)y, I often find that jump in price doesn’t align with my enjoyment. Price aside, this one definitely stood out.
This rum has been laid down in oak barrels for at least 15 years then artfully blended using the Enmore and Diamond Coffey Stills, the Port Mourant Double Wooden Pot Still and the Versailles Single Wooden Pot Still – for you to savor and enjoy
Tasting Notes Full nose packed with dark coffee, candied orange, almonds, dark chocolate, pepper and rich vanilla. Beautifully rounded palate with a great spread of flavours: grilled tropical fruit with smooth oaky spice – silky, vibrant and moderately full-bodied.
What Gary Says
Nose: Similar to the 12 yr with more brown sugar and molasses, a bit more of an herbal quality (celery?) and roasted coconut husks. Palate: Bit more candied orange, along with bits of kiwi and green plantains in dark molasses, little pepper and oak. Finish: Short and dry, more bitter than the 12 yr with a wisp of pepper. Comments: I definitely prefer this over the 12 yr. The nose is a small step up, but the palate made a much bigger leap (almost to where I enjoy the nose and palate equally, but not quite). The finish isn’t much better.
This rum has been laid down in oak barrels for at least 12 years producing a rich and diverse spirit. Blended to perfection using a combination of the Enmore and Diamond Coffey Stills and the Port Mourant Double Wooden Pot Still.
Tasting Notes Lush tropical fruit and spice nose with hints of honey and dark sugar. The profile is round, mellow and full bodied with rich flavors of fruits and spice. The finish is delightful, elegant and dry.
NOTE: Back in April 2009, El Dorado 12 Yr was actually our 9th review (ever) on this site. My notes below are new, but including both Richard & Matt’s notes from that review below as well.
What Gary Says
Nose: Crème brûlée that’s extra toasty, floral notes, coconut, tobacco, subtle orange zest with bits of toffee. Palate: Sweet with a touch of candied orange, vanilla, a hint of cinnamon and a slightly sour oak note. Finish: Short and drying, with a slightly bitter molasses note. Comments: I’m not a rum aficionado. Richard had bequeathed a sample set from El Dorado which included the 12 yr, 15 yr, and 21 yr for site review – so I assumed (yeah, I know what it means) that it hadn’t been reviewed. It wasn’t until I was putting together the post that I realized the boys had review this over 10 yrs ago. We all had a bit of a different take on this one, although like them I found the nose to stand out while the palate was highly ordinary (and agree with Richard – I don’t buy to just smell!) I will say this isn’t as syrupy sweet as some other rums, which I appreciate.
Rating: Average
What Matt says:
Nose: It has your typical rum notes (vanilla, caramelized sugar), but there are also some botanicals in there. It is almost like a craft gin married with a somewhat typical rum. Palate: Vanilla, the sugar moves a little toward burnt from the nicely caramelized nose, there is also an oak component. Finish: Here the sugar moves all the way to burnt with a long alcoholic burn. Comments: Rum has never been my favorite alcoholic beverage. In my youth, I had too many encounters with inferior rums like Captain Morgan or Bacardi. I did not really appreciate rum until I spent some time in the Caribbean, where rum is a part of the culture. I discovered that rum can be really good. Indeed, rum is starting to become part of the craft distillation movement. This means that rum will be increasingly drinkable as a stand-alone. This rum lives up to those standards. This means that it holds up to being served neat. However, compared to other craft rums, this lacks a little nuance on the palate. The palate just does not deliver what the nose promised. This makes the rating a little difficult. By the standards of every rum on the market, I would say that it stands out, but compared to craft rums it is only average. In fact, I would recommend Appleton’s, a widely available macro-rum, above this one.
Rating: Average
What Richard says:
Nose: Burnt caramel, vanilla, candied apricots, honey-dipped oranges, a hint of mint, floral notes of lavender and…rose? Very, very sweet. You can almost taste the sugar cane through the nose. Palate: All sugar and alcohol. As lovely as the nose was, the palate is very two dimensional. Finish: Heavy on the alcohol. It kind of finishes like a strong cough syrup. Comments: I am admittedly not the most well versed rum drinker. That said, this stands out against your baseline Bacardi and Captain Morgan. That palate and finish aren’t noteworthy but nose is exceptional. But we buy it to drink it not to smell it.
45% ABV $50 Website We would like to thank Spirit Works Distillery and Verdant PR & Marketing for sending us a sample to review.
What the Distillery Says
Meticulously pot distilled, each batch of our Four Grain Straight Bourbon Whiskey is the proprietary master blend of our two Bourbon formulas. Featuring 60% corn with wheat, rye, and barley in the mash bills, our grains are all organic and the corn and wheat are California grown. Mashed, fermented, distilled and aged on-site by female distilling team this Bourbon features impressive palate complexity from each of the four grains. Smooth and welcoming in any cocktail our Bourbon is also especially delicious sipped neat.
45% ABV or 90 Proof Aged a minimum of four years 53-Gallon, New American Charred Oak Barrels Color of Amber Honey
Nose: Honeysuckle, toasted sugar, and stone fruit Palate: Chicory, brown butter, and treacle Finish: Roasted savory cooking spices
What Gary Says
Nose: Light vanilla, cherry blossoms, honey, chamomile tea, toasted oak and a hint of berries. Palate: Creamy and rounded mouthfeel, vanilla wafers atop black cherry ice cream, almonds, subtle pepper with cinnamon and a hint of nutmeg. Finish: Short to moderate in length, wet with a nutty spice note. Comments: The pot still influence comes across in the mouthfeel, which I appreciate. Also glad that they matured this at least four years in full size barrels, although it still tastes fairly young. Many four year old bourbons from the larger distilleries in Kentucky will come from the higher tiers of the rickhouse, where they’re getting significantly more ‘action’ from the barrel during that time (and where they really can’t go a LONG time without it becoming a oaky, tannin-laden mess). I point this out because if you’re sitting down to compare this to one of those, they’ll be quite different – which isn’t a bad thing. I’d love to try this with more age on it (and maybe a higher proof), as I expect the climate in California with less extremes would allow the spirit to mature for a long time before becoming overly oaked. I didn’t find anything objectionable about this whiskey.
49.3% ABV $100 Website We would like to thank Luxco and Common Ground PR for sending us samples to review.
What the Blender Says
In its sixth year, the Blood Oath ultra-premium bourbon series continues to see unique expressions – Blood Oath Pact No. 6 launches this spring. The series – a creation of Lux Row Distillers’ Head Distiller and Master Blender John Rempe – combines three selected bourbons, expertly blended for a distinctive whiskey.
For Pact No. 6, Rempe chose a 14-year ryed bourbon with notes of oak and leather, melded with an 8-year warm toasty ryed bourbon and complemented them with a 7-year ryed bourbon rested in cognac casks. The memorable combination brings caramel notes and hints of spice, along extra flavor from the cognac barrels.
“This particular pact is special in that the cognac barrels added some sweetness and a slight fruity, brandy flavor to the bourbon, creating an amazing taste profile,” says Rempe. “When selecting these bourbons, I wanted to see how these flavors meshed together and I have to say the result was spectacular.”
As with all the other expressions, Pact No. 6 is a limited edition, never to be made again, with only 17,000 cases being produced and sold globally. This expression continues with the tradition of a 98.6 proof and packaged in an intricate wooden display box, with the 750ml bottle being topped with a natural cork and emblazoned with John Rempe’s signature. The suggested retail price is $99.99.
“The Blood Oath series launched in 2015 and it’s hard to believe we have already created more than half a decade of Pacts,” adds Rempe. “I’m honored to see consumers searching for the new release every year and get as excited as I am when a new Pact hits the shelves,” adds Rempe.
TASTING NOTES APPEARANCE: Deep dark amber with long legs. AROMA: Caramel, butterscotch, brandy and vanilla. PALATE: Caramel, butterscotch, brandy and vanilla. FINISH: Lingering spice and nutty.
What Gary Says
Nose: Rich coffee cake with vanilla butter-cream frosting, plums, dates, burnt caramel, charred oak, nutmeg with a hint of cinnamon. Palate: Rich mouthfeel, caramel, butterscotch, toffee, fruity with berries and oranges, cinnamon, nutmeg, a hint of clove with dark chocolate. Finish: Moderately long and drying with pecans, cocoa, and baking spices. Comments: This is another really lovely, rich and luscious whiskey. The cognac finishing is well done – giving it a layered influence and not overbearing. A bit of water brings out more notes of chocolate .
