The Duchess has its official release of one of the oldest Caroni rums ever to come out, a 31 year old rarity.
For this historic release, independent bottler The Duchess has chosen one of the most curious sea creatures as its spirit animal, the Nautilus. This sea creature is part of the same family as squids and cuttlefish, but stands out because of its unique shell, a shell divided into several chambers, symbolizing the many layers and hidden depths of this wonderful Rum.
Another reason why the Nautilus is chosen, is because it is an absolute relic. For the past 500 million years the Nautilus has remained much the same and the fossils from back then are one of the most iconic. Much like the closed distillery Caroni, the Nautilus is something from the past, which remains with us until this day.
TASTING NOTES
When drinking a Caroni Rum it already feels like a special occasion. This rare rum is practically the Karuizawa or Port Ellen among the Rum. The distillery closed back in 2002 and the number of available casks becomes smaller each year. This is amongst the oldest Caronis to have been bottled, and certainly has everything this distillery is famous for.
Nose: A nose displaying high esters, along with the hints of vanilla and that can be expected accompanied by some hints of butter. Then the real character of Caroni comes forward. Hints of over ripe fruit like bananas and mangoes, with the whiff of the true Caroni funkiness, the recognizable burnt rubber.
Taste: The taste enters in force without being overwhelming. Bursting with ripe fruits such as pear, mango and banana, along with touches of nuts and an earthy character that slowly evolve to the subtle hints of rubber. After breathing for a while the rum gets a more savory character with green olives and more focus to the funkiness.
Finish: The finish stands on its own with a more floral touch. The hints of ripe fruit slowly develop to yellow fruits and stone fruits like apricots and peaches.
Balance and complexity: A smooth and well-balanced rum indeed. Despite the power of the flavors, this rum feels extremely velvety in the mouth. There is an amazing balance between the fruit, funky rubber notes and floral finish, absolutely a high 90s in our book!
Malt Fascination (92)
Sip:
The palate arrives with not too much oomph, which I prefer to most of these 60+% ABV rums. It does have a bit of chili heat after a couple of seconds, and brings a bit more brown sugar sweetness than the nose did. There is a lot of oak, some sugar cane and dark chocolate. A bit of a raw dough funkiness too.
Swallow:
The finish is a bit more dry than the palate was, and a bit more sugar-cane-green as well. Complex with oak, cane, green bananas, cactus, lime. A lot is happening here.
Holy crap this is awesome! It’s not overly fierce, even as a first dram, which makes it stand out even more. I think a lot of rum is being bottled at a too high ABV to be thoroughly enjoyable. This one does not have that problem in the slightest!
The great ABV also allows a lot of flavors to come forward and not be obscured by heat and a burning sensation. That makes for huge complexity and a lot of gorgeous flavors to come forward. The combination of a slight sweetness, with oak and spices just works awesomely, and the funkiness is definitely there, but not all-encompassing.
Serge Valentin (89)
All casks are #6, which is quite intriguing. Is it some kind of infinite finish? Colour: gold. Nose: it's a gentle one, reminiscent of scones, muffins, vanilla cake, nougat, and polenta. This doesn't scream 'Caroni,' I agree, but even this softer side of Caroni is appealing. I mean, was appealing. With water: truly delightful, with notes of hay, a bit of spent engine oil, lanoline, and teak oil… Mouth (neat): indeed, it's all very gentle, but that doesn't stop a bit of nail varnish from making an appearance. Otherwise, we find lemon syrup and olive oil, which is just perfect. By the way, 31 years is quite an age for such a rum. With water: we've found a lovely balance. Imagine truffle olive oil with a bit of tar and rubber, then some grey pepper. That said, our Italian friends say it's stupid (stupido) to put truffles in olive oil, and that it's much better to use more neutral oils. As usual, they're right, but that doesn't stop every trader in the market from selling truffle olive oil. Okay, I digress… Finish: quite long, and amusingly, the Caroni markers assert themselves rather more, especially petrol and coal tar. Comments: one of the very best 'lighter' Caronis I've tasted in recent times. See you for more.
