Foursquare Distillery 14yo Barbados Rum, 70 cl

Product Information

The aroma originally is very muted, distant, dominated by a focused sweet note - candied apples, marmalade, canned pumpkin, after adding a bit of water (the rum is bottled at 48 percent), the aroma slowly unfolds with more acrid, acidic notes of soft wood. V súčasnosti vyrába rumy Doorly’s pálenica Foursquare a sú najdôležitejšími z celej produkcie. Tú postavil v roku 1996 sir David Seale a dnes ju riadi jeho syn Richard. V konkurenčnom boji sa drží autenticity, takže do rumov nepridáva cukor (doslova 0 g/l), umelé aditíva ani arómy. It has an almost charred note to it. Little bursts of vanilla and some ginger fade in an out of the mix. It’s not the most complex Foursquare nose I have had recently but it has a nice balance and the notes that are present are nicely done.

Doorlys 14 Year Old Rum is a premium Barbados rum. It is produced at the Foursquare Distillery and is the oldest permanent rum in their range. It is Single Blended Rum, a blend of pot and column still rum that have been aged in ex-Bourbon and ex-Madeira Cask. This sounds like a lot, sure, but then, I tend to give Doorly’s more attention than most, precisely because thus far I’ve been less than impressed with the line. When the dust finally settles and the tally is made on the 14 YO, I consider this a very good sipping rum for us proles and the one Doorly’s I have no problem recommending to anyone, without resorting to a lazy and overworked references to bourbon or Pappy that just chases away those who have no interest in either. In fact, what this reminds me of quite closely is the ECS Criterion. After waiting a while for Doorly’s Aged 12 Years to be available outside of Barbados another new Doorly’s release wasn’t anticipated by myself. I was quite surprised when Doorly’s Fine Old Barbados Rum Aged 14 Years was announced.

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Pri prvej degustácii som pil s kamarátom celú „postupku“ Doorly’s rumov – 5, 8, XO, 12 a na koniec 14-ročný. Prestávky nám vyplnilo Daiquiri (bol to veselý večer). Takže chuťové poháriky boli riadne rozohriate a na 48% silu pripravené (už Doorly’s XO a 12 sú 43% destiláty). Pred ochutnávaním silnejších rumov rozhodne odporúčam najprv pripraviť telo niečím slabším.

Once we start tasting the thing, the palate is where the battle is joined. Flavours vie for dominance – brine and olives and some nail polish duke it out with sweeter fruity notes of ripe red apples, pears and peaches in syrup, and very ripe dark cherries. On the flanks the molasses, toasted coconut and musky port-infused tobacco are having their own separate argument with a miso soup and kimchi, but the key takeaway is that when all is considered together, the whole palate is well-balanced between sweet, salt and sour. And the finish concludes this nicely by closing off the show with a spicy, long, dry, fruity and aromatic exhalation that somehow doesn’t give any side a win but shows off the best part of all of them. Distilled at a small family-run distillery that makes some of the most popular rums in Barbados, every bottle of Foursquare Spiced Rum is a hand-crafted blend of fresh nutmeg, cinnamon, ginger and the distiller’s art. Refreshingly smooth on ice, Foursquare Spiced doesn’t contain the added sugar cane syrup commonly found in many other spiced rums. Foursquare Spiced Rum is an aged rum with hints of cinnamon, vanilla and nutmeg gently blended in at the distillery. The actual recipe is a family secret passed down through five generations. It is bottled in Hand Crafted European glass bottles with a hand dipped wax seal. The Rum heralds from Barbados – the island where rum was born.

Doorly’s Fine Old Barbados Rum Aged 14 Years is as the name suggest a very fine rum. For most other producers this would be the jewel in the crown. There best efforts. for Foursquare it’s just another great rum.

Further sips seem to temper the more bitter and woody notes. More fruitiness becomes apparent. Once the palate adjusts the rum has a much better balance than the initial sip might lead you to believe. The extra ABV means this is a rum worth sitting down and spending some time with. Doorly’s XO you can almost swig straight from the bottle – you don’t want to do that with this. Sit down with it and appreciate it in small sips.

#Product Details#

Differences from the rest of the Doorly’s range come with the new box (as pictured) which is an improvement on the box used for the Doorly’s 12. The box can now act as a total cover for the rum but can also be used to present the rum. Should you wish to do such a thing. When all is said and done this is another beautifully balanced rum – there is enough variety in all the Foursquare releases to recommend purchasing at least one bottle of everything they put out. So I bought just one bottle when I arrived to the store. When I got it home, I was pleasantly surprised to find no damn bourbon notes. Yes, some wood notes are there, but not enough to be repulsive to me. Only one other Bajan rum appeals to me more, which is the Mount Gay 1703 Master Select at three times the price. I will take this bargain from Foursquare any day over their ECS rums!!! A well deserved 9 rating from me!