Bajan Rum Battle! Tasting A Trio Of Barbados Port Cask-Finished Rums
From left: Mount Gay’s Master Blender Collection: The Port Cask Expression; Holmes Cay’s Barbados 2009 Port Cask; and Foursquare’s Mark XIV “Détente.” (Photo by me)
It seemed like pretty long odds that three newly released rums from Barbados, all finished in port casks, would make their debut within several weeks of each other. But that’s what happened. And the world, or at least the part of the world that loves to drink rum, is a better place for it.
But the burning question remains — if you could only take one of these babies home with you, which one would it be? It was time for a Port Cask Death Match, a Bajan Battle, a Raucous Rumfest, a… well, you get the point. My wife and I set ‘em up, poured ‘em out, and sipped and ruminated. Just remember, there are no losers in this bunch! But just because everyone gets a participation trophy, we still held forth on which one we liked best. We started off with….
MOUNT GAY MASTER BLENDER COLLECTION: THE PORT CASK EXPRESSION (55% ABV, $175). Mount Gay has been doing its rummy thing since 1703, making it the oldest rum distillery in the world. But that doesn’t mean the brand stands still. In recent years, first with the now-retired Allan Smith and now with Trudiann Branker, they’ve been letting the master blender run wild and, once a year, do something a little different. The results get released in pricey limited editions — I’m still zealously hoarding my bottle of XO Peat Smoke from a couple of years ago. This is Branker’s second Master Blender Collection release, and it’s a beauty. The blend consists of a column distillate aged for five years entirely in Tawny port casks; and a pot still rum aged for 14 years in American whiskey barrels (I presume bourbon) and one year in Tawny port casks. The nose is, surprisingly, heavy on baking spices and brown sugar but light on the fruitiness I’d expect from the port. The port notes do come on strong on the palate — lots of rich dark fruit and luscious chocolate, along with a fair amount of oak. It’s a bit spicy on the finish, which isn’t a huge surprise given that it’s bottled at cask strength. but it’s not detrimental, meaning you don’t need to add water here. It’s delicious. But is it worth $175? I suppose it depends on how fat your wallet is. But if the opportunity arises to taste it, don’t pass it up.
Next up was HOLMES CAY’s BARBADOS 2009 PORT CASK (56% ABV, $129). I love this company. They launched in 2018 with the mission of sourcing and bottling amazing rums from all over the globe, a cask or two at a time. They’re pretty much single-handedly responsible for my obsession with Fiji rum, and they’ve also bottled fantastic stuff from Guyana, Belize, and Jamaica, to name a few. This is their second Bajan release — both were sourced from the legendary Foursquare distillery, one of the most acclaimed rum distilleries in the world. This one was aged in ex-bourbon casks for eight years in Barbados and two years in the UK before hopping across the pond to New York State, where it spent a year in port casks before being bottled at cask strength. Quite the jet setter, this one!
The nose is interesting — bready, slightly musty, with light oak getting in there as well. Definitely intriguing. On the tongue, I was surprised at how dry it is for a port cask finish. The rounded fruit notes I was expecting tasted more like sherry — nutty, a bit tart, and rather oaky. If I’d had to guess, I would have assumed that it was a sherry cask finish. A few more Kentucky chews did reveal some darker port notes peeking out here and there. The finish is lingering and surprisingly gentle for a cask-strength rum. I enjoyed it but not quite as much as the Mount Gay; my wife said, “It’s not as interesting as the other one.” I wouldn’t pass up a glass, but shelling out the bucks for a bottle, I’d go with their Fiji 2004 or Belize 2005 bottlings first.
Our final Barbadian beauty was another from the Foursquare distillery, this one bottled by the Foursquare folks themselves. FOURSQUARE MARK XIV DETENTE (51% ABV, $75), the latest in their “Exceptional Cask” series, is a blend of two blends — both consisting of pot still and column still rums, one aged for 10 years in ex-bourbon barrels, the other aged for four years in ex-bourbon and six years in ex-port casks. They’re both aged entirely in Barbados. Got all that? Good! Let’s get to tasting….
The nose is quite fruity and vibrant, with light berry notes rather than the heavier notes that I’d expect from port. On the palate, it’s got a luscious, tongue-coating viscosity. It tastes the most like port — a dark, rounded fruitiness with rich caramel and undertones of vanilla, culminating in a beautiful extended finish.
THE VERDICT:
My missus proclaimed the Foursquare her favorite of the three after a single sip, and reiterated it after a few more. I was torn between Foursquare and Mount Gay, but given that Deténte is $100 cheaper, it has to get the edge. The Holmes Cay has to settle for the bronze this time, but they’re a brand to watch — everything they’ve put their name on is worth checking out.
Thanks for joining us! And stay tuned for our next rummy throwdown — the Fracas in Fiji — coming soon!