Blackadder Raw Cask - Blog post by Thomas Heie Nielsen

There are now many independent bottlers on the market that bottle excellent rums. Today I'm diving into the brand Blackadder and their Raw Cask series with eight different bottlings from the Dominican Republic, Panama, Barbados, Trinidad and Guyana.

Blog post by Thomas Heie Nielsen

What all these rums have in common is that they are aged continentally and bottled in Scotland. They are bottled at cask strength and are not chill filtered and there is no added color, sugar or flavor. So it's natural rum as it was in the cask.

I start in the Dominican Republic with a 10 year edition at 60.1% ABV. The nose is met with warm dark spices, tobacco leaves, peach and green grapes as well as a piquant and subtle lime note. The taste is warm, full-bodied, spicy and fruity in a fine and quite complex balance.

Then we're off to something that I know has a lot of fans. Barbados rum. A 12 year Foursquare at 64.1%. I've never been a big fan of Barbados rum. And that's not because it's bad or boring. Quite the contrary. There's not a finger to point at Foursquare rum. It's extremely well produced. But most of the time it's a little too watered down for me and I think Richard Seale mixes a little too much column still rum in his casks. I have tasted pure pot still rum from Foursquare and it is nothing short of amazing. I don't know the components of this rum but it's a nice competent smell. Not pure pot still, that's obvious. But it is present in the rum. It smells of Foursquare. Tight and stringent. A beautiful balance between fruit, lacquer/glue and spice and maybe a tiny bit of smoke at the end. The taste is really nice. Quite surprisingly delicious actually. Again, a tight, stringent, incredibly well-produced taste experience with a fresh acidity that is slightly tingling on the tongue and cheeks. Lovely. The aftertaste is quite long and it keeps the flavor in a groove. Great rum. Surprisingly delightful.

Next rum is an 11 year old rum from Panama at 63.2%.. More fruit on the nose and less spice. A bit of natural sweetness. Peach, mango, blue plums and cocoa nibs. A nice little acidity is discreetly at the back of the nose. The taste is fruity, full-bodied and vinous. Quite a potent taste and mouthfeel with a nice finish. For a Central American rum, there is quite a lot of flavor and aftertaste. I have reviewed this Panama rum along with two other rums from Panama here: https://www.whisky.dk /shop/panama---smutvejen-18108p .html

The next three rums are from Trinidad and the first is an 11 year old Trinidad at 66.4%. Young cask character on the nose. Green bananas, grapes and olives hit the nose. Restrained sweetness on the nose. But otherwise a full-bodied fragrance. There is plenty of power on the nose. The taste is also characterized by unripe fruit, restrained sweetness and a little eucalyptus. Dry mouthfeel. Long, slightly spicy and competent finish.

The second rum from Trinidad is a 14 year old at 66.5%. There is more cask and more spice on the nose. There is also more sweetness, lacquer and fruit on the nose as well as some sweet pipe tobacco. This rum smells like it is more clear. More finished. And there's a lot more delicious flavor. Natural fruit and barrel sweetness. Vanilla, nuts, dried apricot, orange peel. This tastes really good.

The last Trinidad rum in this round is a 16 year old Trinidad at 64.7%. Spicy fresh pipe tobacco, citrus, lacquer, furniture polish, baked apples and cinnamon on the nose. It tastes like a really delicious TDL. The recognizable eucalyptus and black wine gum are clearly present as well as some chemical and medicinal notes. It is definitely the best of the three Trinidad rums.

The last two rums I'll be tasting are from Guyana. The first of the two is a 9 year Guyana at 55.7%. The first thing I notice on the bottle's label is that it says pot still rum in big letters. That's when it really grabs my attention. The aroma is relatively heavy and smells of Port Mourant. On the nose, there are notes of browned butter, baked onions, clove olive oil and honeydew melon. The taste is characterized by dryness and bitterness. Nuts, olive oil and baked onions. There is a sharpness, bitterness and dryness on the rum. Not tannins and wood dryness. But more a dryness from a lack of natural fruit sweetness or cask character. The finish is long and persistent.

The last rum in this round is a 14 year Guyana at 63%. On the nose there are green bananas, olive oil and vanilla wreath. There is a piquant acidity on the nose that tickles the nose a bit. The taste is heavy and mature, warm and generous. Lightly spicy, oily fatness and subtle acidity. Perhaps a bit vinous ala dry, lightly fruity white wine. Slight dryness in the mouth. Long soft aftertaste.

The surprise:
If I have to pull out a couple of rums, I would say that Barbados, Foursquare 12 years at 64.1% surprised positively. It tasted really good. So did the Trinidad 16 year old at 64.7%. And then I would also highlight Guyana 14 years 63%.

Blackadder The brand is founded by Robin Tucek. Robin is a trained journalist and has worked in television, sports and music. He is probably the only independent bottler to have been driven through London in Rod Stewart's car driven by Rod Stewart or to have met and interviewed Abba. Originally, the company bottled whisky. But later, rum was added and Blackadder is now recognized by rum geeks as a rock-solid original unspoiled rum with juice and power, especially their Raw Cask bottlings.

I'm a big fan of independent bottlers. They often manage to dig up some really delicious rum barrels. Some are purely tropical, some are purely continental and some are a combination. And then, of course, there are the unaged versions that are becoming more and more popular.

Relaterede produkter

Panama 2009/2020 Blackadder 11 years old Raw Cask Rom FC Whisky Anniversary Bottling Rum 70 cl 63.2%

EUR 114,25

Finest Guyana Diamond Rum 14 years Blackadder Raw Cask 63

Finest Guyana Diamond 14 years Blackadder Raw Cask Rum 63%

EUR 127,75