A sample of a very old Guyanese single cask rum from the Dutch independent bottler, The Duchess – yes, please!
Molasses based, distilled in the Port Mourant wooden pot still at the late Uitvlugt Distillery in Guyana and aged for 27 years in an ex-Bourbon cask. Distilled in 1993 and bottled in 2020 at 50.1% ABV, free of additives, with only 189 releases in the wild.
On the nose there’s the recognisable Port Mourant profile. Liquorice, English Breakfast tea, saffron, banana, mango and nail varnish. Nutmeg, cinnamon and a bit of black pepper. Ground coffee, vanilla, biscuits and pencil shavings. Tropical and spicy!
On the palate it has a pleasant oily mouthfeel. Liquorice, dark chocolate, banana, tobacco, pear and cardamom. Sweet chilli, mango puree and raisins. There’s a nice, vanilla-oak custard note to it. Despite its age, the woodiness feels harmony with everything else, I reckon quite a bit of the ageing occurred continentally. Some nail varnish again with a pinch of sea salt. Apple pie with cinnamon. The finish is long with candied banana, black pepper and a hint of anise.
Yep, spicy, tropical, elegant, complex, a lot of boxes ticked by this one. It is priced at £225, but it is a 27 year old single cask rum from a defunct distillery – and it’s bloody delicious. Actually it was made in the same year I was born in and we both have the same age, fancy that! If only I was as appealing and delicious as this.
The Duchess – 27 Year Old Guyana – Uitvlugt score:
Flavour/taste: 61/70
Value for money: 12/15
Transparency/purity: 15/15
Overall: 88/100
Cheers!