Sometimes obsessively browsing the rum section on Amazon pays off, this time with an offering from Berry Brothers & Rudd. After finding the Dram Mor Guyana on House of Malt for just £38, I came across this other steal, a single cask from Guyana for just £42 – unfortunately they have bumped the price at the moment, but I’m still happy.
Berry Bros. & Rudd are London based Wine & Spirit Merchants that have their fingers in every pie when it comes to booze – wines, own spirit brands, liqueurs, single cask releases and more. I have reviewed quite a few rum offerings from them and today I’m having a look at this single cask from Diamond Distillery, Guyana.
Diamond Distillery is the house of the El Dorado brand, the sole rum producer of Guyana since 2000 (due to consolidation) and it boasts a collection of about 14 stills, although not all are used to make rum. Among these stills, there are 4 heritage stills that have been moved from previous estates in order to preserve some unique rum marques produced by them. The said stills are:
- Port Mourant Wooden Pot Still
- Versailles Wooden Pot Still
- Enmore Wooden Coffey Still
- Savalle Stills
The wooden stills are made out of greenheart wood, a very durable type of wood from Guyana, and are the only ones of their kind in the world, while the Savalle is incredibly versatile and is able to make 9 different rum marques. You can find out more about Diamond Distillery’s stills and production process in this article from Cocktail Wonk.
This single cask does not mention any still or marque, but I already have a hunch of what it could be. Molasses based, pot still (I believe) distilled in 2010 and aged for 10 years in (most likely) an ex-Bourbon cask. Bottled at 46% ABV without any additives with a limited rum of 314 bottles.
On the nose I’m pretty sure I’m feeling a Port Mourant distillate. English Breakfast tea, liquorice, ripe bananas, pencil shavings and camomile tea. Aromatic tobacco, new furniture, saffron, white pepper and vanilla. I’m quite convinced this is a PM, or worst case, a Versailles. Some cardamom and ladyfingers.
On the palate it’s pretty much what you’d expect from the nose. Intense aromatic tobacco, I feel like I’m chewing a cigar. Liquorice, cardamom, biscuits, cacao nibs and peppermint. Cappuccino and black tea. There’s a lovely layer of smoky flavours with a tropical undertone – pineapples and bananas. Some ginger and nutmeg as well. The finish is medium to long with bitter oak and minty liquorice.
Yep, definitely 99% sure it’s a Port Mourant and I can’t say no to a good PM. This is good, layered, easy to drink and just tasty – my only complaint is the bitter note on the finish and maybe the fairly low (for a single cask) ABV.
As I said I got it for £41 from Amazon a few weeks ago and I see now it costs £63 – which is still not bad for a single cask, pure, Guyanese rum.
Berry Bros. & Rudd Guyana 10 Year Old Cask No. 56 score:
Flavour/taste: 53/70
Value for money: 15/15
Transparency/purity: 14/15
Overall: 82/100
Cheers!