Time for more Rum and today an exclusive edition bottled for TWE by Foursquare rum.
The Whisky Exchange has introduced its first exclusive rum since unveiling a new classification system for the spirit earlier this month. Renowned Barbados distillery Foursquare has created Hereditas – a Single Traditional Blended Rum in the new classification – exclusively for the retailer. Matured in Barbados for 14 years in a mixture of bourbon and sherry casks, it is rich and heavily-sherried – a style of spirit more often found in the whisky world.
The new classification system aims to give consumers and the trade a more informed understanding of the rum category based on flavor profiles and production methods, instead of the color of the spirit. The Whisky Exchange’s head buyer Dawn Davies has created the classification after extensive research and discussion with suppliers and producers, taking inspiration from the classification system created by Luca Gargano of rum importer Velier and Richard Seale of Foursquare. Davies has primarily focused on production method to create a technical classification and also devised a series of ‘flavor camps’ to give indication of how a rum will taste, giving rum drinkers more information to help them select their next purchase.
Foursquare Hereditas 14 yo for TWE 2019, , 2520 btl, 56% , £79.95
Nose: Big and big sherried, quite a meaty sherry sort of profile : luscious red fruit (berries, raspberries), big and spicy, with fruit cake, ripe plums and sultanas, sour grapes in sherry, and a hint of ripe cooked bananas in syrup, then the meaty sherry makes another round… deep nosing reveals wood notes, and char. If you had told me this was a big sherried whisky, I would not argue…
Palate: Big and sweet with sour touches. More of the sultanas, plums, but now with a spicy twist : mint, brown sugar, molasses , licorice- thick and sweet, with the spices going on for quite some time. The wood kick in thereafter, with a nice wood char, and oaky notes, cinnamon and clove with a touch of anise and pepper.
Finish: Earthy and Chocolate-y with sultana , berries ans cask char. very long hint of Lapsang, anise.
Conclusion: This is a rich, big and well sherried Rum. Sweet, spicy, and sour at times, with everything a whisky sherry lover would appreciate. It is indeed a worthy malternative, any day. Highly enjoyable, richly flavored and complex dram, showcasing how sherry maturation can enhance a good rum. Highly Recommended!
Still available on the TWE site for £79.95