Scott Thomas is a sorta regular here, but he has the disconcerting habit of writing me privately for opinions that frankly, we all might be interested in. So allow me to respond publicly for the benefit of all the rummies out there...
Blackwell's Rum
Let's start with the "Blackwell" - what amounts to an ego-based release from Chris Blackwell of Island Records. Of course he will be far from the first celebrity to plaster his ego on a bottle, and that alone doesn't necessarily mean its a bad rum. But most of them are. Exception: Sammy Hagar and his tequila. I don't know about the rum per se, but I know plenty about marketing and except for Ron de Jeremy, Blackwell called in all of his Island Record markers, threw all the right parties and got mentions in almost all of the prestige mags, from Forbes on down (none of whom actually reviewed the rum, but focused mostly on the half-dressed Jamaican party girls in great abundance at the roll out parties).
Extracted from Drink Spirits:
Let's be clear. Blackwells is (a) NOT an aged rum (no age statement), (b) says absolutely nothing about its process and (c) demonstrates a flavor profile that simply shouts out "Awwditives, mon!". On the other hand, Paul Pacults usually reliable spirits competition gave Blackwell's a "92" - a VERY credible score from a very skilled and reliable, top reviewer. You decide..."Blackwell Jamaican Rum (40%, 80 Proof $33) – Deep amber brown in color, Blackwell smells more like a blackstrap rum than a funky Jamaican rum. The predominant note is vanilla extract, combined with toasted marshmallow, caramel, and coconut. There is just the slightest undertone of funkiness that’s a signature of good Jamaican rum. The entry is very soft and sweet, with the vanilla extract flavors and caramel dominating the palate. The toasted marshmallow from the nose supports the vanilla, and there’s just a hint of funk. In the mid palate, you get more of the char part of the toasted marshmallow and it picks up a little spice which carries through to a nice finish.
Blackwell Jamaican Rum isn’t a bad rum by any stretch of the imagination, it’s just not very spectacular. Blackwell feels stuck between being a fairly traditional blackstrap rum, a spiced rum, and a Jamaican rum. By never really picking a direction, it never really finds solid footing. The biggest issue we have with Blackwell is price. Blackwell Jamaican Rum is priced more than the gold standard of Jamaican rums, Smith and Cross, and more than double what Blackbeard Spiced Rum and The Kracken sell for. If it were half the price, this rum would rank solidly as a nice, affable, and smooth mixing rum, but it just isn’t spectacular enough to strongly recommend."
Fortuna Rum
I've had my eye on Fortuna for some time, and - finally! - it has arrived at Total Wine and Spirits. I'm going to speak postively about this rum, and here's why:
1. It is made in Nicaragua (think Flor de Cana), the home I believe, of relative unadulterated rums.
2. Indeed the marketing copy (per Total) makes a curious statement: "No sugar alcohol or neutral alcohol are added; only molasses is used in the rum's creation." Pardon me, but have my endless posts pushing purity managed to trickle down into the profit-sotted brains of a distiller/marketer? Of course, I'm that powerful.
3. Although they trumpet medals in San Francisco (where even the taxi drivers get gold), the Beverage Tasting Institute - except for The Project the Gold Standard of scoring - awards Fortuna a smashing 92 points. We have always held that any score in the 90's at the BTI is worth buying.
4. The distiller also claims a small batch process, with "hand-selected" barrels, but this is just typical marketing masturbation, with their hand-selected penis in, uh, hand.
And last:
Caliche Rum
To be fair, I believe that Sue Sea and I have actually tasted and reviewed this Puerto Rican Rum made by Seralles. But unlike the commercial and faux commercial sites, I'm in no fackin hurry to post anything (a) because it's a lotta work, (b) the rum may not be spectacular and most important (c) because I don't blow the distributors for free product in return for softball reviews.
Nonetheless I have a great deal of respect for Seralles. At one of the Rum Queen's tastings in Tampa we met the Seralles rep - who basicly promised to send us any freebies we wanted (we declined), and who then reached under the table to give us both a good pour of Seralles' "Don Q Gran Anejo". Now mind you it's hard to give any rum a fair tasting at a festival, particularly after you've been there awhile, and with the further distractions of some of the most stunning Caribbean and South American women in the world. Even J Lo would be jealous. Nonetheless, we both had an incredibly positive impression of the Don Q Gran Anejo.
As far as production goes, the Seralles' rums are column distilled in massive quantities and can be expected to exhibit the usual light, Puerto Rican style. The Caliche is NAS (no age statement), but the description is intriguing and promotes its aging in a 3-level, sherry barrel solera. If true, this is both unique and very intriguing (and may account for the lack of an age statement). But not so fast!
More research indicates that Caliche is actually a charcoal-filtered blend of column distilled rum aged in the typical fashion in used American bourbon barrels, and then adding "...a portion of Solera rum". And just how much is a "portion"? You'll have to ask the CFO and the accounting department. Surely enough to claim it's in there, but certainly not enough to affect the mega-profit of what is being positioned as a "Super Premium White Rum".
Hint: anytime you see these four words, hide your wallet and run, don't walk to the gin or wine department and buy something that's actually worth your dear dollars. "Super Premium Whites" are designed solely for the fooles over at the Shillery, or the 0.1%r's who don't have a clue, but love to be watched throwing money at such inventions.
But - but - Mr. Thomas claims he can buy a bottle for $21 - still hefty, but perhaps worth a shot (pun intended) just to experience a full bodied, portion of sherry barreled solera, heavily filtered rum.
Cheers...
