1998 Gleann Mor Spirits Company Rare Find Bellevue 25 Year Old Cask Strength Guadeloupe Rum (700ml)

Here we have a seldom encountered and curious rum from the aptly titled Rare Find label: If you've never heard of it, Bellevue is a fascinating treasure that is more and more making it into independent's hands around the world. This is thought to have been column distilled at Damoiseau distillery in Guadeloupe (on the Bellevue au Moule estate) from a batch of molasses - not typical of Damoiseau whose focus is generally Agricole. Shipped to the UK in the late 2000s, we loved Gleann Mor's previous 21 year old, and according to the importers, this has gained more refined spice, menthol and caramel character with further ageing. It opens with volatile varnish undertones and admittedly, the oak is encroaching, but some delicious tropical notes remain intact revealing juicy papaya ,overipe banana and dried mango, achieving a natural fruit, oak-spice balance with no overwhelming sugars (possibly one for fans of the herbally Vendome pot still rums like those from St Lucia?) Powerful and very pure, it's the kind of rum that bridges categories making yet another ‘malternative’ for whisky drinkers wanting to explore different wood-aged spirits. Distilled in 1998 and bottled in 2023 from a single cask with zero dilution. 57.6% Alc./Vol. Non chill filtered. Tasted from a 30ml sample.

Notes from the producers... anticipate waves of caramel, banana, mango, raisin, candied orange, sweet treacle and liquorice.