Appleton Estate Reserve 8 Year Old Rum (700ml)
"Complex layers of fruit flavors with some subtle earthy funk make up this benchmark, consumer friendly Jamaican Rum." - tastings.com
Designed to be the Estate’s most versatile expression, fans of the brand will find plenty to like in Appleton's second most affordable offering. This lighter-bodied Jamaican is a combination of minimum 8 year old rums, born in copper pot stills and blended by Master Blender, Joy Spence. The result is summed up by diffordsguide.com as a "...generously dry rum, distinguished by its toasty oak tannins" and rated 4.5 stars. Enjoy it as a quality sipper or a premium mixer. 43% Alc./Vol.
Other reviews... Golden amber color. Aromas and flavors of ripe banana and pineapple, roasted walnut, strawberry watermelon gastrique, and charred coconut with a round, dryish medium body and a long finish that shows notes of bananas and roasted walnut, grilled pineapple, strawberry watermelon, and mejoola date. Complex layers of fruit flavors with some subtle earthy funk make up this benchmark, consumer friendly Jamaican Rum. 93 points - tastings.com
very sippable at 43% ABV. It’s certainly not “rough” in anyway. The initial entry is a nice burst of spice – black pepper, ginger and some warming oak and vanilla notes. Moving into the mid palate you get much more of the nose. Warming notes of cream, breakfast tea and some milky chocolate. A nice fruitiness as well with banana and some sweeter notes of green apple. Pretty much everything noted on the nose makes an appearance. The long spicy and oaked finish is wonderfully well balanced with the sweeter richer notes found in the rum. Again I’m reminding my self that this was under £30. At least trying a bottle of this is a no brainer. It’s certainly not what I would call a particularly big step down from the Rare Blend. In fact you might find this to be better or its equal. It doesn’t have some of the more “herbal” notes the Rare Blend has. This isn’t “funky” high ester hogo heavy Jamaican rum. Appleton Estate rums are a very different beast to say Hampden or National Rums of Jamaica. If you want funk from Appelton Estate than Wray and Nephew White Overproof is what you want. If you want an affordable and very nice every day sipper and a premium mixer – get this in your shopping trolley next time Tarquin takes you to Waitrose. The old Aged 8 Years is back and I think it might even be a little better than I remember. - thefatrumpirate.com
Notes from the producer.,. The appearance displays a dazzling topaz/honey colour with a gold rim and impeccable purity. The bouquet emits delicate scents of brown sugar and honey in the first nosing, further aeration compels the aroma to open up as it offers up biscuity scents of molasses, holiday spice and dried red fruit. The palate entry is sweet, honeyed and satiny in texture; the mid palate offers mature, composed and melted tastes of marzipan, caramel and brown sugar.