There is only one distillery the oldest on Barbados, and that one is called Mount Gay. But, due to licensing issues The Duchess cannot put that on the label, so Barbados Oldest it is.

Apparently it is not only the oldest distillery on the island, but in the world. The oldest deed for the distillery is from 1703, which is very old indeed!

This bottling was released today, and that is something of a novelty. Not that I have a sample available so soon (thanks a lot, Best of Wines!), but that I’m actually reviewing within a decent window of its release…

The Hummingbirds series is a new series from The Duchess with awesome labels by Hans Dillesse.

What is also interesting is that this rum spent its first six years in the tropics, and was then transported to the European continent for 13 years of further aging.

Sniff:
Somehow there’s a whiff of sambal at first. Also, there’s roses and other floral notes. Slightly green with sugarcane and tree bark.

Sip:
The palate is dry, with sugarcane, oak, cork. Rather floral, with hints of roses and grass. Some apples, ripe banana, quite fruity.

Swallow:
The finish is gentle, with not too much sweetness. Old flowers, hay, oak.

The rum is quite a bit lighter than the few I have tried semi-recently. The floral notes, and the lack of things like shoe polish make for a different experience than (to me) normal. This is only a boon and an indicator of the diversity of rum.

It’s a gorgeous rum, and not overly expensive too, clocking in at 100 euros. I expected a 19 year old single cask to be more expensive than that. Highly recommended!

87/100

Mount Gay 19, 2001-2020, Bourbon Barrel 49, 54.3%. Available from Best of Wines for € 100

Full disclosure: This sample was provided for reviewing by Best of Wines. My vies are my own though. Thanks a million!