Coming from the fairly new Chamarel distillery, this is one of the very first rums from pure sugarcane juice that I’ve bought, and the first to be reviewed on this blog.
Chamarel cultivates their own sugarcane on site, selecting the varieties themselves and harvesting by hand. The white rum is usually distilled using a barbet column still, while most aged rum comes from two 20HL stills.
Distillery: Chamarel Distillery
ABV: 45%
Distilled: 2015
Bottled: 2020
Casktype: French Oak & Palo Cortado Casks
RumX ID: RX7996
This specific bottlings is a 5 year old rum distilled with the aforementioned barbet column still, matured in French oak and finished in Palo Cortado casks. It was then reduced to 45% ABV before bottling. The label notes a sugarcontents of 0.5g/l, so we can assume there’s no additional dosage.
In the glass, the rum has a strikingly orange hue. Supposing this is natural color, it certainly promises quite a heavy cask influence. The nose confirms this notion. Notes of dates, walnuts, maraschino sherry jump out. There’s no doubt the Palo Cortado influence here. There’s some mint and an earthy undertone too, somewhat countering the sweetness of the sherry.
On the palate, it’s somewhat more austere at first. Walnuts, coffee and both dark and milk chocolate. White pepper and brown sugar come in on the mid palate, offering some extra kick to the experience. With time the coffee and walnuts to take the upperhand, seriously turning up the bitterness factor.
In the finish, there’s some acetone, cherry liqueur and eucalyptus that make up the medium length finish.
The liquid is decent, but I can’t help but feel this is very much cask driven, drowning out the spirit. Adding water doesn’t make a meaningful difference. It’s a decent sipper when watching TV, but not commanding of your attention for a tasting session.
81/100