The last WhiskyLive had the wonderful idea of ​​highlighting a new rum from Neisson: the single cask 2004. This time aged 11 years, it is living proof that the rums from this distillery follow one another, and are similar, at least in terms of quality.

Price : €165, 70cl and 45.4° for this new Single Cask from Neisson (498 bottles), bottled for LMDW.

Age : 11 years. Aged on December 31, 2004 and bottled on July 29, 2015.

So here is a version aged for longer (4 years more), after the 2004 vintage released in 2011 (42.7°). Still aged in bourbon barrels (Buffalo Trace), with a rum coming from the pure juice of canes particularly loaded with sugar (following a dry year). Let's see what this will have brought more to the rum...

The color is a deep amber, tending towards copper, luminous and with an elegance faithful to the brand.

The nose is wonderfully fine and full at the same time, light but ready to give way at the moment , just attached to a crystalline woodiness, of a finesse not exceeding the micron. A line of life, so thin and yet so important, and imposing! The kind of nose that immediately covers your heart with joy, colors, and sunny flavors.

The few more years have liquefied all the aromas to become one, in a sovereign and conquering harmony. So yes, we do not have as many empyreumatic notes as on fabulous vintages like the 2003 or the 2005, but it would be too simple to limit Neisson to a single palette, to a single aromatic range. Here we are resolutely on a nose with heady, 'zesty' notes (lime), a full and fruity nose (apricot, papaya), gourmand and full, with a good dose of grilled coconut, chocolate, curry... We close our eyes, and peaches and candied lemons, vanilla and a little more chocolate notes appear.

It is a feminine and captivating rum, the kind that plays on charm and wins every time, provided that you resist it a little (and I try, believe me). And this woody note, of an insolent finesse, and an abysmal complexity, blends harmoniously with the spices, and reminds us once again of all the talent of Neisson, who beyond no longer having to prove himself, has the arduous task of not disappointing.

The attack is smooth, what am I saying, creamy, and electrifies your taste buds in a fraction of a second . It hooks you and kisses you passionately and jealously; a last embrace, lively and tumultuous at the bottom of a glass of rum, who would have believed it? The liquid, made thick under disjointed frolics, releases a torrent of taste overflowing with exoticism and spices, entwined with citrus fruits, and discharges a salutary menthol freshness.

This rum is a caress to the palate, it is carnal, it flatters you with slightly acidic and always candied citrus fruits, a firm woodiness and roasted spices for a new journey, always at the right latitude, between land and sea, and above all not forgetting to touch the skies. Chocolate is there too, faithful among the faithful. It's simple: balance, complexity, it's all there.

The finish, triumphant and luminous, releases the pressure accumulated until then, in a captivating and desirable laziness, teeming with aromas and exotic, luscious and spicy notes, in a paralyzing rattle of blissful satisfaction, of the absolute.

This rum is a new proof of perfection, and its mouth, so rich and magnificent, carnal, lascivious, lustful… it makes you travel far, very far, and the memory it leaves is immortal, indelible. I who had been seduced - but on my hunger - with the first 2004, I must admit to being totally under the spell of this 11 year old rum. 2003, 2004, 2005, a trio of vintages certainly winning. They say that under any deep carnal sweetness, there is the permanence of a danger, surely that of finding even better… Note: 93

Concerning the number of bottles of this vintage: there were 3 barrels bottled:
1 for LMDW, 1 for Velier, and 1 for Neisson (sold only in Martinique). Only the LMDW barrel is sold in Metropolitan France. Each barrel was numbered from 1 to 498, not one more, not one less!

To help you (and me) find your way around, regarding the notes:

90 and + : exceptional and unique rum, it is the best of the best
between 85 and 89 : highly recommended rum, with that little something that makes the difference
between 80 and 84 : recommendable rum
75-79 POINTS : above average
70-74 POINTS : in the low average
less than 70 : not very good

Review courtesy of DuRhum.com.

From the folks behind DuRhum, Velier, and more, comes a premium online marketplace for rum enthusiasts by rum enthusiasts! Do check out www.rowspirits.fr for more great content and iconic rums!