Gorgeous label? Check. Legendary distillery? Check.

We've got a 24 Year Old 1998 Caroni rum today from Distilia that was bottled for premium spirits retailer Lion's Whisky's 10th anniversary  - that's always a perk up for any given day.

Caroni is of course the now demolished Trinidad rum producer of legendary fame - it never eludes me that each time I come across a Caroni, I'm getting to enjoy what remains of a fast drying fabled oasis.

There are signs certainly - for one the climbing vintages edging ever so much closer to Caroni's final year of operations.

It is an ever pertinent reminder to enjoy what might soon actually be gone altogether - which simultaneously has always been a source of great shame I feel for subsequent generations of new drinkers who will find it incredibly difficult to enjoy what the great Trinidadian distillery has to offer.

For that, I count myself lucky, even if I was late to the game.

And so today, I'm once again fortunate to try this well-aged Caroni that was bottled by Distilia, an independent bottler and retailer of fine spirits, for Lion's Whisky.

Let's go!

Distilia 1998 Caroni Trinidad Lion's Whisky 10th Anniversary Edition 24 Year Old 61.6% ABV - Review

Tasting Notes

Color: Mahogany

Aroma: Really big and powerful - lots of honey, sarsaparilla, licorice, and also clove spices. There’s a distinctive woodiness but it complements the sweeter notes very well. It continues to open up to more on vanilla, manuka honey, root beer syrup, and then more herbaceous too - eucalyptus and Pei Pa Koa cough syrup. Light touches of citrus too, orange blossoms and candied oranges.

Taste: It starts off with honey but quickly brings forward more woody notes - the tannins are really coming through here. This is backed up by more clove spices, medicinal cough syrup, herbaceous - minty. More medicinal and woody bitterness, lacquered wood, and darker arabica coffee grounds. There’s an overlay of citrus and temple incense as well.

Finish: Long finish, more cigar box notes, clove - still quite woody and tannic but not overpowering. Herbal tortoiseshell jelly (guilingao) with manuka honey, and also a light grittiness of coffee grounds. It continues to brighten up to more grassy herbal jelly.

My Thoughts

Very punchy, big and powerful rum that tends towards the darker side of the spectrum - more earthy, herbal and medicinal - think cigar boxes, traditional Chinese medicinal halls. It pulls in the woody tannins very well without becoming overpowering, again giving it a more earthy, herbal edge. There’s a very lovely citrusy note that wafts through that gives it more breadth.

Kanpai!

@111hotpot