Dec 222010

Why the bottle of A.D. Rattray Cask Collection 13 year old Caroni rum (bottle 128 of 290) states it is “made exclusively for Co-Op” (a grocery chain) on the label is a mystery to me1. This is especially the case since I have been able to find it on sale in at least two other countries, and the labels on neither have any such mention. I can only conclude that this is a distribution issue, not a matter of commissioning or purchasing some kind of exclusive bottling (which both other merchants in Calgary — the Kensington Wine Market and Willow Park – indulge in). The selling point of a rum like this one is never just the rum itself, but exclusivity, limited bottle-outturn, and rarity. Like the Appleton 30 (1440 bottles) and the English Harbour 1981 (5774), this is an extremely limited edition of 290 bottles, emerging from a single cask. As if this were not enough, it’s 13 years old and un-chill filtered, as well as having no additives at all – just like the two Cadenhead offerings I’ve tried – and these last two points are the Caroni’s great strength and also (to some) a weakness. Fortunately, and curiously, the price of the rum when I bought it was in the forty dollar range, which seems low ….either it isn’t that exclusive, not that good, or someone is testing the water to see if the price point can be supported for premium limited-edition rums as they are by whiskies. The name of the rum comes from the Caroni (1975) Ltd sugar company of Trinidad and Tobago, which was established in 1887 and taken over by the government of T&T when it acquired Tate & Lyle’s shareholdings in 1970 (51%) and 1975 (49%) – it went under because it consistently lost money and no buyers could be found, in 2004. This may well be some of their last stock still available commercially as a bottled product so even if the rum is not to your liking, it’s possible that as an investment…well, it’s up to you. The rum itself was attractively packaged in a black cardboard tin, in which a slim bottle of light amber fitted tightly. Tin foil wrapped around a well-seated cork. It’s a thing of mine that I enjoy the voluptuous sound of a cork popping gently out, so points there. At 46% ABV, I’m was not expecting a gentle nose that tenderly massaged my snoot and beckoned invitingly with soft, caramel-scented breath, and I didn’t get one – but it was not as sharp and medicinal as I feared either. In point of fact, it was, in spite of its lack of “post processing”, rather good. Distinct, and clear, separating early into notes of vanilla, nuts and burnt sugar, with the muskier molasses scent underlying everything. And yes, a claw or two to remind you of its slightly higher alcohol content. I don’t know how many people reading this have ever seen a sugar cane field burn in the tropics at harvest time, and can speak of the experience (I’m one of them): there’s a kind of deep smell of burning brown sugar that permeates the whole area, and lingers in your nose for days. I’ve always liked it when handled well within a rum’s bouquet, perhaps because of the memories it evokes of my boyhood. After leaving the Caroni to open for a few minutes, that lovely aroma stole around and about the other scents, which gradually became identifiable as faint hints of citrus fruit and notes of cherries, not so ripe as to be cloying…just young enough to impart some sting. I could have gone on smelling that for a lot longer than I did.

Addendum (August 2015) This included, I’ve looked at eight Caronis in depth, most sourced in 2014. They are:
- Velier Caroni 1994 55% (86 points)
- Valier Caroni 1996 55% (87 points)
- Bristol Spirits Caroni 1974 46% (90 points)
- Bristol Spirits Caroni 1989 43% (85 points)
- Barangai Caroni 1997 52% (86.5 points)
- Silver Seal Caroni 1997 46% (86 points)
- Rum Nation Caroni 1998 55% (88 points)
- A.D.Rattray Caroni 1997 review (2010 review)
- R-016 | 0416 Velier Caroni 1985 Heavy 21 YO Rum
- R-017 | 0417 Velier Caroni 1982 Heavy 24 Year Old
- R-058 | 0458 Velier Caroni 1982-2005 23 Year Old Light Trinidad Rum (59.2%)
- R-059 | 0459 Velier Caroni 1984-2006 22 Year Old Heavy Trinidad Rum (54.6%)
- R-060 | 0461 Velier Caroni 1982-2006 24 Year Old Heavy Trinidad Rum (58.3%)
- R-061 | 0463 Velier Caroni 1982-2006 24 Year Old Light Trinidad Rum (55.2%)
- R-062 | 0465 Velier Caroni 1983-2005 22 Year Old Heavy Trinidad Rum (52%)
- R-063 | 0467 Velier Caroni 1982-2005 23 Year Old Heavy Trinidad Rum (77.3%)
- R-064 | 0469 Velier Caroni 1983-2008 25 Year Old Heavy Trinidad Rum (55%)
- R-065 | 0471 Velier Caroni 1982-2005 23 Year Old Heavy Trinidad Rum (62%)
There’s a rum I’ve never even heard of. Love the review.
Nice review Lance,
I enjoy your approach to the review process and find that your descriptions and opinions are well worth the effort. Looking forward to the occasion when we finally hook up and share a rum together.
Cheers!
I’ve never heard of A.D. Rattray but I will add it to my list of “if you see it, buy it”. Good review.
Hi Lance
Thanks for your review of one of our Caroni rums. I’d just like to clarify, we bought several casks of this fantastic rum and one of them was subsequently bottled by us exclusively for the Co-op in Alberta, Canada (an EXTREMELY discerning group who only pick the best by the way). Any other bottles you have seen which do not have their name on will be from a different cask. Check out the cask number on the label, and you will see.
Re the price and your comments that because it’s not as expensive as our competitors it can’t be as good, we manage to control our costs by keeping small(currently 3 of us working in the UK and 1 in the US) and by keeping our packaging simple and not changing it very often – what’s in our bottles is the star, not the fancy glass or gift box around it. Also over the 10 years we’ve been in business we’ve managed to build some great relationships with our whisky/rum sources and this all helps to keep our costs down. It is an exclusive single cask product, the very best we could find.
Keep up the good work.
Frances Dupuy (1 of the 3 at A D Rattray, Independent Bottlers, Mabyole, Scotland.
I really must compliment you on your rum in this instance, and express my admiration for the product…it was one of the first (slightly) overproof rums of a more whisky-like character that I ever wanted to buy several of (Renegades are the other).
Your comments regarding presentation mirrors that of several friends of mine who would prefer less quality outside the bottle and more within, so to speak: they hate getting dinged for presentation when they can’t drink it. I like to think of the overall aesthetic rather than just focus on the drink, but it appears I’m in a minority on that one 🙂
Interesting to note that you point out that “lack of post-processing” and “additives” are a negative thing for taste and quality. I personally strongly disagree with this (and detest soggy-sweet syrupy rums made for the good old U.S. of A market, but this is of course a matter of opinion. Thank God for AD Rattray and others, thanks to whom not all the rum we get to sample is “adulterated” – some are still “de real ting”.
PS: Why on earth would one wish to use a limited edition, single cask non-filtered rum for cocktails? Thats what the “sweet nothings” are for..
A special and rare rum that represents the best that rum can be: unfiltered, unmodified, and I assume of honest age. This of course does not apply to the many rums which have been altered with all manner of flavorings, sugar, smoothers and the like – but which do not appear on the label.
Whether this is legal or not is a matter of debate, but the fact of alteration is well agreed and sadly, this is the primary reason rum remains a rogue spirit. Compare to truly noble spirits like bourbon and single malt whiskies whose profiles are honest and dependable.
Unfornately most rum drinkers really do not know what real and unaltered rum tastes like, and can only judge by altered rums which attain their profiles from the additives which overpower and misrepresent the underlying spirit.
Fortunately not all rums submit to such market pressure and rum drinkers are able to enjoy unaltered, relatively pure rums like this one. Other fine rums include anything by Richard Seale, or other great rums from Barbados and Jamaica, Haiti and other examples of pure and wonderful rums.
Hats off to Caroni and this especially rare and valuable example of real and pure rum.
To MRJ
I didn’t actually say thast lack of post processing and/or was a negative: I said that it imparted a quality to the rum which not everyone will appreciate. What I didn’t care for was the oaken component, which was a bit too harsh for me.
Beyond that, I thought the rum excellent, and like you, am highly appreciative of companies like AD Rattray, Gordon & MacPhail, Bruichladdich and Cadenhead, who are adopting different methods of production in order to provide an enhanced taste profile.
Lance
Hi Lance,
AD Rattray purchased several casks of Caroni.
So it’s no surprise that you’ve seen ADR Caroni in other countries.
Just to clarify the Co-op labeling.
As you know every cask is different and this one entire cask was purchased and bottled exclusively for the Co-op chain.
The Caroni distillery is now closed, so the casks in the market are the last we’ll ever see.
Enjoy!