Hee Joy XO 2008

Bottled under the Hee Joy XO label, this 2008 is a single cask Jamaican aged ten years. Although labelled as column still, several tasters point to coordinates on the label that suggest Worthy Park, the clean and precise St. Catherine pot still estate, as the true source, which fits the polished, fruit-forward character in the glass.

Matured in ex-bourbon wood and bottled at 43% without added sugar, it opens with vanilla, red fruit, pineapple and an overripe note, the palate brings banana, spice, oak and a distinctly malty edge, and the finish leans malty and cereal-like with vanilla and coconut, almost whisky-adjacent. The reduction keeps it soft and rounded rather than fierce, and tropical ageing lends gentle oak without heavy tannin. The result is a surprisingly generous spread of fruit in an accessible frame, a friendly aged Jamaican whose malty roundness and easy strength make it an approachable sipper for those exploring the island's gentler bottlings.