Habitation Beauséjour H.B.S La cuvée du Sénateur 2020

Habitation Beausejour bottles under its H.B.S label in Martinique, and this Cuvee du Senateur 2020 is a young, high strength agricole from fresh pressed sugarcane juice. Unusually it is distilled on both pot and column stills, which adds a little extra body to the classic creole column profile, and it is bottled unsweetened at a vigorous 55%.

This is agricole at its freshest, with a nose full of sugarcane, grass and that unmistakable green agricole lift, leading into a palate that is fresh, floral and dry with a clear grassy core. The finish stays fresh and faintly sweet from the cane itself, with a citrus edge. Rested in the glass it becomes notably more expressive, the fruit and floral notes opening over the vegetal base. At cask strength it is built for a Ti Punch, where lime and a touch of cane syrup will frame its snap, though it also rewards careful neat sipping for those who enjoy a bracing, honest young blanc.