Labourdonnais Gentlemen 2010

Labourdonnais works in Mauritius, where rum falls outside the French AOC, so this Gentlemen 2010 is agricole in style rather than name, made from fresh pressed sugarcane juice and matured nine years in ex bourbon oak as a single cask. The long tropical ageing has pulled it toward a rounder, more dessert leaning profile than a young blanc.

Bottled at a gentle 42 percent, it drinks soft and oily. The nose leans smoky and woody with dark chocolate and roast, the palate turns to raisin, vanilla, dried dates and a sherryish richness, and the finish carries caramel, coffee and spice over light wood. There is a herbal, agricole edge underneath that keeps it honest to its cane juice roots while the years add gentle complexity. This is a relaxed, well balanced sipper, a useful stepping stone for drinkers who like softer aged agricole and want a touch more wood and age without the heat.