Chauvet 14 Grands Prix (1950s)

Chauvet 14 Grands Prix is an old Martinique rhum agricole dating to the 1950s, a survivor from a generation of mid-century French-island bottlings now valued by collectors. The 14 Grands Prix name nods to the show medals once paraded on labels of the period.

Distilled from fresh sugar cane juice rather than molasses, this is agricole in the classic mould, and old examples of the style tend to settle into a rounded, lightly woody character with soft fruit and a faint warmth from decades in glass and oak. Bottled at 44%, it appeals more for its history than for any one tasting claim.