Les Bienheureux Pura Vida Puro

Les Bienheureux Pura Vida Puro is a Costa Rican rum released by the French outfit Les Bienheureux. Bottled at a robust 48%, it presents as a fuller, drier style than the soft sweetened rums often associated with the region, with no obvious dosage on show.

The nose is dark and savoury, chocolate, coffee, dried fruit and a clear woody note setting the tone. The palate stays in that register with oak, caramel, dried fruit and warming allspice, and the finish lingers on wood, leather and cocoa. There is enough grip and spice here to suit slow neat sipping after a meal, and the higher strength gives it presence. A solid, characterful Central American rum for those who prefer drier, oak led profiles over the sweeter end of the spectrum.