CDI 2008

Compagnie des Indes bottled this Jamaican as a single cask drawn from multiple distilleries, the terroir-led French house known for natural, broad-origin selections. Ten years of ageing in ex-bourbon oak give it a classic island aroma, though the reduction to a softer proof shapes how it drinks.

The nose is estery and fruity with tropical fruit and pineapple, and the finish circles back to caramel, ester, fruit and pineapple. The palate is roasted, fruity and dry, but at 44% it reads light and lean rather than full, and some will wish for more body from a decade-old Jamaican. Bottled without added sugar, it is honest and clean, an easy daily sipper that trades intensity for drinkability. For those who like their aged Jamaican on the gentler side it is pleasant, though drinkers chasing the full weight of pot-still funk may find it restrained.