CoR Caroni No. 2 1997

The Colours of Rum, the purist Polish bottler, selected this single cask of Caroni distilled in 1997 and held twenty-five years at cask strength. Caroni, the closed Trinidad distillery whose rescued stock Velier made legendary, produced the dense industrial rum that this long-aged bottling preserves with no additives.

Matured in ex-bourbon oak from molasses, it is a concise expression of the 1997 vintage, varnish, leather and vanilla on the nose, then an intense palate of vanilla, leather and rubber with a strong impact of wood and spice. The finish runs woody, smoky and bitter with a touch of liquorice and only minimal sweetness. At 64.5% it is powerful enough that even a few drops of water leave it formidable, rewarding patience under the glass with creamy, dirty depth. A collector's Caroni, dry and intense.