Crucial Drinks Diamond Rum & Cane XO

Crucial Drinks bottled this single cask of Diamond rum for its Rum and Cane XO line, a six year old Guyanese drawn from a blend of pot and column still spirit. That combination sits on the lighter, more accessible side of the Demerara family, the workhorse Diamond style with toffee and chocolate rather than heavy oil. Young but well put together, it offers easy value.

Molasses based and matured in ex-bourbon oak, it noses on wood, vanilla, dried fruit and leather, then turns woody, sweet and cocoa laced on the palate before a spicy, roasted, cocoa tinged finish. Leather and liquorice sit in the background, and the whole stays nicely balanced with a surprisingly long finish for its age. Bottled at 46%, it is a fruity, spiced, wood forward sipper that delivers the Diamond character in approachable form, a sound everyday Demerara rather than a heavyweight collectible.