Diamond Kill Devil 2014

Diamond Kill Devil 2014 is a single cask Demerara from the Diamond distillery, selected by the Scottish whisky house Hunter Laing for its Kill Devil line and bottled at cask strength, non-chill-filtered in the house style. At eight years it is younger than many of its Kill Devil siblings but loses none of the line's intensity.

Matured in ex-bourbon wood and bottled at a fierce 65.1%, the rum carries real punch. The nose is fruity and peppery with cookie and hazelnut, while the palate turns nutty, roasted and woody under the high strength. There is a long finish and an interesting, shifting character that asks for a second look. At this proof a drop of water helps it open. This is a vigorous, full-proof young Diamond, a single cask for drinkers who want power and nutty oak over the smoother, more developed profile of an older Guyana rum.