Distillerie d’Indochine Sampan Cellar Series 2020 Cognac Porto 4 ans

Distillerie d'Indochine's Sampan Cellar Series is a single cask Vietnamese rum from the 2020 vintage, column distilled and given a double finish in cognac and port casks. Bottled at 45% and four years old, it is a distinctive entry from Vietnam's small but rising rum scene.

The twin wine cask finishes shape much of the character, woody with tropical fruit and grapes on the nose, then a palate of wood, tropical fruit, grapes and barrel, the cognac and port leaving a vinous, fruity imprint over the column still base. Sweetening is undeclared, and the profile reads cask driven rather than overtly sugared. The result is an exotic, wine cask accented rum with a clear sense of its Southeast Asian origin, an interesting single cask for drinkers curious about rum from beyond the usual map, sipped neat to explore the cask interplay.