Famille Ricci Ten Cane Rare Single Cask 2008

Ten Cane was a short-lived Trinidad project, and aged single casks under its name are now scarce, which is part of the appeal of this 2008 vintage chosen by Famille Ricci. The French bottler has drawn one barrel and bottled it at a hefty 62.1 percent without reduction, letting 17 years in ex-bourbon oak set the tone.

The nose opens on vanilla, allspice and cocoa with a clear bourbon-cask sweetness, and the palate adds citrus, milk chocolate and barrel char that several tasters describe as a warm, gourmand, almost patisserie character. The finish runs woody and hot with brown sugar and more allspice, the high strength asking for a drop of water. Distilled from Trinidadian molasses, this is the lighter, fruit-and-pastry face of Trinidad rather than the heavy tarry style, dry on the tongue with no added sugar and plenty of cask power.