Ferroni La Dame Jeanne 7

Maison Ferroni is a French craft bottler from Provence known for unsweetened, cask-strength rum, and this La Dame Jeanne 7 is a Panamanian molasses rum bottled at a robust 57%. True to the house style, it is dry and characterful rather than soft, and it turns out to be a strikingly atypical Panamanian, more austere and savoury than the region's usual mellow profile.

The nose is unusual and mineral, olive and sugarcane over green fruit. The palate carries that savoury, briny character, burnt notes, olive and green fruit over wood, while the finish brings sugarcane, more burnt sugar, minerality and barrel notes. This is an off-beat, dry, almost saline take on Panamanian rum, the high strength and additive-free approach laying its quirks bare. A pour for adventurous drinkers who want their Spanish-style rum stripped of sweetness and pushed somewhere unexpected, rewarding curiosity over comfort.