Ferroni Saint Maurice France Equatoriale 2016

Maison Ferroni, the Provence-based independent known for cask-strength unsweetened rums, selected this 2016 from Saint Maurice, the historic distillery of French Guiana. It is made from fresh-pressed sugarcane juice rather than molasses, an agricole-style spirit from France's South American territory.

Distilled through a column still and bottled at a formidable 64.3%, the alcohol is pungent and front and centre, carrying aromas of young wood, grass and fermented light fruit through to the finish. Beneath the heat sit honey, flowers and exotic fruit such as pineapple and citrus, with a cognac-cask-like fruitiness and a herbal, tannic, oak-streaked close. There is no added sugar. This is a powerful, demanding rum that all but requires water or a cocktail to show its floral, fruity side; taken neat it is for confirmed lovers of high-proof cane spirit who relish intensity over ease.