Foursquare ECS IX Empery 2004

Empery is a Mark in Foursquare's ECS range, the distillery's celebrated run of limited single blends made under Richard Seale's dry, additive free philosophy. This is a 2004 vintage taken to fourteen years, the classic Barbados marriage of double retort pot still and column rum, here shaped by both sherry and port casks.

Unsweetened and bottled at 56%, it shows how well the elegant Bajan style takes to fortified wine wood. The familiar pastry notes of the house meet dried fruit, dark chocolate, tobacco and toasted oak, with coffee and spice on a long finish, the port adding richness without making it sweet. It stays balanced and rounded despite the strength, an everyday kind of complexity rather than a difficult one. A rewarding pour for drinkers who enjoy the ECS releases and want more dried fruit, chocolate and tobacco at higher strength, with no added sugar in sight.