Foursquare ECS XXX Penultimus 2010

Penultimus is the thirtieth and final numbered Mark in Foursquare's ECS range, the St Philip distillery's run of cask strength single blends overseen by Richard Seale. Distilled in 2010 and held fifteen years, it pairs the estate's double retort pot still with its twin column Coffey rum, all matured in ex-bourbon oak with no added sugar, colour or flavour, the additive-free approach that defines the house.

At 57% the wood sits forward, with dark chocolate, allspice and caramel threaded through a dried fruit sweetness that is entirely barrel-derived. The long maturation pushes it toward the drier, more tannic end of the range, where oak spice and a faint sour edge mark the limit of what the cask gives before the rum tips past its peak. A sipper for those who already know the ECS line and want its most heavily aged statement, best taken slowly and neat.