Kill Devil 2000

Kill Devil is the rum arm of the Scottish whisky house Hunter Laing, bottling natural, non-chill-filtered single casks. This 2000 Barbados release comes from WIRD, the island's big volume distillery in Bridgetown, drawn at 21 years and presented at cask strength, 51.3%, and unsweetened in the house manner.

WIRD runs the most varied still park on Barbados, and this cask sits well away from the usual coconut-and-caramel Bajan template. Florals, banana and citrus lead, joined by nuts, toffee and a distinctly dirty thread of tar and rubber, with honeyed cacao and a roasted, mocha-like depth on the finish. Aged in ex-bourbon oak and bottled dry, it drinks as an offbeat, slightly funky outlier rather than a polished crowd-pleaser. The strength is comfortable and the profile rewards patience, an intriguing, complex Barbados for drinkers who enjoy a low-ester island rum with an unexpected savoury streak.