Kintra Clarendon 11Y 2007

Kintra, a Dutch independent bottler, selected this 2007 Clarendon as a single cask, aged eleven years in ex-bourbon and bottled at cask strength 52.5%. Clarendon is a Clarendon parish workhorse running pot and column stills, its pot marks capable of real funk, and this medium-dark release sits in characterful, fruit-driven territory.

Distilled on pot still from molasses, it noses on dried fruit and an earthy note, with pear, vanilla, honey, grape and citrus emerging, then a fruity palate of tropical fruit, green apple, citrus grass and light wood. There is a light ester thread and a faint chocolate edge, the strength giving it grip without harshness, though a metallic note can surface for some. Unsweetened and bottled from one barrel at full proof, it is a fruit-forward Jamaican single cask for drinkers who want the marque character at honest strength, rounded but with the distillery's earthy, slightly industrial signature still present.