Licorera Cihuatán Single Barrel (Perola)

This single barrel of Cihuatan was selected by Perola from the Salvadoran distillery Licorera Cihuatan, a fifteen year old column rum from molasses, aged in Ex-Bourbon oak and bottled at full cask strength, 55.2%. Cihuatan has built a strong reputation among aged rum drinkers, and a single cask at natural strength shows the distillery near the top of its game.

The long Ex-Bourbon ageing and the undiluted proof deliver real concentration, the nose offering dried fruit, dark chocolate and a clear bourbon cask character with a woody depth. The palate is thick and rich, fudge, cream toffee and dried fruit with a salted caramel sweetness, then a finish of cocoa, almond and barrel spice with a whiskyish edge. There is no added sugar listed, so the density reads as the work of cask and tropical leaning maturation. It stands among the more impressive things El Salvador has put on the market, a deep, dessert rich single barrel for serious sipping.