Mohan Meakin Distillery Old Monk Gold Reserve Rum

Old Monk is one of India's enduring rum names, and the Gold Reserve from Mohan Meakin steps up to a twelve year age statement at 42.8%. Column-distilled from molasses and matured in ex-bourbon wood, it carries the soft, vanilla-forward character that has long defined the brand.

The nose is caramel and vanilla over sweet oak, the palate keeps that sweetness with vanilla, caramel and gentle spice, and the finish turns toward coffee and burnt caramel with a dab of dried fruit. It drinks smooth and uncomplicated, more dessert than analysis, with dates and barrel notes filling out the middle. Whether sugar has been added is not stated, and some drinkers read a sweetness that may go beyond the cask, so the fair description is an easy, rounded sipper. It suits anyone after a familiar, comforting rum to drink neat or over ice.