Nobilis Foursquare No. 23 FS 2006

Nobilis Rum selected this single cask Foursquare from the 2006 vintage, a 16 year release drawn at full cask strength. Foursquare, Richard Seale's St Philip estate, blends double-retort pot still rum with twin-column Coffey distillate and bottles strictly without additives, so this is authentic, island-aged Barbados rum with no sugar or colour to soften it.

Matured in ex-bourbon oak, it shows the estate's coconut and vanilla but in a drier, woodier frame, with leather and fruit on the nose and banana, mandarin peel, raisin and spice running through the palate to a bitter, chocolatey finish. The strength is the defining feature: at 65.4% the powerful nose impresses but the alcohol closes off some flavour and asks for water and patience. A dry, intense single cask for drinkers who already enjoy the estate's cask-strength annual releases and want extra muscle.