Renegade Études Old Bacolet (Silk Cotton Tree) 2021

Renegade distills in Grenada from fresh pressed sugarcane juice, an agricole style rum outside the French AOC, and this Old Bacolet plot bottling from the 2021 harvest spent around eighteen months in ex bourbon oak. The short ageing rounds the spirit a little without smothering its wild, terroir driven character.

The profile is firmly savoury rather than sweet. The nose leans on dried fruit, vegetal notes, char and salt, the palate turns herbal and briny with olive, dried fruit and oak, and the finish stays herbal, bitter and faintly fermented. A little oak polish softens the edges while the salty, olive driven core keeps it characterful and strange. Unsweetened and clearly built for geeky comparison tastings, this is a slow sipper for drinkers who enjoy clairins and savoury agricoles and want something with a wild edge and a touch of barrel calm.