Rum Nation Long Pond Small Batch Rare Rums 1986

This Rum Nation Small Batch sits in the dry Rare Rums tier, a Long Pond distilled in 1986 and bottled at thirty years old. Long Pond in Trelawny is the historic Wedderburn house, usually funky and fruit-forward, but three decades of age and a sherry influence pull this release toward a softer, more reflective character than the marque's high-ester reputation would suggest.

Distilled on the double-retort pot still from molasses and matured with time in sherry wood, the long ageing mellows the funk and brings dried-fruit warmth forward. The nose is tropical fruit, tobacco, ester and prune; the palate carries banana, cherry, a gentle funk and caramel, closing on sherry, spice, a sweet edge and warmth. Bottled at an easygoing 48.7%, it leans gentle and fruit-driven, with esters playing a supporting rather than leading role. A relaxed, contemplative old Long Pond for explorers who like the softer, lower-ester, sherry-touched side of Jamaican rum.