Rumclub Private Selection Ed. 54 2020

This is edition 54 of the Spirit of Rum's Rumclub Private Selection, a single cask of Ghanaian rum made from fresh pressed sugar cane juice, agricole in style though Ghana sits well outside the French appellation. It is aged around four and a half years and bottled unsweetened at a serious 64.3%, a cask chosen for character rather than comfort.

The spirit went into ex-bourbon oak and emerged dry and energetic, with sugarcane and green apple on the nose giving way to vanilla, a warm run of cardamom and chai spice, citrus and ripe tropical fruit, before a smoky, slightly tannic and dry finish. For its strength the alcohol sits remarkably softly, which makes the intensity easier to read than the proof suggests. It belongs with drinkers who enjoy punchy cane juice rum and the dry, fruit and spice energy of African distillates.