Savanna Créol 2002

Savanna Creol 2002 is an aged agricole-style rum from Savanna on Reunion, a distillery founded in 1870 that famously makes three distinct families, agricole, molasses and the high-ester Grand Arome. This is its cane-juice expression, distilled from fresh-pressed sugar-cane juice and matured around six years in ex-bourbon oak.

The nose leans fruity and woody, with red fruits, florals and orchard fruit. The palate carries red fruits, a roasted character and wood with a grassy thread, and the finish turns woody, roasted and nutty with a port-like edge. The bourbon ageing brings a darker, fruitier profile than a fresh blanc, while the cane-juice base keeps it drier and more vegetal than a molasses rum of similar age. Bottled at 46%, it is balanced in strength and easy to approach. A characterful aged Reunion cane rum for drinkers curious about agricole from the Indian Ocean, best sipped neat to follow its red-fruit and oak interplay.