Savanna Edition Bois Rouge (1992-2022)

This Bois Rouge edition is a cane-juice rum from Savanna in Reunion, distilled on a Savalle column and aged before bottling unsweetened at 57%. Reunion can use the word rhum agricole, and this is a genuine cane-juice expression, a more vegetal and herbal take on aged agricole that stands apart from the Martinique houses.

Distilling cane juice at low strength keeps the grassy, savoury congeners in the spirit, and time in ex-bourbon oak layers tobacco, leather and soft wood over a core of olive brine, green apple, sugarcane and white pepper. With no added sugar there is nothing to round off the edges, so it reads dry, herbal and intense, the oak supporting rather than smothering the cane. At full strength it suits slow neat sipping and bold twists on classic cocktails, and it shows how distinct Reunion can be from the Antillean agricole template.