St. Nicholas Abbey Foursquare 18 Years old

St Nicholas Abbey, the historic Barbados estate, here bottles an 18 year old single cask of Foursquare rather than its own estate spirit, drawing on the island distillery whose strict no-additives stance it shares. Bottled at a sessionable 40 percent and unsweetened, it shows what extended ageing brings to Foursquare's character.

The nose is sweet and fruity, plum, pineapple and raisin, and the palate keeps that fruit lead with pineapple and raisin over brown sugar and gentle spice. The finish runs spicy and warm with oak and a touch of sweetness. Distilled from molasses on pot and column stills and matured in ex-bourbon oak for 18 years, it is dry and additive-free in the authentic island tradition, the long maturation lending depth rather than heat at this modest strength. A soft, mature and fruit-driven Barbados single cask from one of the island's most respected estates.