T.D.L Plantation Grand Terroir 2008

This Grand Terroir release draws on light column-still rum from TDL, the living Trinidad distillery within the Angostura group, bottled under the Plantation banner by Maison Ferrand in France. It comes from the 2008 vintage at a relaxed 42% and sits squarely in the soft, approachable end of the Trinidad style.

TDL works in the Spanish-heritage idiom, distilling molasses light and clean, and that shows here in a gentle, honeyed profile of vanilla, caramel and tropical fruit with mild wood spice and a dusting of black pepper on the finish. Plantation bottlings are typically given a dosage in the house manner, so the natural sweetness reads soft and rounded rather than bone dry, and the body stays light. This is an uncomplicated after-dinner pour, more about easy charm than structure, and a friendly introduction to the lighter Trinidad style.