TBRC Labourdonnais

That Boutique-y Rum Company, the playful Atom Brands label curated by Peter Holland, makes honest no additive single casks and blends from across the rum world, and this release captures Labourdonnais of Mauritius at five years old and 49.8%. Pressed from fresh sugar cane juice in the agricole tradition, though outside the protected French island terms, it is an unsweetened, cane juice aged rum bottled at full island strength.

The nose is strikingly floral, likened to a box of old perfumes and old fashioned sweets, with fruit, allspice and a young oak edge. The palate is full of Christmas fruitcake, vanilla and a generous hit of cracked black pepper, with ginger and a touch of coconut mingling into a pleasing mouthfeel that improves sip by sip. The finish runs vegetal and spicy with nutmeg. A fragrant, characterful island rum from a bottler that lets the cane speak for itself.