Vagabond Spirits Grays Rhum VSOP (Very Special Orange Product)

This Vagabond Spirits release takes molasses rum from the Mauritian distillery Grays and pushes it firmly into flavoured territory. The playful name, Very Special Orange Product, is the honest description: orange is the headline act, and this drinks more like an experiment in citrus than a conventional aged rum.

Bottled at 50%, it shows bitter orange, mandarin and yellow fruit on the nose, an orange, herbal and warm palate with a touch of bitterness, then dried apricot, young wood and orange peel on the finish. Drier and stronger than a sweet orange liqueur but built around the same fruit, it reads like chocolate-dipped candied orange with a rum backbone. One for the curious who enjoy an offbeat, citrus-forward pour rather than the base Grays rum on its own.