#Appleton Estate Rhum

[ravensvalley]

#BecauseThereIsNoSuchThingAsOneDrink

[yolandashoshana]

A big box from Campari arrived and inside was this magickal bottle of Appleton Estate 8 Years Old Reserve Rum (sample)  Did you know that Appleton Estate is the oldest continuously producing rum distillery in Jamaica? BOOM! 💃🏾 The new 8 Year Old Reserve is crafted by Master Blender Joy Spence to commemorate the 250th anniversary. Every drop in the bottle has been aged for a minimum of 8 years. The versatile expression of aged rum brings aromas of spicy fruit and oak, followed by hints of honey, vanilla and our signature orange peel note.   Think I'll have a few sips of it with the slice of chocolate cake that I just got. What's in your glass? Cheers! #rum #jamaica #imbibe #cocktails #sipping #drinks #rhum #foodie #culinaryhistory #eeeats #appletonestate #homebartender #yolandshoshana #gastronomy #drinkporn #rumpunch (at Boogie Down Bronx) https://www.instagram.com/p/CESNOe6Den0/?igshid=1511tcsjxa7qs

[rumshopboy]

Guadeloupe

54% £300 (50cl)

Pure Single Rum: 100% Pot Still from a single distillery * P

I have something unusual in my glass to write about today. A rum distilled in the year I was born, 1972, and aged for an incredible 38 years.

Yes, I did say 38 years.

Recently, this has popped up on a few rum auction websites so I thought it was a good time for me to crack open one of my bottles and write about it.

The Courcelles distillery was founded in the 1930s and closed in 1964. Amédée Huygues Despointes, the owner, transferred operation to the Distillery Ste-Marthe where storing of quality rums continued and the Courcelles alembic still operated.

Production ceased in 1972. This particular edition was put into 220 litre french oak barrels in January 1973 and 38 years later in July 2011, it was removed from them. It was bottled in 2014 although it is not clear why there was a gap of three years between removing it from the casks and bottling.

There are various different editions of this rum floating around, bottlings at 42%, 47%, 54% and 58%. There are various independent bottlers releasing this juice including Velier and the one I am reviewing today, Rhumhouse from Switzerland.

Domaine de Courcelles (1972) is a Pure Single Rum: 100% Pot Still from a single distillery.

Bottle/Presentation 2/3

The bottle is small, square, squat and 50cl. It has a natural cork enclosure, encased in wax, which rather irritatingly, is like a wine cork and does not have a top/stopper on it, so each time you remove it, you have to put it back, or use your own enclosure.

The labels have some useful and historical info about the bottling.

Domaine de Courcelles (1972) Bottle (Front)

Domaine de Courcelles (1972) Bottle (Side)

Domaine de Courcelles (1972) Bottle (Rear Label)

Glass/Aroma 9/10

The initial aroma reminds me of an old oak dusty cabinet. Behind that lies a herbal, almost menthol nose that initially is quite powerful. Red cherries in dark chocolate, almonds, cinnamon and baked pears. A touch of water reveals something reminiscent of a pina colada aroma, like sun tan lotion.

Taste, Initial-middle 35/40

Initially sweet, almost sticky caramel sweet, but with powerful oak notes leading to baked fruits – apples, pears and bananas as well as dried fruits. Dark chocolate, cherries and spicy notes that build through the mid-palate are joined by vanilla and licorice.

Taste, Middle/Throat 38/40

Marzipan, cherries and coconut give a sweet impression but the old oak takes over and creates dried tannins and an astringency that builds with multiple tastings. Licorice and caramel are present, too.

At this point, I thought given that it is from Guadeloupe, it was one of the best agricole rhums I had ever tasted, but soon realised that was because it is actually a rum distilled from molasses. Oops!

Afterburn/Finish 6/7

The finish is medium long but is rather pleasant. Some of the dried oak and spice linger but are offset by some sweeter fruity notes, making it very appealing indeed.

TOTAL 90/100

Domaine de Courcelles (1972) Bottle (Side)

Overall

It is not every day that you drink rum distilled in the year of your birth – especially when you are heading towards 50. So, this is a special experience!

But more than just an experience, the rum is really tasty – It did not blow me away with my first taste, but as I have now nearly finished my first bottle, I have got know it and appreciate it so much more and it will sit “up there” in terms of one of the more unusual and special rums I have tried.

Truly a remarkable historical spirit giving an insight into distillates from almost 50 years ago combined with an incredibly long ageing.

If you get the chance to buy a bottle, do so.

Value: 6/10

Amazing rum, something unique from history and with 38 years of tropical ageing too. That said circa £300 for 50cl is a lot of money but as I have said before, if your budget stretches to this, your tastebuds will thank you forever.

Flavour Profile:

Review No. 144

* P Denotes the rum contains POT still distillate. C Denotes the rum contains traditional/Coffey COLUMN still distillate. B Denotes the rum contains a BLEND of POT and COLUMN still distillate. M Denotes the rum contains MULTI-COLUMN still distillate or is a MODERN rum. A Denotes the rum is an AGRICOLE i.e. from Cane Juice. S Denotes the rum is presented in a SWEETENED style.

Marking Guide: Bottle/Presentation Out of 3 Glass/Aroma Out of 10 Taste, Initial-middle Out of 40 Taste, Middle/Throat Out of 40 Afterburn Out of 7 TOTAL 100

Domaine de Courcelles: Distilled in 1972 and aged for 38 years. A remarkable historical spirit giving an insight into distillates from almost 50 years ago combined with an incredibly long ageing. https://rumshopboy.com/?p=15275 Guadeloupe 54% £300 (50cl) Pure Single Rum: 100% Pot Still from a single distillery * P…

[laforchettasullatlante]

Coccola serale: Rhum Appleton estate 21 anni e Arriba azienda Victoria, cioccolato @domorichoc fondente al 70% . . . #laforchettasullatlante #rum #rhum #ron #appleton #appletonestate #appletonestaterum #appletonestate21 #choco #chocolate #darkchocolate #domori #domorichocolate #cioccolato #arribachocolates #foodporn #rumandchocolate #aifb #fuudly #infoodwetrust #socialgnock #goodnight #saturdaynight #couple #noi #love #family (presso Rome, Italy)

[anisettarosati]

🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹 💢🍸"SIBILLLINI PUNCH" 🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹 🍸Ingredients: ~ Anisetta Rosati (20 ml.); ~ Trois Rivières Rhum Blanc Agricole (30 ml.); ~ Appleton Estate Reserve Blend Jamaica Rum (30 ml.); ~ Fresh Orange Juice (1 orange); ~ Fresh Lemon Juice (15 ml.). crafted by: @fabijac La Cantinaza ~ Milano Marittima. 🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹 #LaCantinaza #MilanoMarittima #AnisettaRosati #FabiJac #mixologist #Cantinaza #RivieraGin #BestBars #SpeakEasy #mixology #bartending #anisetta #AnisettaRosati1877 #AscoliPiceno #Picenoshire #anisette #igersRomagna #GentlemansCompanion #craftcocktails #cltdrink #craftcocktail cocktails #mixologymovement #IgersMilanoMarittima #cltdrinks #TheBonVivantsCompanion #VolgoRavenna #VolgoRomagna #lovemixology #InstaMilanoMarittima #AnisettaRosatiCocktails 🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹 (presso La Cantinaza Milano Marittima)

[ilovefrancefan]

Rum is an incredibly interesting spirit, from its rich history to modern-day debates on its true definition. It can be sipped straight or mixed into a cocktail. There’s also its cheeky tiki side. En plus, it’s got a real French connection with artisanal rhum agricole hailing from the islands. If you’re already a rum lover or are ready to explore a bit more, then get ready for this year’s Rhumfest 22 and 23 April (general public) and 24 April (professionals) at the Parc Floral (and, note the nod to the Parc on this year’s poster with the peacocks recalling those that roam the grounds…) Rhumfest is a salon that will showcase the spirit through tastings, master classes, talks and more. For example, catch big rum personalities like Ian Burrell giving an Appleton Estate Master Class or historian Matthieu Lange presenting rum from the mid-19th century to 1930 (Be sure to reserve online ahead of time for the classes and talks to ensure a spot). In addition, there will be an “Eveil des Sens” session that will awaken your senses as well as tasting classes overseen by rum experts Cyrille Mald and Alexandre Vingtier. Finally, a Central Park Bar promises plenty of rum cocktails and more fun. If you can’t make the event, master classes and many of the events will be broadcast live on social networks. There will be 138 brands present, meaning you’ll have the chance to interact with some old standbys like Havana and try their new reference Pacto Navio (available in France and Cuba –only) or taste something new and excellent like the O.F.T.D. from Plantation, created by an impressive team of rum experts. >more The post Rum’s French Accent appeared first on .

http://www.theparisblog.com/rums-french-accent/

[wineanddinosaur]

With New Classifications and Surging Sales, Super-Premium Dark Rum is Eyeing Bourbon Lovers

In 2018, rare bottles of bourbon, Japanese whisky, and single-malt Scotch broke worldwide auction records. No fewer than three Scotch whiskies sold for more than $1 million apiece.

There’s clearly money to be made in top-shelf dark spirits, which explains why smart producers, marketers, and collectors are now betting on a rum boom. “I’ve personally seen a lot of bourbon guys who are liquidating their collections, and buying rum,” says Jan Warren, a veteran New York bartender and portfolio specialist at La Maison and Velier, a global spirits distributor.

“It’s no big secret that all the money has moved to super-premium and high-end brands,” says spirits writer Wayne Curtis. “Everyone is scrambling to get there so they don’t get left behind.”

The Distilled Spirits Council defines super premium rum as bottles priced at $35 or more. In 2018, the category grew nearly 30 percent. It’s now valued at $179 million, a small-but-not-insignificant chunk of the $27 billion U.S. spirits market.

Rum brands — particularly dark rum — are eager to replicate the recent successes of other dark spirits. Among those trying to capture lightning in a bottle are: Bermuda-based Goslings, which released a limited-run, 15-year-aged bottling in January 2019; Trinidadian distiller Angostura, which debuted a limited-edition, Oloroso-sherry-cask-aged rum in September 2018; and Jamaica’s Appleton Estate, who released 4,000 bottles of 30-year-aged rum at $495 each.

Bacardí added a premium collection of aged rums to its lineup in April 2018. In 2013, it launched its “Facundo” line, named for the brand’s founder, Don Facundo Bacardí Masso. The exclusive series includes three aged dark rums, ranging from $60 to $250 a bottle.

With vanilla, caramel, and barrel spice notes, dark rums are well-positioned to entice bourbon drinkers. The brands are well aware of this: “Premium dark spirits consumers” are the target market for Appleton Estate, according to Melanie Batchelor, vice president of marketing at Campari America, Appleton’s parent company.

Rum drinks were largely left out of the early 21st-century classic cocktail revival, which brought Negronis and Old Fashioneds out of retirement and into millennials’ glassware. Now, however, Daiquiris and rum-centric tiki drinks are resurging. “When [bartenders] begin to champion your brand, that’s half the battle,” Robert Nieves, a NYC bartender and Facundo brand ambassador, says.

Darnell Holguin, beverage director at Las’ Lap, typically serves high-end, aged dark rum neat. But if he’s mixing up a “super-premium” cocktail, he opts for Bacardí 10 on the rocks, with a dash of bitters. The drink is essentially a rum Old Fashioned, a cocktail Nieves has spent the last two or three years championing. Dark rum has enough natural sweetness that you don’t need to add simple syrup or sugar, Nieves says. Besides, there’s absolutely nothing wrong with enjoying a little sugar in your booze.

“People like sweet things, they just don’t want to admit it,” Ed Hamilton, a longtime rum importer and author of multiple books on the spirit, says. “Ask a whiskey drinker if they like sweet, and they’ll say ‘no,’ but you give them a sweet bourbon or a sweet whiskey and they like it. Same thing with wine.”

Another challenge for rum producers is transparency. “If you buy a bottle, you want to be sure of what’s in it, especially when it is a certain price,” Nadège Perrot, international senior brand manager for Martinique-­made rhum agricole Saint James, told Liquor.com in 2018.

“Unlike bourbon, which is highly regulated, rum is very fragmented,” Batchelor writes. Around 70 countries produce rum, each via different methods and raw materials. Some are stricter than others when it comes to labeling. The age statement on one bottle might represent that of the youngest spirit, while on another, the number represents the oldest. For some, that number might be a complete work of fiction.

To combat this, Jamaica is currently working towards a Geographical Indicator (GI) for its rums. “Only Jamaican rum made to strict quality control standards can claim the origin name,” Batchelor writes. “Key components of the GI protection include minimum aging standards and also ‘no added sugar’ to affect the taste or aroma profiles.”

Ultimately, quality will prevail. “[We’re seeing] bottlings now that I think will carry the torch for the category,” Warren says of distillers like Neisson, Worthy Park, Hampden Estate, and Foursquare (the latter has been described as the “Pappy of rum”). Each retails for less than $100, but regularly fetches hundreds of dollars on the secondary market. For those of us who didn’t board the Pappy ship before it set sail, super-premium dark rum might just be the next best bet.

The article With New Classifications and Surging Sales, Super-Premium Dark Rum is Eyeing Bourbon Lovers appeared first on VinePair.

source https://vinepair.com/articles/best-premium-dark-rum-2019/

[wineanddinosaur]

A Real-Time Countdown to Celebrating New Year’s Eve Around the World

It’s been a long year. So believe us when we say we’re ready for New Year’s Eve — that special time of year when counting in unison is fun, and exuberantly singing strangers seem kind of nice. Whether you celebrate in a packed club, alone under so many blankets, or up in space getting sauced with astronauts (more on that later), New Year’s is a special time on our troubled little planet. It’s our annual, international keg stand to honor Father Time.

To celebrate the global New Year, and because a lot of us are working on NYE and need a way to rationalize some light day drinking, we’re clocking the arrival of 2019 around the world. Thanks to this incredible New Year Map from TimeandDate.com, it’s entirely possible to track who sees it first and who sees it last.

In the spirit of global community, we’ve compiled 10 ways to celebrate as the day progresses, inspired by 30-plus destinations around the world. We based our timeline on Eastern Standard Time (ET) — not due to any East Coast U.S. snobbery, but because that’s where the ball drops in NYC’s Times Square. Besides, we all need a starting (or ending?) point.

6:00 a.m. ET

If you’re on America’s East Coast you’re currently cursing at your alarm (New Year’s Eve is a Monday?), but Samoa and New Zealand’s Chatham Islands are 17 hours ahead and already celebrating. They’re the first to see 2019. Fiji celebrates an hour later, most likely because a poolside massage ran long.

If you’re functioning at 6:00 a.m. and want to toast the South Pacific, you could whip up a quick tiki cocktail in celebration of that timeworn, all-American ode to Polynesian fantasia (here are drink recs from the pros). Or you could try to get your hands on kava, a beverage made from the roots of a plant found in Fiji and other South Pacific islands, and increasingly popular in the U.S.

The clock strikes midnight in Fiji at 7:00 a.m. ET.

10:00 a.m. ET

Brunch-o-clock ET is when Tokyo and Darwin, Australia ring in the new year. Japanese New Year’s is traditionally pretty quiet, but you can honor Tokyo with a tumbler of Hibiki (since that whole “Japanese whisky shortage” thing isn’t likely to get better in 2019).

Australians are deep into summertime by Dec. 31; if Outback commercials are to be believed, they’re mostly limbo-ing the days and nights away. You could limber up, or you could make like Oz’s own Penfolds winemaker Steph Dutton and drink all the Chardonnay.

Beijing, which is 13 hours ahead of ET, will soon ring in 2019. Raise a celebratory shot of Baiju, the No. 1-selling spirit in the world.

Fireworks over Sydney, Australia, which celebrates NYE at 10:00 a.m. ET.

Noon ET

Whether it’s your lunch hour and you’re about to write an email foolishly titled “F this job, it’s New Year’s,” or you’re currently getting out of bed, think of Bangkok, Laos, Jakarta, and Vietnam, where the clock just struck midnight.

The actual Thai New Year isn’t until April, but Vietnamese “Tet,” the Lunar New Year celebration, begins Jan. 1. If you can get your hands on Vietnamese sticky rice wine, or a bottle of Singha, here’s to counting down 12 more hours.

Bangkok celebrates its new year at 12:00 p.m. ET.

3:00 p.m. ET

It’s officially New Year’s in Moscow, which means our national frenemy is already cheersing 2019 with a bunch of ice-cold vodka (we assume they’re careful when they celebrate, though, because they did run out of it that one time).

If you have access to Champagne and fire, you could make like the Muscovites by writing a New Year’s wish on a piece of paper, burning it, and then dumping the ashes into bubbly. In Russia, they down the whole glass before the clock strikes 12:01 a.m.

When celebrating NYE in Moscow, revelers write a New Year’s wish on a piece of paper, burn it, and pour the ashes into bubbly. They are then tasked with drinking the Champagne before 12:01 a.m.

7:00 p.m. ET

At this hour, those of us in this time zone probably still have shreds of civility. But in Edinburgh, where 2019 has just made her 12:00 a.m. GMT appearance, revelers are deep in the clutches of Hogmanay, a three-day New Year’s celebration with ancient Norse, Gaelic, and French roots. Honor their inebriation by sipping on a smooth Macallan. Alternately, drink like a real-life Scottish bartender, or see if they have any of those Tiny Cans for Tiny Hands left available from Trump’s visit.

Frankfurt, Paris, Prague, Warsaw, Madrid, Stockholm, and Amsterdam all hit New Year’s at 6:00 p.m. ET, so feel free to start your dinner with the Pilsner, Pinot, or, um, edible of your choice.

When it’s midnight in Edinburgh, revelers are deep in the clutches of Hogmanay, a three-day New Year’s celebration with ancient Norse, Gaelic, and French roots.

10:00 p.m. ET

It’s midnight in parts of Brazil and Buenos Aires, Argentina, which probably means a lot of people are dancing really, really well somewhere. An easy way to honor the global celebration is to mix something light and fresh with Cachaca, the Brazilian spirit used in the Caipirinha. It’s somewhat similar to rhum agricole and unaged tequilas. Try it on ice, in a Caipirinha, or even as a stand-in for gin in a Negroni.

Toast the new year in Brazil by drinking Caipirinhas and dancing really, really well.

Midnight ET

That’s you! Happy New Year! If you’re actually in New York and find yourself in Times Square (on a dare?), godspeed. You need a drink. Any drink.

But it’s also New Year’s in Peru, Ecuador, Jamaica, Cuba, Montreal, and a super-northerly place called Grise Fjord, an Inuit territory in Canada that’s one of the coldest inhabited places in the world and has awesome sled dogs like this.

So drink some Champagne, or Pisco, or some Appleton Estate, and toast to the pets and pours that keep us happy all year long.

If you find yourself in Times Square at midnight in NYC, you likely need a drink. Any drink.

3:00 a.m. ET

If you’re on ET, you’re either rationalizing another cocktail or you’ve made the incredibly wise choice of finding greasy food to (maybe?) fend off the first hangover of 2019. It’s just turning into 2019 in L.A., Seattle, and (almost) Juneau. If you’re somehow still drinking, grab an Alaskan Amber or sip some of Juneau’s own Malaga gin.

It’s also 2019 in a place called Pitcairn Island, a British territory in the South Pacific, which is interesting because it’s the only place we know of where pissed-off sailors comprise a significant portion of the population. (The volcanic island’s tiny population is descended from Tahitians and 1789 mutineers from the HMS Bounty, as in “Mutiny on the Bounty”.) You could toast Pitcairn with navy-strength gin.

Seattle, Los Angeles, and Pitcairn Island, in the South Pacific, celebrate New Year’s at 3:00 a.m. ET.

6:00 a.m. ET

Only a couple of places still haven’t seen the new year, including American Samoa and Baker Island. Because time zones are so very arbitrary, Baker Island is a stone’s throw, Earth-wise, from Samoa, but they celebrate the New Year 26 hours apart. Neither of these Pacific islands is particularly known for its coffee (fun fact: American Samoa’s largest export is canned tuna!), but probably that’s what you should be drinking right about now.

It is midnight in American Samoa at 6:00 a.m. ET. If you’re on eastern time, you should probably switch to coffee.

Sweet Dreams

If you think you’ve had a long night, remember that the International Space Station rings in the new year 16 times. That’s 16 attempts at remembering the words to “Auld Lang Syne.” In a tiny space capsule. Happy 2019!

The post A Real-Time Countdown to Celebrating New Year’s Eve Around the World appeared first on VinePair.

source https://vinepair.com/articles/best-new-years-eve-drinks-world/