Again a somewhat belated review by yours truly. By the time of writing there are already 2 reviews of this rum. One by The Fat Rum Pirate, and one by The Rum Barrel. Both have given this rum a high rating, so I wanted to see if this heavy and funky palate is also fond of the Legacy edition from Chairman’s Reserve.
Chairman’s Reserve is a rum produced by Saint Lucia Distillers, located in Saint Lucia (always nice when the distillers’ name is indicative on its location, makes it easy to remember). The distillery produces with pot and columns stills, which is also the case for this rum.
I’ll now show the blend in this rum, shamelessly stolen from The fat Rum Pirate’s website
John Dore 2 – 7.5 years old – Molasses based (16%)
Pot Still Vendome – 7 years old – Molasses based (4%)
Coffey Column Still RR104 marque – 5.5 years old – Molasses based (72%)
Pot Still John Dore 2 – 5 years old – Sugar Cane Juice based (8%)
There we go, copy paste! Just like in school, making a presentation solely on Wikipedia. (please don’t sue me Wes).
These rums are each aged in ex-bourbon barrels before being blended together for the final result.
This rum is a dedication to the former chairman of the distillery and the man who introduced using pot stills and sugar cane juice into the rum making of the company, Laurie Barnard. Pushing for a more complex and attractive rum. One can only cheer on this type of vision, moving away from industrial column distilling towards a better process which yields less but better rum. Hence the distillery made this blend to honour Laurie.
Unfortunately the biggest part of the blend is column distilled, which to me usually means a less interesting rum. This and the fact that it’s bottled at 43% ABV shows the rum is meant for a broader public with a less weathered flavour palate. We’ll see if this is a good or a bad thing.
Colour:
Deep orange
Nose:
I must admit, the nose gives a good impression. A lovely layer of caramel which is glazed over allspice, oak, a hint of tobacco, some fresh green fruits and of course the obligatory vanilla. Very approachable nose, the massive amount of column still is hardly noticeable, a nice and full scent almost makes this foursquare-like.
Taste:
The palate is a somewhat other story. The first impression is a letdown compared to the nosing. It’s become more obvious where the column part was hiding, at first I don’t get much from the rum. Some woodiness, barely any spice and some raisins.
On the second sip the spiciness does start to pop up in a very small amount. The rum becomes somewhat more complex, with tobacco, more wood, some certain minty freshness. But to my taste it’s still a bit weak, like giving a handshake to someone who gives that limp hand, god I hate that.
I must admit, with every sip it does get incrementally better, but it never quite reaches that wow-moment.
Finish:
The finish is medium, with some oak, vanilla and spice.
Not really my kind of rum, but I can imagine there are a lot of people who may truly like this rum. I can say it’s very accessible yet complex for its 43% and price of about €38-40. But for that money I’d much rather have a Doorly’s 12. Which has a fuller palate than this lightweight of a rum.
But I’ve always said to rate rums for what they are, there’s no way I can compare the Legacy to my favourite line-up of hogo and funky rums. So I’ll try to give a slightly unbiased rating for the rum it’s trying to be. It may not be my personal kind of rum, but objectively it’s still decent.
6/10
The Rum Robin 