Rasta Morris review #3. And this one should be no surprise… Yes! It’s a Foursquare. Because every Indy rum bottler should at least attempt to get a Foursquare in their portfolio.
In the short time, I’ve had this blog, I’ve written about Foursquare quite frequently. With the distillery being the golden standard for non-Jamaican rum (as this is a whole different category to me) it’s more a question about picking a favourite kid at the moment. It’s hard, some of the crazier (think Sassafras) or the more accessible expressions (think Détente) really make me happy. These are the kid’s that are either great athletes or are on their way to becoming doctors or something.
However, it must be said that the other -meaning ex-bourbon- Foursquare rums are all very similar on some levels. Which of course is understandable… as they’re all from the same distillery, with the same finish. The only variable is the ABV. So there’s little that sets them apart sometimes.
All these consistent and consistently good rums that I’ve tried were official bottlings. OB’s will always have a certain amount of homogeneity about them, this counts for rum as much as it does for whisky. Independent bottlings, however, have the opportunity to show a different part of the much-loved distilleries. I do hope this bottling will have that. As I love Foursquare, but I’m curious about some new Foursquare aspects. Let’s see if this is a wacky and varied Indy or bottling of a palate we all know and love.
For the specs: this is a 14-year-old Foursquare, distilled in 2005, aged in the tropics for 11 years and bottled in 2019 at a cask strength of 63.6%. Only 273 bottles were released.
Colour:
Somewhere between gold and copper. Nice orange hue
Nose:
Ah yes, typically Foursquare. Be it with a slight twist, it smells a bit fresher and vegetal than what I’m used to. The slight glue/polish scents from the other high ABV Foursquare releases are present, along with a certain minerality. This minerality helps give the fruitiness of the rum a new definition. Making it more juicy and fresher. Mango, guava and fresh pineapple are the notes I’m getting. The longer the rum breathes the more the fruit fades away for the dark tea, caramel and leather notes we’re more familiar with when it comes to Foursquare. Anyhow, nice complexity on the nose.
Taste:
The taste leans more towards the classical, browner vanilla, caramel and spice Foursquare palate. The warm spice of Foursquare along with its trademark glue/polish and the ever-inviting fruit-caramel combo should be the stuff of hymns.
This bottling does have something extra though. It’s hard to describe, but it’s almost something dirty. A bit of rubber and lots of leather and tobacco. This makes the palate increasingly heavy, along with the spice this is becoming a hefty fellow.
Finish:
The finish is very extended. With the heavier flavours remaining, the leather, caramel, tobacco, and glue are present from start to finish (apart from the nose).
It should be no surprise that a Foursquare release is good. It’s become a familiar and continually satisfying palate. The nose gave the initial indication of a very fresh palate, this seemed not to be the case. The palate instead was heavier and darker than any Foursquare I’ve had so far. This gave the rum a very dynamic and complex experience from the fresh start to the dark finish. much of the same goodness with some elongated pleasures on both side of the spectrum. so yeah, pretty good.
9/10
The Rum Robin 