Overview
Brand: Worthy Park, Special Barrel series
Origin: Worthy Park, Lluidas Vale, Saint Catherine Parish, Jamaica (picked by Smuggler's Cove x K&L Wines)
Still: Pot
Age: 14 years
Finish: ex-Bourbon
ABV: 54%
No, you're not seeing double; this is indeed another long-aged pot still rum released by Worthy Park and selected by a group of stateside rum fanatics. This time, the West coast is represented as this release was picked as a collaboration between esteemed Bay Area tiki bar Smuggler's Cove (represented by Martin Cate), and expert wine and spirits merchant K&L Wines (represented by David Othenin-Girard).
Their selection, "Worthy Then", is an ex-Bourbon barrel-aged rum that was produced in some of the first batches since Worthy Park resumed distilling operations in 2006. Like the Gemini pick made by the Florida Rum Society (FRS), Worthy Then is a singular bottling of the WPM (Worthy Park Medium) marque; these 2 releases represent the only WPM standalone bottlings in the US as of May 2022.
The K&L Wines listing for this bottle has a little more information on the marque; they say that WPM is…
a rarely bottled marque that blends their Worthy Park Light (WPL) rum with high ester Worthy Park Extra (WPE) rum.
This is another cask strength release– coming in at 54%, and aged slightly longer than the Gemini barrels, being bottled in 2020 after 14 years of aging. I'm excited to see how the extra time affected this rum, so let's get right into it.
Appearance
Darker orange brown, medium clarity, high viscosity
Nose
Warm almond bars, overripe banana, grilled pineapples, brown sugar, cinnamon
Palate
Ripe banana, grilled pineapple, bitter almonds, sour red grapes, cinnamon, clove, bourbon oak
Finish
Long, moist, warming, filled with funk, cooling menthol, tropical fruits; almost no tannins
Rating: 9/10
Summary
Yes, another 9-pointer from a pick of Worthy Park rum. No, I'm not sorry about it (especially since I'm sipping it as I write this). Sorry Florida Rum Society, but y'all's pick will be sharing the honors with this amazing bottle from the West coast.
Worthy Then ratchets up the funk to a little bit higher level than the Gemini did, and in my opinion is a little bit heavier than that release as well, both on the nose and the palate.
This rum's appearance is a little bit darker, sporting a dark golden brown color and high viscosity.
On the nose, you're greeted with an explosion of ripe bananas and pineapples, warm almond bars, brown sugar, and cinnamon. It shares some of the same nutty notes as Gemini, but veers more towards fruity than savory.
The palate offers notes of ripe banana, grilled pineapple, bitter almonds, sour red grapes, cinnamon, clove, and bourbon oak. Just like the nose, your tastebuds are absolutely blasted with funky, fruity notes, that also are accompanied by some earthy spices. The bourbon barrel this was aged in for nearly a decade and a half definitely lets itself be known, as this note lingers for a while through the experience.
Each sip ends with a long and warming finish, filled with fruity frunk, cooling menthol, and almost no tannins. This last part was pretty surprising, given the spicy notes on the palate and the lengthy aging process this barrel underwent.
This is another fantastic private release selected from prized Worthy Park stocks. I really do enjoy this as much as the Gemini (not that it's a contest!) and find that it offers plenty of differing notes from the younger release to make it definitely worth your while to pick up a bottle.