Overview
Brand: Dead Reckoning
Origin: Foursquare, St. Philip, Barbados
Still: Pot & Column Blend
Age: 9 years, 6 months
Finish: ex-Bourbon & ex-Sherry
ABV: 52%
To wrap up a trio of rum reviews focusing on Dead Reckoning, we trade the expansive waters of the Pacific Ocean for the warm Caribbean sea.
This Barbados single cask is an independent bottling of rum from the Foursquare rum distillery in St. Philip, Barbados– hardly an unknown entity in the rum world. Among the Bajan producer's Exceptional Cask Selection series is a number of "Sherried Foursquare" releases, some of which are oft-raved about bottles; Dead Reckoning's Justin Boseley decided to try his hand at using this favored cask type for this rum.
Dead Reckoning Barbados PX Cask is a pot & column blend of molasses-based rum that spent 8 years maturing in Barbados. Then, it was transported to Adelaide, where it was re-casked for 6 months into a barrel that previously held a 40 year old PX sherry. Finally, it spent another year in a heavily charred ex-Bourbon cask, totaling 9 and 1/2 years of aging before being bottled at 52% ABV.
For the last two steps of maturation, Boseley utilizes a more arid area of South Australia in what he refers to as "dry aging". This causes the rum's proof to rise during the aging process, and perhaps changing the profile in unique ways.
Appearance
Amber, low viscosity
Nose
Fresh ripened strawberries, raspberry jam, cabernet wine, vanilla, toffee, banana bread, bubblegum
Palate
Vanilla, strawberries in cream, banana bread, stewed raspberries, pastry dough, toffee, cinnamon sugar
Finish
Long, warm, complex; vanilla, toffee, butterscotch, crème brûlée, brown sugar-covered strawberries
Rating: 8/10
Summary
While I can sometimes get tired of ex-Sherry cask Foursquare, this release is a breath of fresh air. Dead Reckoning's Barbados PX Cask offers notes typical of sherry, but in a much more subtle form.
Strawberries and raspberries in various form jump out at different points, joining red wine in this rum's fruit notes. The nose and palate offer vanilla, toffee, banana bread, and bubblegum as well. Cinnamon sugar and pastry dough lead the initial flavors to a finish that is warm, complex, and finishes with sweet crème brûlée and brown sugar-covered strawberries.
This is really delightful, and akin to the amount of Sherry influence that I think really works well with Foursquare's profile. I'll take the likes of Magisterium and Sovereignty all day, but this PX Cask was treated in a unique way, and the results speak for themselves. Hats off to the Dead Reckoning team on this one!