Overview
Brand: Chairman's Reserve, Master's Selection series
Origin: Saint Lucia Distillers Ltd., Roseau, Anse la Raye, Saint Lucia (picked by Binny's)
Still: Pot (John Dore 1) & Hybrid (Vendôme) blend
Age: 15 years
Finish: ex-Bourbon
ABV: 61.9%
Thanks to some friends in the rum community, I was made aware of this Chairman's Reserve single cask selected by Chicago wine & spirits chain Binny's. I was able to pick up a bottle while visiting family, and I'm excited to dive into this today.
Chairman's Reserve Single Cask, picked by Binny's, was produced in 2005 at Saint Lucia Distillers (SLD) using a combination of their John Dore 1 pot still and Vendôme hybrid still. The resulting rum was placed in an ex-Bourbon cask and aged on-site for 15 years. It was bottled at 61.9% ABV, yielding 229 bottles in total.
Appearance
Dark orange-brown, low viscosity
Nose
Macerated blueberries, starfruit, grilled pineapple, overripe banana peel, flamed orange peel, plums, dates, molasses, industrial varnish
Palate
Overripe pineapple, stewed blueberries, cinnamon, starfruit, raspberry tart, dates, vanilla, brown sugar
Finish
Long, funky, tannic; oak, vanilla, nutmeg, rotting pineapple, orange peel, overripe banana peel, brown sugar, toasted cinnamon stick
Rating: 8/10
Summary
This Binny's single cask Chairman's Reserve is absolutely delicious. Lots of tropical fruits throughout, that pungent industrial funk many love about SLD rums, and a healthy dose of tannins from the long aging.
Macerated and stewed blueberries, starfruit, grilled and overripe pineapple, and overripe banana peel lead the main notes of this, with a heap of industrial varnish funk and the spices of vanilla, cinnamon, and nutmeg heavily involved as well. Dark fruity/sweet notes of dates, plums, and molasses augment the nose, while a toasty raspberry tart and brown sugar pair with the tropical, rotting fruits on the palate. The finish carries enough oak tannins to remind you of the 15 years spent in oak, but that's balanced by more fruity funk and spices.
You won't find better value than this single barrel, and I'm definitely happy I acquired such an excellent long-aged single cask of Saint Lucian rum.