Overview
Brand: Chairman's Reserve
Origin: Saint Lucia Distillers Ltd., Roseau, Anse la Raye, Saint Lucia (picked by Liquor Lineup)
Still: Pot (John Dore 1)
Age: 17 years
Finish: ex-Bourbon
ABV: 64.1%
This bottle, like many wonderful experiences in this hobby, was made possible due to the broader rum community. I was made aware of this thanks to Ben from Boston Rum Social Club, whose club secured part of the same cask, as well as a rum Discord group that was discussing the online retail listing.
Because I can never have too many Saint Lucian rums, I decided to snag this bottle and a single malt Scotch that was on sale at Liquor Lineup, a Las Vegas-based liquor store.
Chairman's Reserve Single Cask 17 year, selected by Liquor Lineup, is the product of molasses-based fermentation and distillation using the John Dore 1 pot still at Saint Lucia Distillers in Roseau. It spent its full 17 years aging tropically in an ex-Bourbon cask, before bottling at 64.1% ABV.
Appearance
Dark reddish-brown, medium viscosity
Nose
Fresh blueberries, muddled raspberries, kiwi, banana bread, marzipan, black cherries, diesel fuel
Palate
Black cherry cobbler, paint thinner, rotting blueberries, underripe kiwi, cantaloupe, muddled raspberries, cranberries, anise, cinnamon
Finish
Long, fruity, dark; oak tannins, stewed cranberries, overripe blueberries, anise, cinnamon, ground espresso
Rating: 9/10
Summary
This 17 year single cask rum is remarkable; I've said it before, and will say it again, Chairman's single casks are perhaps the best value in the rum market today. This is chock-full of all sorts of fruits mingling with the tangy industrial notes that Saint Lucian rum fans love.
I've got to remark on how beautiful this rum is in the glass: its reddish-brown hue is vibrant enough to trick one into thinking you've got brandy in the glass. Taking a deep whiff, however, will quickly inform that this is in fact heavy rum.
Blueberries, raspberries, kiwi, black cherries, and diesel form the backbone of this dram. The nose carries some fruity but yeasty banana bread in the middle, with nutty and sweet marzipan joining in. Black cherry cobbler arrives on the palate, backed up by a burst of industrial paint thinner, before yielding to a multitude of fruits and, finally, common spices of anise and cinnamon. The finish is oaky yet fruity, with berries, spices, and the bitter earthiness of ground espresso.
Chairman's Reserve has done it again! This is a treasure, showing its age with oak influence, with its maturity (only slightly) tempering the wild fruits and petrol. I look forward to savoring this bottle for quite some time. Cheers!