We've had some brilliant stuff from Distilia before, the first three of their Golden Age of Piracy series, and this time we've got three more joining the crew - Samuel Bellamy, Charles Vane and Woodes Rogers.

For those yet unacquainted, Distilia is an independent bottler and retailer of spirits, and also runs Whiskymarket.com, focusing on rums, whiskies and cognacs. They've got an incredible hand at selection as we've seen in our previous review of their first set of rums from the Golden Age of Piracy, which of course, follows the history of some notable characters, as well as their Floral Rum series, which they've partnered with the popular auction site, Catawiki.

As it turns out they were also rated the Top Independent Bottler of Rums for 2022 by the Rum-X community. So we're pretty excited to give this second part of the Golden Age of Piracy series a go.

The Caribbean will always be the heart of rum-making. (Image Source: Conde Nast)

The theme of following pirates of lore comes hand in hand with rum culture. Seafarers - pirates and navy - have always had a penchant for the Caribbean islands. The navy had to protect the lucrative trade going to and fro the islands, and it was the pirates' job to get in on the action. What more, these sun-soaked archipelagos were geographically diverse and fragmented, leaving room for hideouts and whole islands to simply dock the ship and enjoy the island, the white sands and the pristine waters.

And what was the spirits of choice in these islands? Rum, of course!

These islands held vast reserves of sugarcane, which were used to supply the sugar trade, and yet a byproduct of which, molasses, had nowhere to go and became the natural base for rum-making.

The sugar trade kicked off rum-making but it's stayed even centuries since, with many rum estates boasting centuries of heritage. (Image Source: Caribbean Loop)

While the sugar trade has largely left the islands, the culture of rum-making has stayed, and while rums are also today made around the world, "anywhere you can find sugarcane" as the saying goes, the Caribbeans will always be the cradle of life for rums. 

Till this day, if you meet any seafarer, without a doubt, they'd cite the Caribbeans as bar none the destination of choice, albeit these days typically on the deck of a megayacht. And with that comes a taste for rum.

So let's have a swing at it! First up, we have:

“Woodes Rogers” New Yarmouth 1994, 27 Year Old, Distilia’s The Golden Age of Piracy Series, 67.1% ABV - Review

Despite being part of the Golden Age of Piracy series, Woodes Rogers was actually on the other site of the coin - he was most well-known for being a privateer (a sea captain whose attack fleets are for hire), riding the Bahamas of pirates and for fending off the Spanish. 

The bottling itself comes from Jamaica's New Yarmouth which belongs under the fold of Appleton Estate. As such, you can expect that their rums are alot less in the funky style of what Jamaican rums have come to be synonymous with, and would usually tend towards something closer to the Demerara's, at least in my experience.

It's pretty well-known that New Yarmouth is the better half of Appleton, but as the distillery itself is primarily geared towards supplying the Wray & Nephew blend, you're only going to find their rums from independent bottlers. But as we all know, not every indie bottler gets the same pickings, so you're going to have to look for one who gets first pick at the draft.

Tasting Note

Color: Deep Amber

Aroma: Powerful, expressive lacquered wood and five spice pours forth. It develops into a more herbal note of ivy leaf, eucalyptus and manuka honey - incredibly aromatic and unctuous. More heady aromas of white florals and lilies, as well as fresh laundry. It keeps opening up as you allow it to air - blooming into a full bulb of fragrant exotic lacquered woods and herbal honey. Belying that hefty dark honey and polished wood are more on cherries, caramel and peanut brittle, almost bourbon-like. 

Taste: While the aromas convey a sense of antiquity, on the palate it remains lively and vibrant. Dark herbal honey, sandalwood and Maraschino cherries takes the fore. It continues to brighten into a less sweet but earthier note of tobacco leaf, leather, candied ginger and sarsaparilla or liquorice. There’s also chestnut cream and caramel, as well. 

Finish: It gets almost grainy in texture here as the herbal honey recedes, and the the peanut brittle notes become more apparent. The woodiness begins to become more distinct as well, a sort of charred wood or charcoal note, somewhat savoury-umami and astringent, although it holds short of getting too drying. Coffee grounds are the last impressions.

My Thoughts

Incredible, incredible aromas. You could nose it for hours. It opens up slightly hot and solventy (what did you expect with a 67.1% ABV?), but this fades in a matter of seconds to reveal and incredible bloom of deep, rich herbal honey, florals and polished woods. As it continues to open up, it gave cherries and peanut brittle, almost Bourbon-like. If you’re a Bourbon-fan, boy you’re going to have a ball of a time with this. The aromas conveyed the age but the palate revealed a completely different side - vibrant and lively. 

It tasted great, that’s no surprise. However, - and I shudder to engage in hyperboles - I must make special mention that the nose was ungodly - just an amazingly rich and powerfully expressive nose that was pitch perfect.

“Charles Vane” Long Pond 1983, 38 Year Old, Distilia’s The Golden Age of Piracy Series, 52.5% ABV - Review

First off, let's address the elephant in the room - this is an astoundingly well-aged Long Pond. At 38 Years Old, it's quite a feat and really puts it as one of the oldest out there. At 52.5% ABV, that's also something worth noting given the age. That's especially remarkable as Long Pond, while has been garnering lots of increasing interest, has had a spotty operational history, having stopped and started and stopped and more recently restarted production. 

This is a real piece of history and has weathered a long bumpy ride that the distillery has experienced and gives us a rare glimpse of what Long Pond's (original) distillate would have tasted like before its subsequent reopenings. We're always looking for a way to get a sense of what a distillery's character might be like from as far back as possible right? Exciting!

Tasting Note

Color: Gold

Aroma: It starts off gentle but aromatic with olive brine, flambed banana, vanilla cream, and that oh so classic engine oil note. The umami-savouriness of the olive brine stands out most, while the other notes melt into fresh banana bread and a light gluey note. A last nosing shows more on green bananas, peach fuzz, and cucumber.

Taste: Punchier on the palate - it opens with overripened banana, banana concentrate, and also a nutty but estery marzipan. There’s a green citrusy note of yuzu or citron. There’s a dash of freshly chopped herbs - mints and parsley. This is accompanied by a really distinct green olive brine - the dirtiest of martini’s. The fusel oil acetone note shows up as well - really greasy and accentuated. Texture-wise, this is lighter and more silky.

Finish: It fades out to leave an intense acetone, olive brine and green bananas. Somehow, with time it grows in warmth. Sensorially, it’s really enjoyable.

My Thoughts

This is surprisingly approachable for its age but it has certainly distilled itself to its more distinctive DNA. Despite its mellow-ness, it has a refinement that opens the fore on multiple fronts that is classic Jamaican - the brine, the acetone and the bananas - all really defined. This is quite an experiment in complexity and will definitely stretch your palate across vast swaths of profiles that somehow bring it back together cohesively. Given the age, you really got to give it to the folks at Distilia that this has held up incredibly well structurally and have retained its full flavor and the distillery's DNA. A real piece of history, wow!

“Samuel Bellamy” Uitvlugt 1991, 30 Year Old, Distilia’s The Golden Age of Piracy Series, 62% ABV

Likely contender for most difficult distillery to pronounce, and yet we bear the bane of looking stupid trying to pronounce it because Uitvlugt (supposedly pronounced "eye-flute") forms a core part of the legendary Demerara rums.

For those who're just focused on the drinking and less on the history, let's do a quick background check. Uitvlugt was once a Dutch-owned distillery in Guyana (hence the name), and was later shuttered in a broad national consolidation of rum producers. They were unique and famous for their wooden pot stills made of local greenheart wood, which could stand high heat. These stills were later acquired by the ultimate entity, the Diamond Distillery, which has consolidated several of these historical wooden stills.

There's more to it obviously, but this is probably the more pertinent when it comes to the final smoky woody taste that its come to be famous for.

Tasting Note

Color: Mahogany

Aroma: Accessible - this opens up nicely with cherries, eucalyptus and a nuttiness. It’s bright yet expressive, with spices of nutmeg and clove that stands out. There’s more tea tannins here and also freshly shaven oak. Over time, the red fruits concentrates with more on tart pomegranates and a more accentuated combination of herbaceousness and old wood.

Taste: A totally unexpected twist! Here it is more medicinal and herbaceous at the start with just a spoonful of manuka honey, but quickly turns into espresso and latte. Deep arabica notes begin to show up mid-palate with a surprising milky, creaminess that accompanies it. There’s also a woodiness of dry wood, the sort you’d find by a fireplace, with a char and some smokiness.

Finish: It continues to evolve and most distinctively presents a smoky herbal woodiness that is of five spice, marmite (or soy sauce), cooking wine, burnt brown sugar and just a bit of balsamic (in Asia, you’d find this in claypot, braised dishes). It gets texturally grittier as it recedes with the wood char becoming more apparent.

My Thoughts

The aromas were brighter here and opened up more quickly, but what really took the cake was the palate where it continued to evolve from one profile to the next in remarkable fashion. What started out medicinal and of herbal honey, turned into a freshly brewed arabica espresso and creamier still, into something of a latte. It finished off with a braised herbal umaminess that was deep and earthy. 

This was quite the experience - the evolution of the palate was just unbelievable and showed so much complexity and robustness. It was able to deliver both contrasting deep and bright flavours, rich and lively, overall tending towards a smokier, muscular, savoury-umami profile. 

Overall 

In total a great new series of additions to Distilia's Golden Age of Piracy range. The nose on the New Yarmouth was just bar none, while the palate on the Uitvlugt was so complex and robust, it just kept evolving - ridiculous! The Long Pond is obviously a real timewarp into the past, which is always going to be revelled. My sense is that the Long Pond is definitely going to be a collector's hot favorite, and Uitvlugt's will always have their Demerara fanbase, but for me personally, the New Yarmouth was my personal favorite and I really had a phenomenal time nosing it and i really enjoyed how Bourbon-esque it was.

Kanpai!

@111hotpot