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Plantation Rum Single Cask Haiti 2010
In the past decade the spirits industry has witnessed Maison Ferrand’s Plantation Rum line grow and diversify, becoming a favored product with some bars and consumers. Along with their core line of rums they have also produced an interesting selection of vintages and “Single Cask” products for rum fans to explore. This single cask product was produced at the Distillerie de Jeanty, home of Rhum Barbancourt, on the island of Haiti in 2010. The liquid was tropically aged for five years in used Bourbon Casks, then transported to France where it was continentally aged an additional two years in used French Oak Ferrand Cognac Casks. The rum was blended to 40.15 % ABV and bottled in 2018.
Plantation Rum Single Cask Haiti 2010
Appearance
The rum comes in a standard 750 mL bottle that has the Plantation logo embossed just below the neck. The label is loaded with details about the origin of the rum and the maturation process in Haiti and France as well as ester, volatile compounds and dosage content. One extra detail is the information that the bottle for this review was from Cask number 1, and bottle 142 of the vintage. The rum holds a dark amber color in the bottle and glass. Swirling the liquid creates a thin band around the glass that slowly thickens dropping equally thick legs down the sides of the glass.
Nose
The aroma of the rum leads with a sweet herbaceous smell of fresh cut sugarcane, lemongrass, lime peel and citric acid. As the rum rested, I detected additional notes of caramel, baking spices, cloves, dried apricots and rose petals, creating a lightly sweet floral perfume in the air.
Palate
The flavor of the rum rushes in with an array of fruit notes going high, while the deeper earthy oak and spice notes create the foundation. The fruit notes manifest as dried lime peel, barely ripe banana, Muscat wine, sweet sugary baked pears and cooked apples. Balancing and, at times, flattening the fruit flavors is an underlying mineral rich earthy note, charred oak, coconut husk, ginger, green bean and pepper. The sweet pear/Muscat wine notes and charred oak linger in a long finish before finally fading away.
Review
After evaluating this rum I am glad that Maison Ferrand disclosed the details about the additional aging in Cognac casks and that the rum had 12 grams of additives/dosage per liter. It helps explain some of the fruit and wine notes in the flavor profile and the underlying sweetness of the product. With that said, it is an interesting exploration of Haitian rum that has been heavily influenced by Ferrand Cognac casks, which gives it the distinctive Plantation Rum flavor profile that is present in most of their products. When recommending this rum I would ask the imbiber if they enjoy Plantation products, if so, pour away. This is, by design, a sipping rum, but I know some creative bartenders that could work some real magic dreaming up a cocktail with this product. As with all Plantation “Special Cask” products, there is a limited amount of this spirit available and eventually it will be gone. If you enjoy Plantation rums and are looking for something new to explore, you just might find this an interesting choice.
