I do love madeira casks. I thought Doorlys 14 used to mention madeira casks but can't find any mention of it now 🤔 Reassuring that you get a slight navy rum theme from Seales too. Navy Rum was really my first experience with rum. I think for a lot of brits it will probably be navy rum or bacardi that gives us our first taste. And I too still enjoy a good old Navy Rum. Cheers 🥃

Interesting! Thanks for the info. Have you compared the two? That's one hell of a price difference...

I have compared. Both good with slightly different profiles. 12 is definitely not worth almost double the price.

Good to know that there's a difference (I'll seek out a sample of the 12 if I can find one) but not surprising that it doesn't warrant the price increase. The 10 is already a fine dram 👍

Rum is such a broad spectrum isn't it? Much more so than Scotch, which itself is much more varied than Brandy and Bourbon. And every style of rum is fantastic when you're in that mood 👍 Thanks for the confidence in my recommendation and I'm very pleased that you're enjoying it as much as me. I can definitely see that link with Bains that you mention. Cheers 🥃

Glad to help! I haven't tried Black Tot yet but I do like a good navy rum so I will seek it out. Great idea adding madeira. Cheers 🥃

Cheers mate 🥃

That would be really great. Probably unlikely as there are so many countries producing rum to their own standards but even the few who have opted for a quality presentation is kind of refreshing compared to the vast majority of Scotch distilleries who seem so reluctant! Cheers 🥃

If you like Doorlys and you're OK with a little more cask I think it's fantastic! Cheers 🥃

Absolutely! Anyone who isn't sold on rum should start with a Doorlys or Seales and if they still don't like it then that's fair enough. They will be very few though! 🥃

A very broad spectrum indeed. Comparing something like a clarin to a navy rum there's almost nothing in common! Which makes rum even more intriguing IMHO 🥃

Hi Piotr! Most of the antimalternative bunch have probably left by now anyway 😂 Veritas is very much on my radar although I've not tried it yet. I did really enjoy the Hampden 8 I had last year and recently I've been loving a Long Pond TECC and a Velier Worthy Park 👍 Cheers 🥃

I know exactly what you mean. All style and no substance is a common thing in spirits and weird bottles put me off too. I actually really like distilleries that use plain, generic bottles with a straight forward label. You know that no part of the sale price has been wasted on branding. This weird and whacky bottle from Richard Seale is very, very good though. If you like cask aged Barbardian rum then it's well worth buying a bottle. I'll be reviewing Vaval this month. I'm glad you enjoyed Communal too. I really liked that but the price difference between communal and the single distillery bottlings seems to be getting smaller which makes the good stuff the smart buy. I've tried all four of the clairins that you mention and they're all fantastic. I do think that Vaval and Sonson are the best. To me they are the most unusual and bold. Although they're all great. Vaval is an easy one to move onto after Communal. Very fruity and grassy. Sonson 2018 is a beast. Fruity, sweet and sour, blueberry, earthy, smoky! It's the wildest clairin I've had... but be warned that the bottle of Sonson 2020 I bought was corked and has serious issues... if you're considering buying a bottle that has a natural cork (most are synthetic) then perhaps steer clear. Cheers 🥃

Thanks for the reply, Shane. Looking forward to the Vaval review and I will definitely add the RL Seale to my list of rums to buy. Cheers! @@WhiskyLock

That's a great price for what you get. I think the price here is a little high... but still worth it. I will stock up if I see a discount. Cheers John 🥃

Mezcals are a funny one in the UK, we went through a very dry spell where a lot of the best stuff wasn’t being exported over here. I was in a bottle shop a while back and stumbled upon a bottle that hadn’t been sold over here since about 2013, so there’s some stuff out there though.

There are great Tequilas and Mezcals to be had. Sometimes patchy availability and I have seen certain things going up in price. What isn't, right? I still really enjoy Mezcal in particular, agave reviews have fallen by the wayside a little because there are just so many things I want to review right now. I did buy a Mezcal recently though which I will hopefully review soon 🎭 Cheers 🥃

Another wonderful funky bottle! I haven't tried that one. Doesn't seem as easy to find over here. Cheers 🥃

Fine indeed. I've been really enjoying this. Thanks for the recommendation. Cheers 🥃

Cheers 🥃

If you mean added sugar then Foursquare never add any. Detectable sugar in the bottle will be negligible like any natural rum. It is sweet (like any natural rum) but I'd say less sweet than the Doorlys. It has more of a dry oaky edge. Hope this helps 🥃

Well, I've just ordered a bottle so soon I'll be able to see for myself! My only reference would be the Diplomático Reserva Exclusiva 12YO of which I've got a bottle, which supposedly contains 19 g. of sugar per liter. In total, not added, I think.

@@torbjornkarlsen congrats and enjoy! 🥃 I'm not sure about that exact expression but Dilpomatico do add sugar to a lot of their rums. Sometimes a lot. Sometimes a little. Some may be natural. 19g/L is a LOT though. There should be negligible sugar in any natural rum. A lot of people crap on Dilplomatico rums. I actually think they can be quite nice. Many are essentially rum Liqueurs and very different to stuff like RL Seales... but still enjoyable IMHO.

@@WhiskyLock I don't regret getting the Diplomatico, it's nice enough for beginners, but it'll be good to have a rum for grownups as well. Ramping up the sweetness is a cheap trick seen all across the drinks industry to mask faults, or a general lack of flavour and viscosity. Yes, I'm looking at you, cheap Italian wines!

@@WhiskyLock I also ordered another one, the Havana Club Seleccion de Maestros. Supposedly a good blend, only 5 g./liter sugar, and surprisingly cheap here in Norway. The Seales also, I think both are cheaper here than in the UK, and I don't see that every day.