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HSE XO Grande Reserve 8-Year rum

HSE XO Grande Reserve 8-Year

Martinique | Agricole | 43% ABV | Column Still (1-4) Distilled

7.8/10
45 ratings
Recommendable to most
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45 HSE XO Grande Reserve 8-Year Ratings

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Mads Bärenholdt 🇩🇰 | 11 ratings
Posted 10 years ago

Its taste of oil, wood, spices and "rubber", quite large notes. the taste is also quite oil, some wood, quite dry. the after burn is long, and you need to get a little more in you mouth for some time to start taste the alcohol. an good first try aqricole .

cesar 🇨🇭 | 24 ratings
Posted 9 years ago

Agressif odeur de dissolvant, en bouche ces Sec, piquant, poivree, un rhum fort a boire qui demande conaissance, dans la pure lignee des rhums martiniquais.

Jerry Gitany 🇫🇷 | 22 ratings
Posted almost 11 years ago

Nice amber color, very smooth with some notes of tobacco and spices like nutmeg and black pepper.

Polou 🇫🇷 | 63 ratings
Posted 11 months ago

HSE XO is a very good old agricol rum. I recommand it. the profile is very woody and the alcohol does not burn. the price is a little high for my taste like most old French rums…

jru 🇺🇸 | 113 ratings
Posted 1 year ago

Sweet, vanilla, caramel, some burnt sugar, whisky. It's really excellent so it's nitpicky but I prefer less oak/ smoky. There is a sharpess to it where I find it a little excessive but to each his own. If you prefer stronger whisky flavors, then you'll probably find that not to be an issue. Not surprising with an XO. Bought duty free in Martinique in 2022, a set of 3 little 20 cL bottle, including also the VSOP and the 50% Blanc 2016

Michal Micko (PREMIUM) 🇨🇿 | 642 ratings
Posted over 1 year ago

Typical aged agricole aroma. Taste is a bit sweet with grass, apples, flowers and a bit of smoked oak. Aftertaste could be longer, but otherwise very good aged agricole for fair price.

Mujuru 🇺🇸 | 152 ratings
Posted over 1 year ago

This is an AOC Rhum Agricole made from blend of rums made fresh pressed sugar cane juice and distilled on a column still. The rums in the blend were then aged exclusively in Limousin oak ex-cognac barrels. Most of the rums in the blend have been aged 10+ years. And purportedly some of the rums in this blend date as far back as 1960, which is frankly a little hard to believe. (But that comes from every source I can find…if someone else knows differently, please feel free to let me know).

In general, as far as aged Rhum Agricole goes, I prefer aging in Limousin casks for a couple reasons. First, I like the black pepper and spice notes it imparts on rums. Secondly, aging in Limousin oak releases more ellagic acid and associated tannins which are heavily anti-oxidant…so health!

That out of the way is this going to be my aged Agricole of choice?

On the nose first I get heavy Dark Chocolate. The next note is a bit difficult to describe, but imagine standing in the center of a musty, old Apple Barn and taking a big whiff. Next come Dark Cherries, old Leather, and slight Toffee. Behind that is the aroma of Mossy Rocks near a stream and a slightly bitter Tangerine Peel note.

Taking a sip throw all of the Nose notes out the window. I get a big ole mouthful of cracked black pepper and cognac. There is the Limousin oak talking. But hey the Dark Chocolate shows back up and with it a mouthful of Shiraz and just the faintest taste of Almonds.

The finish here is powerful and long. It’s overwhelmingly Black Pepper and a rather chest tingling Menthol overlayed with Peppermint and Smoke.

Overall this rum is good. It does get a little better as it goes along. I can definitely see what they are going for. There are a few notes in there that are fascinating, such as the Dark Cholocate and Smoky notes. However, the rum doesn’t especially blow me away. I kept going back to it to see if I could find some sort of rich fruit or even confectionary notes and there just aren’t any. This rum is extremely earthy and umami. Even the Dark Chocolate notes reference the bitter unsweetened kind. If richly earthy and musty is your thing, you will like this.

To me, while I can appreciate the profile they are aiming for, it comes across as a bit too lackluster for my preferences. Neisson Reserve Speciale continues to be the far superior option in this category to my tastes. It should still work excellently in my cocktails requiring aged Rhum Agricole.

Short Description: Sugarcane Cognac aged in smoked barrels that previously contained raw chocolate sitting in a musty warehouse

ABV: 43%

Country of Origin: Martinique

Distillery: Habitation Saint-Etienne

Nose: Dark Chocolate, Musty Apple Barn, Black Cherries, old Leather, Toffee, Mossy Rocks, Tangerine Peel

Palate: Cracked Black Pepper, Cognac, Dark Chocolate, Shiraz, faint Almonds

Finish: Cracked Black Pepper, Menthol, Peppermint, Smoke

Final Thoughts: For true Agricole lovers, I imagine this could be quite a treat. And in some respects it’s pretty good, but it lacks intensity in its notes beyond the black pepper of the Limousin oak aging. I can definitely see what they are going for, but this specific balance just doesn’t pop for me.

Morgan 🇫🇷 | 4 ratings
Posted almost 2 years ago

To start with the bottle, when you grab it you can imagine yourself on a boat with your pirate crew. Other than that inside this bottle you will find a quick taste of caribean heaven. Let's go directly to the palate and appreciate the sweet sugar juice you can feel on the first sip, also rich vanilla and oak. The more you sip the more you will appreciate it for sure.

Xfabreguettes 🇬🇧 | 22 ratings
Posted almost 2 years ago

Dryer than I thought, but that’s not a bad thing. A bit nutty too I find, xo gives the standard HSE more complexity, nice one…

max265 🇮🇹 | 23 ratings
Posted 2 years ago

A me piacciono i rum dolci, questo è particolarmente secco e legnoso, ma ha un bouquet complesso e molto interessante.
Persistenza pazzesca.

IBO 🇸🇰 | 193 ratings
Posted over 2 years ago

Za mňa je VSOP krajší, plnší. Tento XO profilovo veľmi podobný,ale napriek vyššiemu veku bol zjemneny až príliš.




Brand Details

Name: XO Grande Reserve 8-Year
Years Aged: 8
ABV: 43%
Type: HSE
Raw Material: Cane Juice
Process: Unknown
Distillation: Column Still (1-4)
Women leading Rum: No