Foursquare 2006 Redoutable 14-Year

Updating my ratings tonight after sampling some older Foursquare. Nobiliary, 2008, Detente and Redoutable, in reverse order. This one stays the same. Right off the bat this 14 year old full cask strength let’s you know it. Without any breathing this great rum packs a punch with lots of lingering flavors. In comparison Detente is much easier to drink. This one is much more special, a small cube of ice mellows it out to a superb taste. I’m not sure why Florida is lagging so far behind in new issues, have had to order the past offerings out of state.

I prefer Foursquare’s aging in Bourbon casks + something casks. In this case it is Madeira. And it is an excelent combination. You will feel madeira there for sure.
Pleasant smell,light alcohol burn even it is 61%,medium aftertaste.
Our local dealer started to sell on Monday 18.1.Today ,Wensday 20.1. I wanted to order more bottles but everything is sold out.
P.S.
It is really 61% ?!

I bought this bottle as a little gift to myself for my birthday and this may be one of the best presents I ever had. This is what I always dreamed a rum should be. For a 122 proof there is almost no alcohol smell out of the bottle or in the glass. But it sure has some warmth and burn doing down the throat, but in a great way. Love the flavors and spices, especially the way it coats my tongue, and it has nice subtle sweetness. This is something special! I can't recommend this enough!

Please be kind as my nose and palate are not the best. Just cracked this open and tried it. That 61% abc makes a big difference! Yowza! At first, neither my wife nor I could smell much past the alcohol. I gave it a bit and seemed to get notes of grapes, vanilla, and cinnamon, all very mild though. The initial tastes on the palate were; some spices, a slight sweetness, hints of the Madeira, a very slight oakiness. It had a slight burn that lingered on the tongue and was dry.

I added a few drops of water and noted some nice changes. The nose was a bit sweeter, reminding me of a pastry at first. After a bit, it seemed to find a bit of buttercream frosting. That struck me as odd! It became more buttery on the palate with hints of toffee and a wonderful sweet heat.

Glad I bought two bottles.

After tasting this again, without worrying about teasing out the individual scents, flavors and notes, I found this even more amazing. Poured a bit, let it rest, and then just enjoyed it as I sipped. Not worrying about the minutiae meant I just enjoyed it. I've updated my rating to a 10.

At first this was a 9 and now (after some air has been allowed into the bottle) I would rate as a 10. For the price these Foursquare ECS are hard to beat. When you consider that Doorlys 14 is a superb rum that costs £65 but for not much more these limited ECS releases provide stunning value for money. Of course finding one in the UK and EU is almost impossible because they sell out with minutes of release. I can’t wait for the next releases…

In overall FS deliver high standard and this is also one of them. I think it is a bit “sweet” compared to other FS and it doesn’t feel dry compared to other FS i have tasted. Quite pleasant thinking of high ABV 61. Nose i sense black tea, Orange and salty caramel. I taste sour notes, dried fruit, some pepper spices. One of the more interesting from the ECS series i think.

Aroma is wooden and fruity - need some time to breath. Taste is nicely sweet (natural only) with tropical fruits and wood. After comes the burning and taste become more dry. Aftertaste is long and nice. The taste is similar to FQ 2008 but bit more burning. Another gem from FQ Exceptional Cask Serie 🤩 9.5 points.

I love Foursquare products for many reasons: They're delicious. They don’t use additives. They embody the true essence of rum distillation.

Redoubtable 14 year Madeira cask is an amazing expression in Foursquare’s lineup. It features ex bourbon and ex Madeira cask aging and a rich golden color.

On the nose, the high ABV is immediately noticeable, so letting this rum rest a bit is wise. After it settles, the sweetness of the Madeira mixed with the honey and molasses notes make me want to dive in and drink it. There’s a hint of pepper and some spice as well.

On the palate, the fruity and spice combine with sweetness and a strong burn that I enjoy. Definite honey and molasses notes linger as well as the pepper.

The finish is relatively short for a rum this strong. Most notable is the honey a cotton candy flavor that lingers in your nose.

Of the Foursquare products, this is in my top two, challenging Empery for top honors.

You can’t go wrong with this bottle.

Smell: Very ripe and sweet. Caramel, burnt sugar, lots of dried fruits, intense barrel aromas. The barrel smells stronger than in other Foursquare bottlings. Oak, vanilla from the bourbon barrel, hazelnut, earthy barrel aromas. It's very mature and intense.

Taste: caramel, burnt sugar, dried fruits, bitter substances (tannins of the cask). The sharpness increases and the dark barrel aromas explode. Tannins appear, vanilla, lots of wood. Incredibly woody foursquare. The finish is again sweet and ripe, dried fruits, then very woody with oak and vanilla.

Aftertaste: dried fruit, barrel aromas, wood

Conclusion: a difficult case, on the one hand very ripe and sweet, on the other hand, not particularly complex, in some sections exaggerated and unbalanced. For me this is basically an undiluted version of Detente.
A balanced version of Redoutable would be Doorlys 14 and it's also the best rum of this three bottlings.

Overall rating: 87 points

Sweetness: 3/5
Fruit: 2/5
Sharpness: 4/5
Value 100 €: 2.5 / 5

One of the best pours of my life! The taste is unbelievable. Worth every penny of the cost!