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Posted
over 4 years ago
43 % abv. Nice amber colour in the glass , on the nose , slight honey sweetness , bits of white fruits and a peppery spice note.
Tastes of smokey grass / earthy flavours.. not that pleasant.. very dry , no notable sweetness , could do with more fruit notes. A young rhum as there's quite a burn in the mouth. Long exit but then the worst part of the whole experience.. I feel like I've been chewing wet grass in a damp cellar... !
Posted
almost 5 years ago
For a very old is cheap and it taste like it, it's pretty hot and rough.
Posted
almost 5 years ago
A problem I often face with aged agricoles is that they lose a lot of that grassiness and delicious vegetal profile after barreling, and they tend to mellow out just too much for me. This VSOP from Rhum J.M does that just so, and as much as I like their blanc, this just doesn't excite me the same way.
Posted
almost 5 years ago
The nose reveals just barely notes of grass, cane juice and caramelised fruit amongst a quite strong presence of oak that is diversified with some clove and ginger.
The palate leaves you wondering for just the split of a second wether it is a Calvados or a cognac brut, but then the unmistakable grassy, sweet cane juice aroma comes through. Quite long aftertaste of spice and oak with hints of caramelised apple.
It is absolutely a decent and “correct” VSOP, but aged agricoles are expensive and this is not for entry level candidates. A friend of mine with a quite well trained palate but little experience with rhum agricole was bewildered as to what he was drinking. If you want to sip an agricole I would try some XO or rare vintages. Or try to make an old fashioned with this one a couple of times, perhaps also a knickerbocker or something, before revisiting it straight.
Posted
almost 5 years ago
As others have noted, there is a distinct peppery note in this agricole, and the oak is very upfront. Behind that lies the grassiness of a traditional agricole. Not as balanced as I was expecting, but I certainly wouldn't turn down a 'ti punch vieux made with this juice.
Posted
5 years ago
First time I drink a rhum agricole without this distinct flavour of grass. Quite good, touches of caramel, nuts, woody, really, not bad at all
Posted
over 5 years ago
Here we go again with yet another Martiniquan rhum agricole that the cane juice too easily picks up on the wooden flavors. Since this one is a fairly young VSOP, it has less of the wood than the 10 Year Clement that I just rated. This one is also way over priced at $58 and I found it at the next liquor store for a whopping $15 cheaper. Even if I had got the cheaper priced one, this rhum is still not a good buy. It almost reminds me of Ezra Brooks 101, which is a dirt cheap Kentucky bourbon. Stick with the cheaper J M Rhums for your first try. In the end, this rhum is nothing more than an expensive mixer.
Posted
over 5 years ago
This particular agricole was salty during nosing, then grass and compost and after careful extraction also cognac barrels.
Posted
over 5 years ago
Très sucré pour du agricole mais pas si facile à boire à cause de l alcool beaucoup trop agressif pour moi.
Je le trouve plutôt caramélisé
Posted
over 5 years ago
Rum festival cardiff! Decent agricole fresh and tasty. 4 year old
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Interesting but something just doesn't fit...
5
/10
out of 10
Most of the agricole rums I've tried have been from Clement and I have liked them all to varying degrees. I even managed to snag a bottle of Rhum JM Gold which I liked rather well (rated it an "8").
So I had rather high expectations for the Rhum JM VSOP.
First thing is that apparently at some point they redesigned the label on the bottle. The bottle above used by RumRatings has an older label which has an old world charm to it with the artwork and hand lettering. Looking at it reminds me of the era of Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec and his poster art of the late 19th century. The current label all but eliminates that impression. The art on the earlier label had a more ornate and interesting portrayal of what I assume to be a distillery of some historic point. The lettering was made to look as if it were done by hand (and it very well could have been so). The colors had an artistic feel in of themselves.
The newer label lost all that charm in my opinion. The lettering is all mechanical (even the cursive). The artwork is much plainer. And the colors have no depth at all. It is less appealing.
Now off my art critic soapbox. Let's look at the rum itself. It is a deep amber color with a hint of bronze. It has nice legs and beads of the rum cling to the sides after settling from a swirl in my snifter. It has a recognizable agricole aroma but nothing harsh.
The flavor does have that grassiness and funk normally associated with agricole rums but this rums seems spicier. A definite pepperiness. And strong. Really strong. There is just a hint...and I mean minute hint of cane juice sweetness but this is a dry rum. Also it has a rather strong and lengthy burn. It is a slightly higher proof than most rums (43% ABV - 86 proof) but the burn is one I would expect from 95 proof or higher. The finish is dry as I would expect. However there is a flavor in the mix that I cannot quite identify. It is a flavor that I find odd and out-of-place. Sort of a kerosene type of flavor. I don't like it whatever it is. It's very pronounced on my palate drinking it straight however on the plus side it does seem to be lessened when used in Coke Zero. Just be careful not to overdo it on the rum. About an ounce-and-a-half for a 500ml (16.9 fl oz) bottle of Coke Zero seems to work best for me. I also think it would work well in citrus-based drinks. I haven't had the opportunity to try some. The downside is the price. At $50 USD a bottle (I've seen it as high as $60 USD online) it is a pricy rum. Frankly I don't think it's worth it. It's far too harsh to be a sipping rum and the strong flavoring limits it as a mixer.
I had higher expectations for this rum and was disappointed. I feel the Rhum JM Gold is much better as agricole rums go. There are comparable agricole rums that are less expensive and better than the Rhum JM VSOP.