Foursquare 2005 Port Cask Finish 9-Year

Nose: Rum, real and proper rum. Some light toffee and vanilla, slightly grassy and dry with some buzzing oaky notes coming through. Under the heavy-weight rum and bourbon notes the port starts to come out to play and then the depth of this rum starts to show itself; dark berries, plums and black cherry. Rich dark chocolate liquors of some type., light fruity coffee (something like a Kenyan Peaberry), and some good spices – cinnamon, cloves, black pepper. The faintest suggestion of banana off in the distance too. Beautiful and really well balanced, the nose is delivered in layers without one aspect pushing it’s way through for dominance.

Palate: Well the nose was pretty good, lets see what the palate has to offer. Medium mouth-feel, dry, good level of coating. Dry. Oak, dry. The flavours jump straight out, it’s quite a big flavour despite the low abv; follows the nature of the nose with bourbon cask first showing plenty of caramel and vanilla on the first sip but the port shows up sooner than on the nose and leads with under-ripe plums, black grapes and dates/prunes. Dry. After a few sips more starts to become available with some dark and bitter black chocolate, black coffee, nutmeg, and some black pepper.

Finish: Long. Dry. As the palate moves to the finish there is loads of fresh ground black pepper and cinnamon, it’s mouth puckering and slightly bitter (in a good way). There are some vague and suggested dark fruits on the finish but it’s mostly drying, bitter oaky chocolate that slowly drifts off as the finish fades.

More here: https://rumtastic.wordpress.com/2016/03/06/foursquare-port-cask-finish-review/

Foursquare distilleries in the South-East of Barbados does a fantastic line in single cask aged unadulterated rums.
Not blended, not from a solera, not sweetened, but given its own character from the treatment usually expected from a single malt whisky, and in this case - ageing in Bourbon and Port casks for 9 years.
The bottle is a bit disappointing - it is the standard bottle also used for a lot of the Doorly's with a cheap screw top.
In the glass the rum is a deep amber with a big, smooth aroma. None of the smokiness of the Doorly's XO, but with a deep warm port note, that carries all the way through.
In the mouth it is exceptionally smooth, with the raisin and fig notes given extra depth by the port finish. it is a dry rum without vanilla notes.
Finish is a gentle burn with the aroma lingering really well.
This is the kind of carefully crafted quality, that is turning me away from my entry favourites of Zacapa and Plantation, which focus on consistency by blending and appeal by adding sugar.
This stuff is inconsistently gorgeous!

I usually rate rums about a point below their consensus rating, because I've tried so many high quality rums. And I generally don't care that much for rums that are aged too much in bourbon, whiskey, and other such barrels. A lot of reviewers said this one had too much port aging. I respectfully disagree.

Smells and tastes of brown sugar, molasses, oak, vanilla, spice (cinnamon and nutmeg), with a little port, and just a very light touch of bourbon and pepper. Has a nice sweetness that is not overly sweet. At only $31.99 (Total Wines 2016), this rum is an absolute bargain.

I am really impressed by this rum; I rate it a high 9.

Nice and fruity nose with vanilla, banana, chocolate and a little bit of oak. Perhaps a bit of coffee as well, as it heats up in my palm. There's a very pleasant and fresh sweetness to it.
It has a nice and light texture in the mouth and an overall delicate expression, typical of many bajan rum.. The flavorful palette fits my bill with notes of juicy tropical fruits, ripe banana, vanilla and rounded oak. The finish ain't no explosion, but very nice with a lingering fruity, coffee sensation. This is exceptional value, if your into the non-sweetened, but very flavourful bajan rum's. One of my favorite styles.
This little port cask experiment from mr. seale turned out just right and I do hope more of this kind is on the way.

Heavy port nose, sweet on taste with raisen finish, but unmistakable foursquare light burn at the end. Unique and

This is how rum should taste, Richard seal is a genius

Number two of the Foursquare's Exceptional Cask Series (ECS). Nine year old bottling that was stored for 3 years in Bourbon Cask and then for another 6 years in Port Cask.
Unfortunately bottled in 40%, that was common back then, believe it or not.

Smell: The nose is a bit subtle, I notice a lot of dried fruit, mainly red fruits, cranberries, cherries, raisins, blackberries. Some gum, similar to sherry, follows. In the background there is some bourbon wood aroma with a little vanilla and a darker barrel aroma. A good smell for the 9 years, but unfortunately the dilution has taken away a lot of the intensity. The rum may got nicely balanced as a result.

Taste: Thin start with burnt sugar, vanilla and some dried fruits (raisins, plums, some red fruit). Of course, the dilution is noticeable, but the flavors are good. It becomes woodier in the mouth, barrel aromas follow and also some tannins with wood. It also becomes astringent in the mouth, tannins in combination with dried fruit are now strongly present on the palate. Now we have the red fruit here.
In the finish, the sharpness increases, it teases the palate slightly. The tannins come out a little more and the oak now dominates the taste. The barrel aromas and dried fruits are still on the palate.

A nice Foursquare for only 9 years, I don't know whether that is the dilution or whether it was already good in barrel strength. It was definitely intense and quite good in cask strength.
The dilution took away a lot from it, but it offers nice complexity for the 9 years.
I'm not sure if I'd rather have this one or a simpler detente with more abv. I would go for the Detente, rum means intensity of flavors for me.
If diluted to 40%, then maybe sweetened so that the intensity remains correspondingly high.

Overall rating: 85 points

Sweetness: 1.5 / 5
Fruit: 3/5
Seasoning: 2.5 / 5
PL (50€): 3/5 meanwhile not available >500€

Smooth, with sweetness and lots of dried fruits. Complex

Beautiful bronze reddish colour in the glass. The second maturation in the port cask the aromas ore not overpowering. Overall nicely balanced with a more fruity type notes coming up front. Taste is a bit light for a bajan rum but again is nicely balanced with fruity notes leading into more dark fruits, caramel, spice with plenty of tannins. Nice creamy mouthfeel. A nice sweetish dry finish.

Another great rum from Foursquare and wish I had bought another bottle.

Let me say this beforehand...I am indeed biased at the outset since I am a fan of Richard Seale's lineup of rums. I also have a huge amount of respect for the man due to his philosophy of being open and upfront about his product. No double-speak. No smoke-and-mirrors. No malarky.

Now with that being said...

[BTW, I do not work for Mr. Seale nor do I know him personally. Although I'd like to meet him and shake his hand.]

A beautiful amber hue with bronze on the edges. It has exceptional legs in my snifter. The rum slowly drifting down the sides in unbroken rivulets. The aroma is enticing and tickles my nose with some pepperiness.

Oh, and the flavor! Noticeable vanilla, caramel, and toffee with a peppery bite along with some tannin bitterness. There seems to be a little cinnamon in there as well (maybe I am imagining that). A little burn which fades rather quickly. It is a little dry. There is a natural sweetness to it from the port cask but not at all overwhelming. No sugaring. None. Nada. Any sweetness comes naturally from the sugar cane molasses and the woods in the barrels and casks.

This is a true rum lover's sipping rum. Any other company would charge close to $100 or more for something like this but I got mine for under $40. I was extremely surprised to find it locally since Foursquare products...in fact, any of Seale's rums...have ever been sold locally. I bought extra bottle in case the local availability was a fluke. I hope that the local stores might carry more of the Seale line of rums.

In short, this is arguably the best sipping rum in my collection and one I wholeheartedly endorse. Seek this one out, folks. This is what rum should always be.